In this episode, I chat with Tony Chen, Partner at Verdant Frontiers and Co-Founder of Kinyungu Ventures, about his journey to Africa-focused investing, how conducting research altered his fund launch strategy, what lessons he learned from the research, and his plans for the future.
Show Notes
Welcome to Track 1, the inaugural episode of The Trajectory Africa, a podcast series exploring the trajectory, or pathway, of venture capital and startup formation in Africa. With the unique African landscape—market characteristics, business environment, goals, and culture—as a starting point, The Trajectory Africa aims to pinpoint a destination for African tech, and the signposts that signal direction of travel. It’s inspired by the concept of a mixtape, in which each episode, or “track” will feature a conversation with a “guest artist”. There is also a soundtrack for inspiration provided by (DJ) Saphir Esmail via his Spotify playlist (link below).
My guest artist is
Tony Chen. Tony is a Partner at
Verdant Frontiers and Co-Founder of
Kinyungu Ventures. Tony has enjoyed 24+ years creating new businesses, launching five companies with multiple exits. He co-founded
Redica Systems (formerly Govzilla), a SaaS business he led as CEO for 8 years until 2017. Tony and his family lived in rural Kenya for three years, where he built a portfolio of 15 Kenyan companies. Tony is also on the Investment Committee for
Triphammer Ventures. Tony earned a BS in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University and an MBA from Northwestern Kellogg School of Management.
In this episode, we discuss:
- How and why Tony’s journey as an Africa-focused investor began in Kenya
- Why research was a key element of Kinyungu’s fund launch process
- What Tony learned from the research, and how his investing approach has changed
- How Kinyungu Ventures has changed, and plans for the future
Tony’s Recommended Track & Featured Resources:
- My Shot. Lin Manuel Miranda, Anthony Ramos, Davide Diggs, Okierete Onaodowan, Leslie Odom, Jr., original Broadway cast of Hamilton. Hamilton. https://spoti.fi/2Uq3IJ3
What is The Trajectory Africa?
The Trajectory Africa is a “pop-up” podcast exploring the trajectory, or pathway, of venture capital and startup formation in Africa. With the unique African landscape—market characteristics, business environment, goals, and culture—as a starting point, The Trajectory Africa aims to identify a destination for African tech, as well as the sign posts that signal direction of travel. It’s modeled on the concept of a mixtape, in which each episode, or “track” will feature a conversation with a “guest artist”, and a playlist for inspiration.