After 15 months in private pilot, Young African Catalysts has officially launched with an intention to democratize access to our continent’s venture ecosystem.
YAC was co-founded by Luke Morsert, and Karl Nchite with a mission to ignite collaboration amongst leading young Africans in the venture ecosystem.
According to Nchite, they built a community that features 50 different Africa-focused funds, and 60 different members sharing deals and last year they were able to share around 250 deals. The private community was for established young professionals (under the age of 35) working for a leading fund on the continent.
The startup which started as invite-only VC community has expanded to include the lead investor, under the age of 35, from the 50 premier venture capital funds across Africa, as well as internally share over 250 startup funding deals.
Following the community’s success, the founders are now moving towards upskilling players within the African ecosystem to help them launch careers in various areas of the startup space. Initially, within the VC space, and soon the operator space.
Beyond upskilling and communities, the company is also looking to fund talent. Its venture scouting wing will help startups gain access to its network. “Those that don’t have the kind of friends and family networks that can put in checks or make intros to the big name VCs.”
Mostert adds that the company will also be launching the YAC fund where it will be investing $25,000 to $100,000 tickets in young startup founders.
“Given the nascent nature of the venture ecosystem in Africa, established, older stakeholders tend to hold a competitive advantage – at Young African Catalysts we are looking to empower first time operators, first time founders, and first time venture capitalists with the infrastructure to ignite their journeys,” Mostert said.
Currently YAC aims to revolutionize the hiring landscape in the venture ecosystem which is usually limited and exclusionary with its Aspiring YAC Fellowships, targeted at young professionals looking to break into venture capital or operator roles respectively.
The first cohort will focus on the VC with a curated program spread across eight weeks and uniquely taught by existing Young African Catalysts.
According to Nchite YAC provided a first-of-its-kind experience that it believed could benefit emerging talent interested in the African ecosystem.
“Through our vocational fellowships, aspiring fellows have the opportunity to learn from leading African VCs and work collaboratively with African startup founders currently raising capital. This is unique in the fellowship landscape as it allows aspiring talent to learn directly from the professionals that they aspire to emulate,” he said.
“This aligns with our philosophy – “for Young African Catalysts by Young African Catalysts”. Moreover, our curriculum is specifically designed to incorporate these two critical elements and culminates in the chance to showcase your talents and ideas