South African equity crowdfunding company Uprise.Africa has sealed a partnership with the Johannesburg-based ZAR X stock exchange that will see startups that successfully raise funding on its platform list and publicly trade their shares.
Crowdfunding platform Uprise.Africa, which raised an equity funding round of its own last year, facilitates the whole investment process and enables multiple investors to support South African startups.
It achieved a major milestone earlier this year when regtech startup Intergreatme secured ZAR32.436 million (US$2.19 million) from 406 investors, a record amount raised in an African crowdfunding campaign, and has now partnered ZAR X.
The arrangement means startups that successfully secure capital via the Uprise.Africa platform publicly list on the ZAR X stock exchange, making the existing equity freely tradeable on the open market.
“We are simplifying venture capital through this mutually beneficial partnership for both entrepreneurs and investors,” said Uprise.Africa co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Tabassum Qadir.
“It means when you have a business idea, you can leverage the Uprise.Africa platform to potentially raise capital for it quickly and can ultimately list on a licensed stock exchange, making your shares tradeable.”
“We aim to disrupt the country’s traditional funding landscape by providing an alternative method for small businesses to raise capital. This is innovation for us, and we are excited to partner with ZAR X.”
