A $300 MILLION VC Fund for minorities; Everybody Hates Millennials; Kaepernick forms a SPAC; Waffles + Mochi.
A weekly newsletter for Black and Brown women highlighting entrepreneurship and venture capital in the tech ecosystem.
Happy Sunday, Happy Galentine’s Day, or Happy Valentine’s Day!
It all depends on how you’re spending it. Due to the lockdown, the traditional dinner in a restaurant is off the table this year but you can still make use of technology and order a special meal, order flowers, and even an online babysitter. It’s also Sunday, so why not spend a part of it experiencing a restorative day of self-care. I will be.
Reddit’s valuation doubles to $6 Billion after funding round. Twitter says Trump ban is permanent. Facebook is building a smartwatch. A Clubhouse clone. Disney+ has 95 million subscribers (compared to Netflix at 200 million). Mark Cuban is getting in on the audio and podcasting hype. Harry Stebbings, the podcaster and investor, has left the VC firm he co-founded with Fred Destin. Twitter to charge?
INSIGHTS
Highlighting notable funding to Black Founders in 2020
-Crunchbase
The Case for Inclusion & Diversity in VC in Latin America
-Meghan Stevenson-Krausz / INCA Ventures
Everybody Hates Millennials: Gen Z and the TikTok Generation Wars
-Sejla Rizvic / The Walrus
53 Black founders and investors to watch in 2021
-Pitchbook
Research: How Companies Committed to Diverse Hiring Still Fail
-Judd Kessler and Corinne Low / Harvard Business Review
2020 Africa Tech Venture Capital Report
-Partech
12 Things I Learned From Marc Andreessen
-Tren Griffin and Marc Andreessen
OPPORTUNITIES, FUNDING & COMPETITIONS
VC Lab is a FREE virtual program that helps new managers to launch accelerators, pre-seed, seed or Series A venture capital firms globally. Apply by February 15, 2021.
Female Founders Office Hours on February 19, 2021. Apply by February 15 for a 1-on-1 conversation with VC industry experts from Speedinvest and the Borski Fund.
Fast Company Queer 50 is the only ranking of queer women and non-binary people transforming the world of business, tech, and beyond. Submit nominations by February 26, 2021.
Sony Startup Acceleration Program 2021. A virtual 10-week program + 50K € investment in your startup. Apply by February 28, 2021.
FounderVine Fellowship-Cohort 3 is for a selected group of value-driven leaders in digital fields, entrepreneurs, and subject matter experts who collectively develop aspiring entrepreneurs through skills development and mentoring. Apply by February 28, 2021.
SoGal Black Founder Grants of $5K and $10K to Black women entrepreneurs. Applications are rolling.
UPCOMING (VIRTUAL) EVENTS
In celebration of Black History Month, join VCFamilia & HBCUvc for The Afro-LatinxVC Experience. February 18, 2021.
Startup Grind Global Conference, February 22-25, 2021.
Founders Only Night hosted by Zane Access, featuring a fireside chat with Tope Awotona, Founder and CEO of Calendly. February 24, 2021.
Let's Make Black History: An IFundWomen of Color Pitch Competition. February 25, 2021.
Outlander Labs' Inaugural Demo Day.March 2, 2021.
ON OUR RADAR
Gordon Parks: Beautiful photos of an ugly history
Clubhouse Is the Anti-Twitter.
We need a Marshall Plan for Moms—a plan to pay our mothers for their unseen, unpaid labor.
Michelle Obama is launching a cooking show on Netflix- Waffles + Mochi
PEOPLE / ANNOUNCEMENTS
Paul Judge joins forces with BIP Capital - launches $300 Million Fund Panoramic Ventures.
Colin Kaepernick formed a SPAC.
Spotify Veteran Troy Carter joins SoundCloud Board to boost Indie Acts.
Travis Holoway and Rodney Williams, co-founders of SoLo Funds raised a $10M Series A for Peer-to-Peer Lending.
Rihanna’s two-year-old online lingerie brand Savage X Fenty has raised $115 million in Series B funding bringing Savage’s valuation to more than $1 billion.
Jack Dorsey and Jay-Z have put 500 bitcoin (currently worth more than $23.6 million) into an endowment called ₿trust. The endowment will focus initially on bitcoin development in Africa and India.
All Raise launches Board Xcelerate to diversify the boards of high-growth tech companies.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is set to be the first woman, and the first African to lead the World Trade Organization.
A heartfelt thank you for reading and see you next week!
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