Introducing the Unbounded Podcast

How should investors navigate Nigeria, the Giant of Africa, in 2022? In this first episode of CrossBoundary’s new podcast about building businesses in markets that are often overlooked, Timoni Akindolie, Investment Associate at CrossBoundary, speaks with two powerhouses active in the Nigeria start-up and investment scene: Rolake Rosiji, former Country Director for MKOPA; and Oluwatoyin Emmanuel-Olubake, Investment Director at Novastar Ventures (@NovastarV).

In this episode, Rolake shares insights into her professional journey “doing hard things”, from her leadership in increasing energy access to underbanked Nigerians, to responding to community needs due to COVID-19 lockdowns, and now taking on the challenge of unemployment.

You will also hear from Oluwatoyin about the breadth of investment opportunities in Nigeria from an investor with years of experience in the region, and how investors interested in the Nigerian market can make wise and effective decisions on where to play. “For people looking in [from outside], I would say, it’s an interesting time in the ecosystem and we’re still very early.”

Follow CrossBoundary on Twitter and LinkedIn for more insights on investment, business, and growth in underserved markets across the globe.

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How can simplifying the farm funding process drive both profitability and soil health on American farms?

CrossBoundary’s Nathan Kelly speaks with Sami Tellatin (@SamiTellatin), co-founder and COO at FarmRaise (@Farm_Raise), a U.S.-based business dedicated to connecting farmers and ranchers to grant and loan opportunities. FarmRaise has just completed a $7.2 million seed round led by Susa Ventures to scale their solution.

In this episode, Nathan and Sami chat about the realities of farming in the U.S. and why sustainable and regenerative practices at the farm level are critical ways U.S. agriculture can simultaneously become more climate-smart and profitable.

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In Haiti, local private sector and bold entrepreneurs are building enterprises to help overcome daily challenges and urgent problems. In this episode of Unbounded, we spoke with two entrepreneurs and an investor who are tackling uncertainty in Haiti through adaptation and resilience-building, and successfully navigating the fundraising process along the way.

Hosted by CrossBoundary’s Head of Caribbean Advisory Jamie McInerney, we hear from:

Rowolson Kuhn (@RowolsonKuhn), CEO and co-founder of Solengy (@Solengy1), who shares his learnings from a nearly 20-year journey to build a reliable solar energy provider in Haiti. “Last year was extreme…besides the political challenges and insecurity, you had few weeks where there was no diesel available in the country.”

John-Francois Pean, an Investment Manager at Bamboo Capital Partners (@bamboocp) focused on energy access, who gives insights on the characteristics and attributes that Bamboo Capital looks for in potential investments in Haiti. “…it’s very hard to convince local investors and international investors that something is worthwhile if you don’t have minimum data to back it up.”

Finally, Jude Jean Baptiste (@JudeJBHT) walks us through his journey founding Paon Bleu (@paonbleuht), a mobile fintech company, and shares what surprised him most about the fundraising process. “Traditionally when you need to finance something in Haiti, even if you do get the chance to finance it, you have to go to a bank and pick up a [physical] loan application.”

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What challenges and opportunities do global frontier markets offer to U.S. capital? In this episode of Unbounded, CrossBoundary partner Tom Flahive talks with Lisa Abraham, senior ESG research analyst and principal at Brown Advisory, a global investment management firm.

Lisa leads the integration of Brown Advisory’s ESG research across their sustainable fixed income strategies. She most recently helped launch Brown’s global fixed income platform. Lisa began her career at Envest Microfinance Fund and later worked at the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), assessing and reporting on the ESG impacts of U.S. government investments in frontier markets.

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