12 Startups Qualifies for the $120k ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator Programme
The inaugural ARM Labs Lagos Techstars accelerator, which offers access to up to US$120,000 in equity capital and other sorts of support, has chosen twelve African digital startups.
The first edition of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars accelerator will last for three months. It was established by Techstars, a global investment company that offers early-stage entrepreneurs access to capital, individualized mentoring, and customized programming, in collaboration with ARM Labs, a Lagos-based innovation program dedicated to assisting fintech startups.
The initial batch, which is targeted at early-stage African fintech and prop-tech entrepreneurs, consists of 10 Nigerian and two Kenyan businesses, with female CEOs overseeing half of them.
The 15-member screening committee and Techstars managing director Oyin Solebo conducted many interviews with the chosen founders, as well as a final interview with them.
Every chosen firm receives up to $120,000 in equity capital, access to training, and a sizable investor network. On March 16, there will be a demo day to wrap off the program.
The chosen Nigerian businesses include peppa.io, which uses payment protection to make purchases on social media platforms safer; CDcare, which uses clever installment plans to make it simple for Africans to own gadgets, appliances, cars, and more with no interest; and Flick, which lets users connect multiple bank accounts and make payments all from one place.
Keza, which enables consumers to acquire new and used cellphones on an adjustable payment schedule, and Keble, which enables Africans at home and abroad to buy fractional interests of international real estate.
The following Nigerian companies were also chosen: Vittas, a digital lender for healthcare providers; Sidebrief, which streamlines the process of starting and scaling a business across borders; Towntalk, which gives shippers access to real-time location and behavioral analytics, vehicle tracking, and insurance providers; Salad, which gives employees access to financial services and benefits beyond their monthly paycheck; and Oystr Finance, which gives lenders an infrastructure for lending.
The two Kenyan firms taking part in the initiative are Cladfy, which offers credit profiling, digitized loan management, and access to affordable, dependable funding for microfinance lenders, and alphabloQ, a real estate investing platform.
“Since Techstars’ arrival in Lagos was announced, there has been a lot of excitement surrounding the selection of the inaugural cohort. We have selected entrepreneurs who have the potential to be extraordinary founders, startups with the potential to be industry leaders, and a cohort that is collectively capable of delivering innovation and change to Africa and the rest of the globe after a competitive application process,” added Solebo.
