On June 26 at LaFactory, on the top floor of the Casablanca Technopark, the launch ceremony of “Angels4Africa” took place. A network of Moroccan business angels (BA), who have come to provide expertise and financing to young innovative companies to facilitate their development. Allergic to Anglicisms, abstain.
It was on the top floor of the Technopark, on June 26, in the premises of LaFactory, that the launch of the Angels4Africa business angel (BA) network took place. There is always this “wow” effect when you reach the top of the “Goldorak” with this panoramic view of Casablanca where you can see the Hassan II mosque, the Twins and which you never tire of. But this contemplation is quickly interrupted. Here, we draw the business card at all costs. We pitch our ideas to potential investors, we repeat our catchphrases, in French and in English, just in case. The challenge is high for the BA network, which will select the best nuggets for a round of financing between 200,000 and 500,000 dirhams, and/or support in the entrepreneurial project. The prerequisites: have at least one year of existence and a potential for growth.
Energize a flabby stomach
Like the French investment fund ISAI co-founded by Pierre Kosciusko-Morizet (PriceMinister), the slogan of Angels4Africa is “by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs”. A gathering of different investors, startupers or top executives who come to coach, give feedback, expertise and advice on development methods for young shoots, in return for an entry into their capital. That’s what a business angel is.
On the financing side, precisely, the environment of Moroccan startups is experiencing deficiencies at certain levels. There are indeed various seed funds, in particular through incubators or the Central Guarantee Fund (CCG), but the lack of a support structure and intermediate financing would be the major obstacle to the development of Moroccan startups. .
It is precisely this lack of structure in the ecosystem and this weakness of the financial support mechanisms that Angels4Africa wants to try to overcome. “BAs in Morocco have been around for a very long time, but it is an activity that is completely unstructured and involves a number of risks. Our goal is not to replace investment funds, but rather to complement them,” explains Mehdi Alaoui, founder of LaFactory. He continues: “between the donor loans of a few tens of thousands of dirhams from the InnovInvest fund and a series A (the first significant fundraising for a start-up, editor’s note) of 2 to 20 million dirhams from the funds of investment, there is a gap. That’s where we want to step in.”
Establish trust
The first financing tickets must fall the same evening, after the launch. Mehdi Alaoui warns from his introduction: “Startups, prepare your files, because investors are there and waiting for you! “. For some, the beginnings were indeed promising. Suheyl Benhamou, co-founder of Caronae Systems (official document recognition software, editor’s note), present at the event, testified: “We pitched our idea to one of the investors. We have an appointment next week to enter into negotiations with him. The fact that these investors are coming forward publicly is already a big step. This network is there to establish trust between investors and startupers, which is quite fragile in Morocco today”. In 2018, only $4 million was granted to Moroccan startups, compared to more than $100 million in countries like Kenya or Nigeria.
For his part, Ismail Bargach, founder of WafR (a mobile payment application for grocers, editor’s note) explains to us: “the logic behind Angels4Africa is to get out of the purely mercantile aspect, by allowing entrepreneurs to benefit from the expertise of BA with a much more senior profile with great successes. They will no longer be just wealthy people looking for good returns on investments only. These people will be more willing to accept the risks associated with the activities of startups”.
Because today, for Moroccan startups, it is the problem of the egg and the chicken that reigns. “In France, there are funds, structured networks with real good exits (sale of a startup, editor’s note) which allow the networks to be bailed out by becoming investors themselves. This virtuous circle does not yet exist in Morocco. There aren’t enough quality startups so venture capital money can’t find a place to invest. De facto, management companies find it difficult to raise funds to invest in venture capital, and when they do, the returns on investment are quite mediocre. So Angels4Africa is a great initiative, which must now materialize through rapid action,” enthuses a startuper contacted by TelQuel.
Others, on condition of anonymity, also expressed their doubts. “Few Moroccan startupers have local success stories, for a real sharing of experience. Some have created great things abroad, but they don’t necessarily benefit from them here,” confides, for example, a Casablanca startuper. Another: “Moroccan startupers who succeed in Morocco give 800% all day in their box. You don’t hear from them, because they do nothing but work. They execute. They are the ones who understand what matters most, but they don’t have time to share their experience.”
Twenty Moroccan business angels have nevertheless joined the ranks of Angels4Africa since its launch to support national startups. Among them: Tarik Fadli (SSII Algo Consulting), Kenza Lahlou (Outlierz Ventures investment fund), Larbi Alaoui Belrhiti (CEO of Jumia Morocco), Nasser Kettani (KettaniDigital Consulting, former Microsoft Morocco technical director). These investment or tech figures have decided to volunteer to provide the network with their advice. A bit like the Réseau Entreprendre Maroc, chaired by Mehdi Laraki, and within which, since 2011, 300 business leaders have volunteered, 200 winners have been supported, 600 jobs created or saved and 16.4 million dirhams of loans granted and guaranteed by the Central Guarantee Fund (CCG).
For the selection of potential future nuggets accompanied by Angels4Africa, the methodology will be as follows: candidates must submit their file online before being pre-selected on the quality of the file. Subsequently, an interview will be carried out with a manager, before going before a jury. A 15-minute pitch will have to be made in front of the investors before a plenary negotiation if the idea is approved. This will be followed by due diligence during which investors will inspect the finances of the startup and its assets, before validating their proposal. All to lead to a deal signing and project monitoring by business angels.
Source: https://telquel.ma/2019/06/28/angels4africa-le-nouveau-reseau-de-business-angels-pour-accompaniment-les-startups-marocaines_1643130
