Everywhere Ventures - Founders Building Outside of the U.S.
Meet founders taking on the world and making significant contributions to innovation and problem-solving in their local markets and beyond.
As a fund that invests globally, we love exploring new geographies and meeting with entrepreneurs working to solve global problems. In just the past 12 months, Jenny and Scott have traversed the world, venturing to places like Kenya, Guatemala, Indonesia, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Singapore, Canada, Mexico and of course Europe. What’s clear is that global tech founders outside of the U.S. are making significant contributions to innovation and problem-solving in their local markets and beyond. No longer are they thinking locally, but rather, many are building cross-border solutions that impact people and cultures across the world.
What unites many of these global founders are the obstacles that they face - from complex regulatory landscapes and political challenges to currency instability and tougher fundraising environments. On the flip side, the resilience that these founders exhibit is nothing short of incredible as they pursue truly massive global opportunities. Whether by necessity or priority, we also notice that our founders building in international markets are also much faster to build world class brands. They are excellent storytellers who are often faster than their American counterparts at figuring out how to bootstrap brands to tens of thousands of followers without large, or any, marketing budgets. Indeed there are incredible lessons many of our domestic portfolio founders could learn from those based abroad.
So this week we are spotlighting a few of the notable founders in our portfolio reshaping the global tech landscape and bringing innovative solutions to underserved markets worldwide.
Thalia Pillay - Co-founder of Orca Fraud (South Africa)
Can you tell us about Orca Fraud?
Orca Fraud is a fraud prevention startup on a mission to eradicate fraud in emerging markets. Orca works with South African banks and fintechs to prevent and protect end-users from the heartbreaking effects of fraud attacks. We’ve already launched our first product, which solves a problem we found when speaking with over 100 banks and fintechs throughout Africa.
How is founding and running Orca Fraud aligned with your life purpose?
As a robotic engineer, I’ve always loved building things which help others. When I was a student, I built a pair of gloves which translate South African Sign Language (SASL) into spoken English. After working in banks and fintechs in South Africa, I have seen how horrific the impact of fraud is, not just on individuals, but on entire communities. Building Orca, allows me to help others use cutting edge technology by building a safer and more inclusive digital financial system.
What's the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome it?
A big challenge when building for emerging markets is the low willingness to pay. When we first launched, we had grand ideas of building Africa’s first fraud orchestration platform. However, when we started interviewing prospective customers, we quickly realized that not many businesses in Africa can afford to pay dollar-fees for an entire platform. We then decomposed our platform into modular, effective tools so that businesses can choose what they actually need rather than paying for things which are nice-to-have.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and change makers?
Always leave things better than you found them. Whether that is the world, a piece of code, or a problem in your community, always strive to make a positive impact.
Georgia Vidler - Co-founder of Human Health (Australia)
Can you tell us about Human Health?
Human Health's mission is to give everyone access to personalized healthcare -- by learning what works from patients directly. Today, Human is an app for patients to keep track of their symptoms & treatments, to get personalized insights as they track, and to easily share the data with their providers. We want to remove bias in medical research, and build representation of traditionally excluded groups like women, children, LGBTQ+ folks and people of color. We're focused on neuropsychiatric and behavioral conditions, but users are finding Human to help navigate over 600 conditions.
How is founding and running Human Health aligned with your life purpose?
I grew up an only child within a family that was full of mental health challenges and mental illnesses. While this ultimately took a toll on my own mental health, it also created a passion in me to help others going through these same struggles. I started my career as many of today's big tech companies were taking off, and saw technology as a way to channel my pain into purpose. I am driven to use my skills and creativity to help others in any way I can to live happier, healthier lives - that's what gives me purpose.
What's the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome it?
The greatest challenges I have faced have been internal. As a young person I suffered with depression, anxiety and many other mental health challenges. I overcame them by trying to understand them; I have spent many years in therapy, reading books, and retraining my brain to think in different ways. I've done everything I could to learn about what could help make me happy - I believe it will be a lifelong pursuit.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and change makers?
Stick to your guns and practice optimism. One of my favorite quotes is "pessimists sound smart, but optimists make money." Don't listen to the pessimists out there about a problem that they could never have a chance at solving. Optimism is the key to our continued societal progress.
Read more from Georgia in Founders Everywhere.
Yvonne-Faith Elaigwu - Founding team at OnePipe (Nigeria)
Can you tell us about One Pipe?
OnePipe is an API infrastructure Company that is digitizing payments and de-risking credit in the mass market. We do this by partnering with banks and providers of financial services, to build bespoke products, targeted at the supply chains where users in the informal sector (mass market) operate. With an annualized revenue of $1.2m, we have on-boarded over 400 corporate businesses, opened over 5 million accounts, and provided inventory financing to over 7k retailers in the informal sector, 65% of which are female-owned businesses.
How is founding and running this business aligned with your life purpose?
I have always wanted to be a pivotal contributor to a cause that can affect real positive change in people's lives. Every time I have the opportunity to serve, I gravitate towards roles that help maintain the smooth running of an organization’s engine from the backend. This is why helping to build a company positioned to seamlessly manage payment collections, power financial inclusion and democratize credit for small and medium-sized enterprises is nothing short of fulfilling.
What's the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome it?
One of the key metrics that signifies growth for startups is International expansion. I would say our first attempt at this presented major challenges, from which lessons were learned. One was the realization that a deep understanding of the regulatory nuances, and local partnerships, could be of equal (if not greater) value as a knowledge of the competitive landscape, customer behavior and license and registration requirements. Learning our knowledge gaps proved to be a rewarding byproduct of that attempt because it allowed us to improve and grow from this.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and change makers?
Fortify yourself with the knowledge that this journey isn’t characterized by ease, but is rife with challenges that demand to be faced. Overcoming one challenge equips you for the next and in a short while, you get to connect the learnings and watch them evolve into growth opportunities, beautiful milestones, efficient products, and maybe even a sustainable business that becomes a legacy.
Read more from OnePipe’s CEO Ope Adeoye in Founders Everywhere.
Murvah Iqbal - Co-founder of Hived (United Kingdom)
Can you tell us about HIVED?
HIVED is doing the same for parcel delivery, building a technology-first parcel delivery network for a fast and reliable delivery experience. Leveraging AI, machine learning and a full tech and data stack, at HIVED we provide same-day, next-day and two-day parcel delivery. HIVED is one of Europe's fastest-growing startups, with 20% monthly growth and recognition on Forbes 30 Under 30. Our focus on outstanding customer experience sets us apart, and every HIVED delivery is made by a 100% electric vehicle, significantly reducing GHG emissions by 56 to 76% per parcel compared to traditional delivery.
How is founding and running HIVED aligned with your life purpose?
I’ve always had a relentless drive and a bit of a competitive streak, having grown up playing football (American soccer). I also come from a culture that is quite male-dominated, and as a girl and young woman had a determination to prove people wrong. That ethos of “I can do it, too” is a big part of my life's purpose, and has translated really clearly into being a female founder.
What's the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome it?
The early days of HIVED were an incredible challenge: building something from scratch whilst simultaneously running the ship and doing deliveries myself. It was long days and nights, but Mathias and I both had such a clear vision from day one, that we were building something massive. That clarity steered us incredibly well in the early days and was a true key to success for us.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and change makers?
I’m always honest in saying that being an entrepreneur is extremely hard and not the easiest of paths, though I wouldn’t have it any other way for myself. You have to get comfortable with uncertainty, really want it and figure out where your drive comes from. My biggest advice for aspiring entrepreneurs is on that point: understand your passion for entrepreneurship on a deeper level and figure out how to draw from it through the tough chapters.
Read more from Murvah in Founders Everywhere.
Amanda Jacobson - Co-founder of Radar (Mexico)
Can you tell us about Radar?
Radar is the premier treasury management solution for Latin America. By automating complex payments processes like reconciliation and disbursement, we enable companies to gain better visibility into their cash flows, make more informed financial decisions, and enhance their customers’ experiences. In just 2 years, Radar has processed over $400 million across 3 million transactions, maintaining a 7% week-over-week growth rate. Clients included dLocal (the PSP leader in Latam) and ControlExpert (an Allianz Group company), and we are already integrated with Oracle Netsuite.
How is founding and running Radar aligned with your life purpose?
The best we can do is strive to leave the world a little better than we found it using the tools at our reach. At the start of my career, I took this to heart by helping social entrepreneurs build high-impact businesses in financial inclusion, health, and education, bringing the Village Capital accelerator to Latin America. Over the last few years, I’ve learned that I really love building, making me rediscover and redefine what impact means to me. Through Radar, I believe that we can reshape how money moves and is understood in businesses. If we can achieve this, we’re not only making life a little easier for treasurers (which I’m proud of too), but we’re making money movement more efficient in a developing region, helping level the playing field on a macro level.
What's the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome it?
The greatest challenge I faced in my professional life was admitting failure to our team at Oyster. To give a bit of context, we had been struggling for months due to a major regulatory issue and a funding drought. Our last lifeline investor backed out at the last minute, leaving us with just two months of runway. While we continued to hustle for investment or acquisition, we had to inform the team that the company’s future was uncertain.I was proud that our executive team came together to be transparent and share the news internally. However, it was painful to hear each person’s personal story, the future they envisioned with us, and how this situation would cause many financial difficulties. Taking a breather was key to being mentally prepared and strong enough to take on the next challenge of co-founding Radar.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and change makers?
Deeply understand the problem and experiment relentlessly to solve it. Many founders get excited about new technologies, but end up searching for a problem for their solution instead of finding a solution to a problem. Become passionate about a pain point. Talk to everyone you can about it, live it, then start building. As you build, avoid the extremes of nonstop product shipping, which can lead to a Frankenstein solution, and design the perfect consultant-style roadmap, because everything will change when you bring your solution to market. Rather: 1) Define a hypothesis; 2) Build quickly and simply to test that hypothesis in the market, then 3) Repeat: Never stop learning about the problem and how your solution can better address it.
Listen to Amr Darwish with Juan Camilo (JC) González Trujillo on the Venture Everywhere podcast: Oola-la Insurance, Listen now on Apple and Spotify, and check out to all our past episodes here!
