1. What is AFF

Founded by Group of People from Africa with strong Positions held along with the CEO of Maser Group, AFF is a cross-border startup capital initiative to provide seed funding for post-revenue, early-stage start-ups in fintech, deeptech, consumer electronics, insurance, healthcare and agritech. We recently announced this in one of the leading newspapers in West Africa, The Punch newspaper that we would be providing $20m to support 20 early-stage start-ups. This reflects our commitments to supporting founders who are building the future in Africa, India and UAE.

2. What is the Process to pitch to AFF to raise Fund?

We work with early-stage tech start-ups across Africa, UAE and India. It therefore means that if your solution creates or relies on technology to solve a problem, has an MVP and a bit of traction (sales revenue) you are welcome to apply.

What we look for:
-A team of 2 or more founders
-Strong teams that have the right skillset and expertise to take their startup forward.
-Novel ideas and business models that have the potential to scale.

Throughout AFF Capital Initiative program, accepted teams receive the following:
-We take equity in each start-up in exchange for the support and services offered throughout our startup programme along with the $200,000 USD investment.
-Training, pitch practice, and specialized services.
-Mentorship from industry leaders.
-Access to our startup and investors community.

The participants can participate by following the simple process mentioned below. Visit on www.aff.com/startuppitch Go to the AFF Startup Contest page and click on Register / Apply Now button Fill the preliminary registration form for the contest Proceed ahead with filling the detailed registration form Boom! You're now registered. Your entry has been forwarded to the screening process, you will be notified if you are selected for the pitching.

AFF Capital Initiative startup programme starts with 2 weeks of intensive consulting from AFF Network, followed by 2 months of hands-on support from our venture partners and our network of partners/experts. The programme is remote to ensure founders are not taken away from their businesses for extended periods of time.

Must I live in Africa to participate?
This competition is open to startups across the world solving African challenges.

Can I participate if my company is still in the prototype stage?
No. Our criterion is that you must have moved beyond the MVP stage or should be post-revenue.

Who should pitch at the competition?
Any employee of the company may submit the application to the competition on behalf of the company's founder, however, only one of the founders must pitch at the competition.

How do you evaluate the startups?
We have a rigorous evaluation process. Your application was first evaluated by the AFF’s board of directors’ evaluation team who provides feedback on each applicant. This information is then given to the AFF Startup funding and awards committee in our AFF headquarters for further analysis and processing. Finally, the top startups and awardees are selected and duly informed.

3. Is It Compulsory to have company from Africa or it can be from Any part of the World?

Yes. We provide a cross-border tech support for startups established in Africa, UAE and India. We are interested in founders who are addressing the pain-points in those markets and would provide them the capital they need to take their ventures to the next level.

4. Can I Become Advisory member in AFF?

Yes, we welcome new advisory members.
Board members of AFF Network are on the lookout for start-ups with strong fundamentals, great teams, innovative growth strategies and products that resonated with our chosen markets.
We want to work with individuals, Development Finance Institutions (DeFIs), private businesses and government institutions who are passionate about joining us to provide funding, support and advice to companies coming through AFF Capital Initiative Startup programme.
If you are interested in joining us, you can send you letter of interest or reach out to AFF network member (s) to nominate you and we would take it up from there. AFF nominations are yearly and a voting process is applied to interested members.
If you’d like to join thousands of other investors in receiving regular updates when AFF portfolio companies are raising, please sign up to our co-investor community below.

6. What is the Equity Capital AFF has?

We are working with some global Family Offices, PE/VC firms and we have connected with venture partners who have a full grasp our chosen markets.
As a result, we have secured USD 50mn to support the ambitions of our portfolio companies. Working with AFF network would give you access to large capital pool from the following:
1) HNW Investors;
2) Deal Flow of viable Startups;
3) AFF Management of Portfolio Companies;
4) Arranging Exits (IPOs / Private Placement);
5) Setting-up your Strategic Alliances and Partnerships across Africa, UAE and India and the world.

7. What’s AFF Fintech Fest & Awards?

It is a cross-border platform to promote innovations across Africa and the Middle-East and give recognition to innovators and business leaders writing the African renaissance stories.
It is backed by world-renowned businesses like Maser and the governments of Africa and Bahrain, it will boost fintech support and advance the adoption of emerging technologies across both continents.
AFF Fintech Fest & Awards was baked to celebrate the African rising story and to push for the emergence of more African champions. We seek these important traits:

• Visionary leadership across different sectors
• More innovative solutions that address African grand challenges
• Tech-driven solutions with local inputs or relevance to Africa.
• We’ll be integrating the tripartite matrix of policy innovations, business leadership, and research development together to boost African development while helping founders access funding and markets. By so doing, we’ll stimulate the next industrial revolution and create more African champions in the in digital space.

8. What is the eligibility criteria AFF Fintech Fest & Awards?

We are looking for early-stage technology startups who are seeking funding (under US$ 200,000) and have moved beyond a minimum viable product or working prototype (past ideation stage). Also, we would give priority to female-led startups or teams with female founders.

9. How do I enter?

To enter the AFF Fintech Fest & Awards, eligible applicants must register online HERE, in agreement with the competition’s Terms and Conditions and according to the instructions found on our website. You will need to submit the completed form by the deadline. For more information, please visit our website www.aff.org/startup.

10. What are the benefits of joining the AFF Fintech Fest and Awards?

For startups residing in Africa or addressing African pain-points, this program will provide you with:
Highlights:

• Access to business support from our network of industrial and technology experts.
• Pitch and industry workshop – Focused workshops to help startups win and also build a greater Africa.
• Pitch to targeted decision-makers from various industries.
• You will learn from other innovators and investors across the different sectors of the African market.
• Enjoy mentorships from renowned Industrial leaders and sponsors, like the CEO of Maser, Mr. Prateek Suri.
• Be recognized and receive awards from eminent leaders in global business.
• An opportunity to convert business prospects to regular clients.

11. Do you have a hashtag that I can use to tag AFF Fintech Fest & Awards?

Yes we do! They are # AFFFintechFest&Awards2023 and #AFFGlobalCompetition2023, and you can always tag AFFFintechFest&Awards2023 on Instagram (@AFFFintechFest&Awards2023), Facebook (@aff.org) and Twitter (@AFFFintechFest&Awards2023).

12. Where can I contact you for any other questions?

You can email us at info@aff.org if you have any questions or would like to partner with us in some way!