Podcast

In this episode of the Full Scale Podcast, Adrian and Tim sit down with Ivy Macharia, Head of Portfolio at Gather Ventures, board director, angel investor, and a driving force in Africa’s startup ecosystem.

From her journey into venture capital through actuarial science, to her reflections on the maturity of the African startup landscape, Ivy shares a wealth of insights on:

🌍 The evolution of Africa’s startup ecosystem—from its early days to today’s cycles of highs and downturns.

👩🏽‍💼 The role of resilience, grit, and execution in successful founders.

💸 Balancing commercial viability with impact investing in Africa’s unique markets.

🚫 Myths about investing in Africa (and why Silicon Valley’s playbook doesn’t fully apply here).

👩‍👩‍👧 Gender dynamics in VC and why amplifying women’s voices matters.

🔮 Her one piece of advice for the next generation of African founders.

Along the way, we also get personal—chatting about golf, roosters keeping neighbors awake at 2 a.m., and even how a tendon injury taught Ivy something new about anatomy.

🔊 Ivy Says:
“You can’t have a down cycle unless you’ve had an up cycle—that’s maturity.”
“Don’t ignore women as a market. They control most household spend and drive consumer decisions.”
“Execution in Africa takes grit. It’s harder, but the ones who push through build lasting businesses.”

🌍 About Ivy Macharia:
💼 Head of Portfolio – Gather Ventures (backing catalytic climate & gender-focused businesses)
💡 Angel Investor – Member of Nairobi Business Angel Network & Grounded Investor
📊 Board Director – Drop Access Limited
🌱 Advocate for capital in local hands—championing African-led venture building
👩‍👧 Wife, mother, firstborn daughter, and smallholder farmer on weekends

📌 Connect with Ivy:
🔗 LinkedIn: Ivy Macharia

How to Build a Global Business from Africa | Gilbert Manirakiza, CEO of Newmark Group | Full Scale Podcast

What if Africa’s biggest strength lies in solving humanity-scale problems?

In this inspiring and practical conversation, we’re joined by Gilbert Manirakiza, CEO of Newmark Group, a 15-year-old strategic communications powerhouse operating across 30 African countries and 47 global cities. Gilbert is also the founder of Weza Prosoft, a tech company helping businesses become tech-enabled by default—and he’s on a mission to help African businesses scale globally.

From bootstrapping to billion-dollar vision, this episode is loaded with frameworks, practical insights, and purpose-driven thinking that every founder, investor, and ecosystem builder needs to hear.

🎯 In This Episode:
Why every African business needs a humanity-scale purpose
The 4 Ps every founder should master: Purpose, Product, People and Process
How Newmark is defragmenting Africa through strategic communications
Weza Prosoft’s mission to turn every African business into a tech business
The underrated value of sobriety in leadership and decision-making
Why bootstrapping isn’t just noble—it’s strategic
Practical advice on building product-market fit (with real examples!)
Lessons from Kasi Afrique: Scaling African businesses across borders

🔊 Gilbert Says:

“If your purpose is a humanity-scale problem, you’re automatically building a billion-dollar business.”
“Remove your blinders. Your limitation isn’t out there—it’s in your mindset.”
“Finance follows time and knowledge.”
“Sobriety is the key trait for entrepreneurial success.”

🌍 About Gilbert Manirakiza:
🧠 CEO of Newmark Group – Global strategic communications firm
💻 CEO of Weza Prosoft – Tech & software development for African businesses
🌱 Founder of Kasi Afrique – Helping African businesses scale regionally and globally
📊 Has worked with UN, IMF, World Bank, GE, Barclays, AU, Rockefeller Foundation & more
🌐 Presence in New York, Paris, Ontario, China – and growing
👨🏽‍🏫 Mentor, speaker, purpose-driven leader

📌 Connect with Gilbert & Newmark:
🌐 www.newmark-imc.com
📱 @manigilbert on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn

What does it take to be a solid guy building a new venture model for Africa?

In this candid and high-energy guest episode, we sit down with Arnold Kwizera, the co-founder and CEO of ArCa Ventures, Rwanda’s first venture studio. From founding Founders Fridays to rallying an entire city around startups and raising capital the hard way, Arnold shares the journey behind launching a Pan-African venture builder that puts founders first—literally.

🚀 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:
Why traditional VC doesn’t work for Africa
The origins of ArCa Ventures and “Founder Fridays”
What it really means to be a Pan-African builder
How to handhold founders while still holding them accountable
Why sports tech, fintech, and “boring businesses” are the next big thing
How to identify a solid founder (and what a “BS guy” looks like)
The one piece of advice Arnold would give the next generation of African founders

🔥 Quotables from Arnold:
“Passion and pain. If it’s not one of those two, I’m not doing it.”
“You can’t be a founder because it looks cool. It’s hunger games.”
“Our job is to build the muscle—then one day we’ll have the discipline to do VC right.”
“Fail early. You can’t beat the process.”
“Forgiveness is the thing I’m learning now. You can’t carry that weight forever.”

Who is Arnold Kwizera?
🧠 Co-founder & CEO of ArCa Ventures, Rwanda’s first venture studio
📺 Former TV anchor at CNBC Africa & Royal FM
🏀 Former CEO, Patriots Basketball Club
📊 Founder of K Financial, a pan-African financial media platform
🎓 Adrian’s childhood friend (Fun fact!)
💡 Pan-African optimist | Professional beggar (his words!) | Hole-in-one club member ⛳️

📍 Connect with Arnold:
🔗 @therealkwizera across all platforms
📧 kwizera@arcaventures.vc

💰What’s the real secret to raising capital in Africa’s startup ecosystem?

In this energizing guest episode, we sit down with Meredith Muthoni, a seasoned corporate finance and strategy leader currently heading electric finance at Burn Manufacturing, to unpack the realities, strategies, and myths behind startup fundraising.

With 10+ years of experience working with early- and growth-stage startups, Meredith shares battle-tested insights on when to raise, how to choose the right type of capital, and why storytelling could be your greatest fundraising tool.

📈 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

When is the right time to raise capital
Why you should match capital type to business need
The pitfalls of key investor risk
How to avoid mismatches between debt, grants, and equity
Why overpromising kills credibility
The power of trust and storytelling in pitch decks
Insights into revenue-based financing, blended capital, and other emerging trends

🔥 Gems from Meredith:
“Fundraising is not a situationship. Know what you want and why.”
“Don’t just sell features—sell the transformation your product brings.”
“Underpromise, overdeliver. That’s how you become a solid founder.”
“The press release is not the goal. It’s where the real work begins.”
“Fundraising is a people business—relationships are your edge.”

🎙️ Who is Meredith Muthoni?
🌍 Corporate finance & strategy leader with 10+ years’ experience
💼 Head of Electric Finance at Burn Manufacturing
🤝 Advisor to multiple startups on capital strategy and execution
🌱 Believer in value-aligned fundraising, tech for good, and practical capital
⛳️ Aspiring golfer | Startup whisperer | Solo mom of two

🔗 Connect With Meredith: / meredith-muthoni-njenga-cfa-96427557

In this eye-opening episode, we sit down with Denis Nyanja, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at DCB Consulting (soon to rebrand as Scale CFO), to unpack how early-stage ventures can thrive financially—even before turning a profit.

With 14+ years of finance experience across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, Denis drops practical gems on fundraising, financial planning, startup mistakes, and the growing trend of fractional CFOs in Africa.

📊 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
Why startups should think like CFOs from day one
What a fractional CFO is (and why your startup probably needs one)
The biggest fundraising mistakes founders make
How to manage your burn rate before you burn out
The role of financial storytelling in investor readiness
Why cash flow is king for startups
Trends in African startup finance (AI, regulation, and compliance tips)

🛠️ Toolkit for Founders:
✔️ Financial planning = behavior, not just tools
✔️ Burn rate = cash velocity (how fast you’re running out of money)
✔️ Startups don’t fail from bad ideas—they fail from bad cash management
✔️ Hire CFOs fractionally until you can afford them full-time
✔️ Know when to fundraise, how much, and what dilution to expect

👤 Who Is Denis Nyanja?
🏢 Managing Partner, DCB Consulting (→ soon to be Scale CFO)
💼 Former Finance Director at GiveDirectly and Giraffe BioEnergy
🎯 Specialist in CFO services, business health checks, and fundraising support
📍 Focused on helping African startups become financially future-proof
👨‍👧‍👧 Girl dad x3 | Finance nerd | Golf dreamer

🔗 Connect With Denis:
📍 Denis Nyanja on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denis-nya…
📈 DCB Consulting (Rebranding to Scale CFO soon): https://www.dcbconsulting.co.ke/

What does it really take to build globally competitive startups from the African continent?

In this electrifying episode, we sit down with Michele Wanjiku, the Africa Regional Lead at Endeavor Catalyst – a $500M+ global co-investment fund backing high-growth entrepreneurs across emerging markets. Michele breaks down how Endeavor identifies exceptional founders, invests alongside top-tier global VCs, and helps scale startups across borders.

🎯 Whether you’re a startup founder, investor, or ecosystem enabler, this episode is your masterclass in scaling African innovation.

📈 What You’ll Learn:
How Endeavor Catalyst turned a $10M philanthropic fund into $70M+ (7x cash-on-cash)
The secret behind co-investing only alongside the world’s best VCs
Why Africa’s “PayPal Mafias” are shaping the continent’s startup future
Lessons from InstaDeep’s $700M AI exit and the power of the multiplier effect
Why picking the wrong investor could doom your company (yes, even at Seed stage)

🌍 Endeavor’s Africa Portfolio Highlights:
40+ African startups funded
4 unicorns: Flutterwave, MNT-Halan, TymeBank, and Moniepoint
First Africa exit: InstaDeep (Tunisian AI startup, acquired for $700M)
Backed founders now mentoring and funding the next generation

💡 Wisdom Nuggets from Michele:
“You can build a global company from anywhere.”
“Your investor is not just capital—they’re a long-term partner.”
“Scaling your startup means scaling yourself first.”
“Don’t over-engineer terms—keep your rounds clean and founder-friendly.”

📌 Who Is Michele Wanjiku?
🇰🇪 Africa Regional Lead, Endeavor Catalyst
🧠 Strategic Advisor at Chui Ventures
🌍 Startup ecosystem connector, investor matchmaker, and advocate for founder-friendly capital
🥾 Outdoor enthusiast, foodie, ex-New Yorker, and emerging market optimist

📣 Connect with Michele & Endeavor:
🔗 Michele Wanjiku on LinkedIn: / michele-wanjiku-644a06a1
🌐 Endeavor Catalyst: https://endeavor.org/catalyst/
🌍 Your Local Endeavor Office: https://endeavor.org/

🧠 Founders, take note:
If you’re building in Africa and have global ambitions—Endeavor wants to hear from you.

In this episode of the Full Scale Podcast, we sit down with Amitty Peace, the dynamic founder of Mangrove, a platform that helps startups build operational resilience and scale sustainably. From her 10+ years optimizing large financial institutions to working with scrappy scale-ups across Africa, Amitty shares the practical, no-fluff advice every founder needs to hear.

💡 What You’ll Learn:
What operational resilience really means—and why it matters
The Mangrove 6-step framework for growth and efficiency
Common blind spots founders overlook
Real-world tools to help you cut costs and scale smart
Why Africa’s startup ecosystem is uniquely poised for resilient growth

🌍 Whether you’re building a fintech in Lagos or a logistics platform in Nairobi, this conversation is filled with grounded insights, practical frameworks, and a good dose of startup humor (plus, Amity’s favorite cake analogy 🍰).

🔧 Resources Mentioned:
Google Cloud, AWS & Azure credits for startups
How founders can build tools without breaking the bank
AI agents for business efficiency

👀 BONUS: Hear Amitty’s thoughts on the future of AI in African startups, and what she’d tell founders of the next generation!

📌 Like, comment, and subscribe to join us on this full-scale journey through Africa’s startup ecosystem.

📱 Connect with Amitty on LinkedIn for more on Mangrove’s resilience tools and co-working community updates! / amittypeace

In this episode of the Full Scale Podcast, we’re heading off the beaten path—literally—with Lamusia Anzaya, Co-Founder of Safari Advisor, the startup behind Safari Navigator. From dusty game drives to data-driven wildlife tracking, Lamusia shares how he’s building the go-to platform for wildlife sightings, conservation insights, and gamified adventure in African parks.

🌍 What You’ll Discover:
How a trip to Tsavo with one wildlife sighting sparked a tech venture
What “citizen sightings” are—and why they matter for tourism & conservation
Building a platform that balances passion, purpose & practicality (the 3 Ps!)
How to bootstrap a network-effect startup—without losing your mind
Lessons from the bush for founders, from product-market fit to scaling smart

🛠️ Why It’s Different:
Safari Navigator isn’t a travel agency or tour operator—it’s a wildtech platform designed to support the whole ecosystem: from rangers and guides, to tourists, hospitality providers, and conservationists. Think of it as the Duolingo + Strava for game drives.

📈 Also in this Episode:
How Lamusia is using partnerships to scale
The AI future of identifying cheetahs vs leopards 🐆
What startups can learn from the infinite game mindset
How COVID pushed him to quit corporate and build something meaningful

💡 Whether you’re a safari lover, a tech enthusiast, or a founder navigating your own wild journey, this episode is packed with insight, inspiration—and even a few dad jokes about Valentine’s Day.

📲 Download the app: Safari Navigator is available now on the App Store (https://apps.apple.com/ke/app/safari-…) and Google Play (https://play.google.com/store/apps/de…)
📸 Follow the journey on Instagram: / safari_navigatorclub
🔗 Visit: https://www.safari-navigator.club/

Sonia Kabra is the Co-Founder and Director of BuuPass, a business that offers hassle-free booking solutions for buses, trains, and flights across East Africa. 

Under the leadership of Sonia and her Co-Founder (Wyclife Omondi), BuuPass secured $1 million in funding through the Hult Prize award supported by President Bill Clinton, as well as funding from world-renowned venture capitalist, Tim Draper.

Join in the conversation to hear more about BuuPass and Sonia’s journey as a founder, from the initial idea, to pivoting, surviving Covid-19, fundraising and scaling, and much more. 

In this episode, Kevin Kamau, the Founder and Managing Director of Tukalime shares his entrepreneurship journey in agribusiness.

Tukalime is an agribusiness company that offers farm management services to individuals, groups and other agri-based processors/companies. Tukalime handles the whole value chain, from production to market.  Their mission is to create wealth through agriculture, one individual at a time.

From the inception of the idea, to fundraising, scaling, navigating business challenges and the opportunities for growth. Tune in for more.

In this episode, Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa discuss practical ways of implementing corporate governance in your business. This includes adopting the right incorporation structure, building a strong board, enhancing financial transparency, and having a clear decision-making structure, among others.

What is corporate governance, and why is it important? In this episode, Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa discuss corporate governance, what it is, the pillars and principles of corporate governance, benefits of corporate governance, and some examples of bad corporate governance practices.

Collins Muriuki, the Co-Founder and CEO of Terra, a business that empowers companies with digital solutions that accelerate their growth.

In 2023, Collins was ranked among the top 40 Kenyans under the age of forty, and in 2024, he was selected as one of the Top 50 entrepreneurs in Africa by the Africa Business Heroes.

In this episode, Collins shares his journey building a fintech business in Africa. From the inception of the idea, to taking the first step, navigating challenges, pivoting, resilience and much more.

In this episode, Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa deconstruct Nala’s US$ 40 million Series A funding round, which was led by the San Francisco-based Acrew Capital. The fundraising round was one of the one of the largest Series A transactions in Africa.

In highlighting the deal, Timothy and Adrian trace Nala’s journey, its founder, it’s previous funding rounds, and its business ambitions, among others.

The funding activity in the African continent for the first half of 2024 was considered relatively muted. Despite this, African startups surpassed the US$1 billion mark of the funds raised by July, buoyed by an encouraging combined US$ 420 million raised in July.

Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa as they review the investment activity in the African startups in the first half of 2024, the sectors that took the lion’s share of the funds, and what it means for the startup ecosystem in the continent.

More often than not, your business will encounter legal due diligence reviews as you scale, undertake a merger, or seek capital from investors. So, what are legal due diligence reviews and what do they mean?

Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa as they take you through the nuts and bolts of legal due diligence reviews, including preparing for reviews, conducting reviews, reporting, mitigating risks, and much more.

In this first in a series of two episodes, Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa introduce due diligence reviews to you. From the what, why, when, who, where and how of due diligence reviews, to the opportunities associated with due diligence reviews.

Season 1 of the Full Scale Podcast has come to a successful close! So, how has the experience been, what lessons have we picked along the way, and what is next for the podcast?

Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa as they do a recap of season 1 of the podcast, including the good, the great, and the not so good.

Moove, a mobility fintech that offers vehicle financing to ride-hailing and delivery app drivers, raised $100 million in a Series B funding round, led by Uber, at the beginning of the year 2024.

In this episode, Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa take a deep dive into the journey of Moove, from its humble beginnings to its recent groundbreaking deal with Uber, uncovering the key stages of its growth and map its journey bring to life concepts discussed in episodes 1 through 8 of this podcast.

Curious about who funds startups? Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa in this episode of the Full Scale Podcast, as they discuss the people and institutions that provide the much needed capital to startups.

From friends, family and fools, through to angel investors, to institutional investors such as venture capital funds and private equity funds, and much more.

Incubators, accelerators and venture builders play a critical role in enabling the growth and success of startups. But what are these entities really, and what are the differences in the manner in which they operate?

Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa as they discuss these crucial startup enablers, what they do, how they do it, and which of the three would be ideal for your startup.

As a startup grows, there are key agreements that form part of its journey and growth. This is especially so depending on whether a startup is fundraising, and whether it is fundraising at pre-seed, seed or at Series A, B, C, etc.

From simple agreements for future equity (SAFEs) to convertible loan agreements, side letters and shareholders agreements, and much more; please join in the conversation for more.

As a startup grows, there are key agreements that form part of its journey and growth. This is especially so depending on whether a startup is fundraising, and whether it is fundraising at pre-seed, seed or at Series A, B, C, etc.

From simple agreements for future equity (SAFEs) to convertible loan agreements, side letters and shareholders agreements, and much more; please join in the conversation for more.

What does the fundraising journey for startup ordinarily look like? Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa as they discuss the fundraising journey for startup, from bootstrapping, raising funds from friends, family and fools, angel investors, venture capital funds, and private equity funds, among others.

What is the best structure for a start up? Is it a limited liability company, a company limited by guarantee, a partnership, or any other incorporation structure?

What about the jurisdiction of incorporation, does it really matter? Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa in this episode for more insights.

Is any entrepreneurial venture a startup, and is every entrepreneur a founder?

Since this podcast shall be dedicated to having conversations around the startup ecosystem in Africa, from incorporation, to fundraising, to regulatory compliance, to scaling up (going full scale) and exits (and everything in between); it is perhaps important to start by addressing what a startup is, and who a founder is.

Join Timothy Mukiti and Adrian Ntwatwa on this episode to find out more.

Welcome to the Full Scale Podcast. A podcast dedicated to discussing the startup ecosystem in the African continent.

Its aim is to inform, empower, and equip various stakeholders within the ecosystem, including founders, investors, advisors, and regulators, by providing valuable insights and understanding of the unique circumstances and opportunities for African startups.

The Podcast is hosted by two corporate lawyers with extensive experience in advising startups and investors in Africa. Tune in to our inaugural episode to find out more.