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Enygma Ventures launches R120-million investment fund
The astounding investment fund is targetted at women-led businesses in Africa and aims to empower female entrepreneurs to create innovative solutions….
US Venture Capital fund, Enygma Ventures has launched its last investment fund worth R120-million for 2020.
The astounding investment fund is targetted at women-led businesses in Africa and aims to empower female entrepreneurs to create innovative solutions.
Funding applications close on 31 December 2020
In the VC’s commitment to driving women-owned businesses, female entrepreneurs who have established businesses or new businesses ideas that benefit the Southern African Development Community (SADC) are encouraged to apply.
In an official press release, Sarah Dusek, Managing Partner and CEO of Enygma Ventures encourages female entrepreneurs to apply for investment funding.
“Never has there been a better time to step up and take your business to the next level. Accessing funding is your opportunity to seize the moment, accelerate your growth, and help build a better world for all.”
The fund
Female-led businesses that are selected for investment will be allowed to participate in the Enygma Ventures’ Investor Readiness Programme which allows businesses to receive an equity investment ranging from $25 000 to $1-million.
Early-stage innovation startups that are selected will be offered a scholarship to Startup Circles’ Acceleration Programme and upon graduation, startups will receive a pre-seed equity investment valued at $25 000.
Applicants interested in the investment fund can apply online before 31 December.
Startups that do not qualify will be allowed to access support at a cost from Startup Circles which is the leading startup school in Africa and a large contributor to online acceleration.
The Enygma Ventures investment fund will support female-led businesses and founders who aim to accelerate their businesses and improve the strength of Africa’s business ecosystem.
Lelemba Phiri, Principal and COO of Africa Trust Group explains that the last call for investments through Enygma Ventures is aimed at female-led businesses that are yet to receive funding in 2020.
“We received over 3 000 applications for funding in 2020 which demonstrates what an incredible talent pool there is in the region. We are excited to see the progress of many of the businesses that didn’t get funded in 2020 and to discover new business gems.”
Enygma Ventures’ portfolio
The selected group of successful entrepreneurs will join businesses that are a part of Enygma Ventures’ existing portfolio which includes Play Sense, Job Crystal, Lupiya, and Black Mamba.
The investment fund’s portfolio for 2020 consists of six women-led businesses and three pre-seed companies that previously received investment.
Female entrepreneurs who strive to accelerate their business and showcase potential in growth are encouraged to reap the benefits offered by Enygma Ventures through the investment fund.
Evelyn Kaingu, Co-Founder, and CEO of Lupiya explains that the startup underwent rapid growth after receiving investment from Enygma Ventures.
“To see your business funded is a huge validation of your business and creates enormous momentum to support growth. We are so proud to have received investment this year and have been able to grow our business by over 300% in just 5 months.”
Read more: Zambian fintech startup receives $1-million investment
Read more: Enygma Ventures invests R8.25m in SA online preschool Play Sense
Featured Image: (From left to right) Claudia Castellanos, founder and managing director of Black Mamba, and Evelyn Kaingu, Co-Founder, and CEO of Lupiya (Supplied)
“Never has there been a better time to step up and take your business to the next level. Accessing funding is your opportunity to seize the moment, accelerate your growth, and help build a better world for all.”
Source: https://ventureburn.com/2020/12/enygma-ventures-launches-r120-million-investment-fund/
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Nēsos Closes $16.5M To Develop Rheumatoid Arthritis Earbud
Nēsos’s earbud uses the brain’s electrical language to provide a new treatment option without pharmaceutical side effects….
Nēsos launched out of stealth Thursday and is poised to commercialize a new method for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. It raised $16.5 million in funding, led by Mayfield Fund, 1 to continue its clinical trials.
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The neuroscience startup was co-founded in 2017 by Konstantinos Alataris, who previously founded and led Nevro (NYSE: NVRO), a company developing pain treatments. Nēsos is creating a wearable earbud and software component that provides a noninvasive, drug-free approach to disease treatment through electric field immunotherapy, dubbed “e-mmunotherapy.”
“The brain tries to modulate the immune response,” Alataris told Crunchbase News. “At the core is the overactive immune response, in this case inflammation. The central processing is in the brain. We are proving we can actually reach the area of the brain to modify the pathway without deep brain surgery.”
Like other autoimmune disorders, rheumatoid arthritis is rooted in chronic inflammation. Existing treatments, often pharmaceuticals, have adverse side effects, including a decreased immunity, he added. Nēsos’s earbud uses the brain’s electrical language to provide a new treatment option without pharmaceutical side effects.
The new funding includes an earlier seed round and will be used mainly for continued clinical trials, Alataris said. The San Francisco-based company recently completed a 30-patient clinical trial where data showed a meaningful reduction in RA disease severity.
“We are running three clinical studies in three indications, one of them rheumatoid arthritis, and we are doing more research to understand the mechanism and to see the exact impact on the brain and electrical fields,” Alataris added. “If we continue to get the same promising data, it will be very exciting.”
In addition to continuing with its trials for RA, Nēsos is researching an earbud with neurological and psychiatry capabilities. It plans to seek U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval as a medical device.
Ursheet Parikh, Mayfield partner and Nēsos board member, said in an interview that research shows the brain is a unique organ, forming new connections all of the time. While looking around to see where the successes were in the field, he met Alataris.
“The next generation of neurotherapy is emerging,” Parikh said. “We have Elon Musk working on communicating with the brain, as well as Google and GlaxoSmithKline in a joint venture targeting the immune system, same as Nēsos. However, Google’s devices require surgery to implant them. Nesos is positioned, based on clinical data, in the next five years to treat hundreds of millions of patients.”
Feature and blogroll photo courtesy of Nesos
Like other autoimmune disorders, rheumatoid arthritis is rooted in chronic inflammation. Existing treatments, often pharmaceuticals, have adverse side effects, including a decreased immunity, he added. Nēsos’s earbud uses the brain’s electrical language to provide a new treatment option without pharmaceutical side effects.
Source: https://news.crunchbase.com/news/nesos-closes-16-5m-to-develop-rheumatoid-arthritis-earbud/
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