Deal Weekend Lagos 2015

We are excited to announce Deal Weekend Lagos, a 24 hour event in which startups will compete to receive equity investment of between $100k and $250k. We guarantee that at least one deal will be signed in the 24 hours. Apply here to participate on September 4th and 5th where you will meet the most respected investors in the ecosystem who have all built their own businesses and can give you their networks, expertise and funding.

What is Deal Weekend?

• 440 and selected founder-investors will meet the shortlisted group of startups on Friday 4th and Saturday 5th September, in order to:
• Quickly find out which startups are interesting investment opportunities
• Do one on one mentor sessions with Startups and 440 mentors and founder-investors
• Conduct deal sessions in which 440 will decide which startups to invest in and term sheets will be signed. Founder-investors will also be invited to invest.

Why participate in Deal Weekend?

• No commitment to a long accelerator programme – continue your daily business operations and get help and advice when you need it
• Save loads of time – it can often take months to get funding for your business, Deal Weekend is way quicker!
• Receive smart money – your investors are well respected entrepreneurs who have built and exited successful ventures
• Experienced investors – 440 started investing in Nigeria in 2014 and partner, 440 have been investing in African tech startups since 2011

What happens after Deal Weekend?

After Deal Weekend we will work with the startups that have been chosen for investment by 440. We will be active and supportive board members, utilising our business knowledge and networks to support the startup.

Why are we doing this?

We have seen that startups do best when they have investors who are experienced entrepreneurs. However, these types of investors rarely have time to look at more than a couple startups a year, and the follow-up process post-investment can be daunting. Doing it this way ensures that vetting, investing, and oversight of multiple startups’ accounts and actions, can be more structured, and that the founder-investors can discuss interesting deals with other like-minded investors.

It will also allow startups more freedom and time to independently pursue an agreed direction, reaching out to investors how and when they see fit.

How different is this from the accelerator process?

Pre-Deal Weekend is pretty much the same as for the accelerator program. We will source deal flow via the 440 application platform and filter down to a shortlisted group of viable startup businesses that will be interviewed and, if successful, invited to Deal Weekend.

Deal Weekend is where the real difference lies, as we spend 24 hours looking under the hood of selected startups, where only the most promising ones will receive investment offers.

Post-Deal Weekend we will work with the startups and investors to transfer cash, and ensure that procedures have been put in place to follow the startups progress.

The tools and goals we will use, are very similar to those employed during an accelerator program:

· Due diligence checklist (from our previous experience with startups)

· Lean canvas sessions

· Setup management accounts

· Use SAFE docs – simple term sheets and investment contracts

· The week will be hosted at Lagos Garage, facilitated by 440 team

· Startups participating can stand to receive investments between $100k – $250k

Who is on the Deal Weekend Investor team?

So far we have Kresten Buch of 88mph, Chika Nwobi of L5Lab, Elo Umeh of TwinPine Mobile and Bastian Gotter of iRoko.