While 2021 was a record-breaking year for investment in startups, only 1.2% of the more than $137 billion invested in the first half of the year went to black entrepreneurs, and only 2% went to women-founded companies, according to Crunchbase, an online database of companies and startups.
As capital constraint remains a significant issue for Black founders, the Institute For Entrepreneurial Leadership is addressing the disparity and lack of access to capital through an innovative program, The Making of Black Angels, a movement to create inclusion within the angel investment sector and to increase the number of Black professionals involved with angel investing. IFEL believes that inclusion efforts to increase the number of Black people involved in angel investing will lead to more Black entrepreneurs receiving angel capital, the first step to getting on the path to venture capital.
As part of its Making of Black Angels initiative, the organization hosts a series of Entrepreneur Showcases to provide an experiential learning opportunity to explore the world of angel investing, to help identify deal opportunities and to connect with other new angel investors. For the first time, the virtual Entrepreneur Showcase to be held Wednesday, July 27, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. will be focused exclusively on founders who are currently fundraising via crowdfunding.
Three entrepreneurs who will present their respective companies: Jennifer Gomez of OneKIN; April Kelly of SURE! and Garry Johnson III of Bison Venture Partners (BVP). Attendees will have the opportunity to invest for as little as $100 and do not need to meet the standard SEC accreditation requirements to get involved with early-stage investing.
To register, link here.
