Robinson Ventures Partners with Coker University

As “Venture Fellows” Students Obtain Real World Experience in the Basics of Venture Capital Investing.

HARTSVILLE, S.C.March 29, 2022PRLog — Robinson Ventures, a nationwide consulting firm working in the healthcare and higher

education markets, is partnering with Coker University to offer learning experiences focused on the world of venture capitalism to senior students. Kelsey Gibbons, a senior majoring in Business Marketing with a minor in Chemistry and Seraphin Kibonge, a senior majoring in Biology with a minor in Communication were selected as the inaugural Venture Fellows.

“We believe a student needs to cap their collegiate learning with experience in a

corporate environment if they are to be truly valued once they graduate. Classroom knowledge as a foundation is important, but if they cannot understand corporate expectations or speak the language, they will be at a disadvantage,” states Cian Robinson, President and Founder, Robinson Ventures.

Students from Coker University assist in the deal-flow processes up to negotiations with

potential portfolio companies as well as proactively researching and analyzing market and

industry trends to identify the best early-stage companies and founding teams for investment. Additionally, Venture Fellows give operative support to portfolio companies as well as create investment proposals and presentations for internal and external use.

Seraphin Kibonge states, “I wanted to be a Venture Fellow to take advantage of the

unique opportunity to gain direct experience with venture funds and the venture capital

process. Inspired by this Fellowship, a future goal of mine is to provide similar venture capital opportunities for entrepreneurs in developing nations, nations like the one I was born in. I am truly excited to be an inaugural member and thank Coker University and Robinson Ventures for the opportunity.” Kelsey Gibbons also stated, “I wanted to become a Venture Fellow to better understand investment opportunities and what criteria goes into these decisions. This opportunity has taught me how to complete the due diligence process. I will use this in my future career to research the companies and products I am selling in pharmaceutical sales. I am very excited to be one of the first Venture Fellows at Coker University and Robinson Ventures.”

With the quality of work exhibited by the first two Venture Fellows, Robinson Ventures

hopes to have up to three students engaged each year. “As both Seraphin and Kelsey have provided true value to the work done by Robinson Ventures on behalf of its clients, we would like to offer additional Venture Fellowship spaces to Coker students,” notes Robinson. “I think this is a true win-win for the students and for companies looking to hire graduates with experience in a corporate setting.”

“Coker University is committed to ensuring that all of its students graduate with the

skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in their careers,” stated by Dr. Marvin Keene, Dean of the Coker University School of Business. “This fellowship with Robinson Ventures provides our students with experiences they simply cannot get in a classroom. This sort of experiential learning is exactly what future business leaders need and it is just what Coker University seeks to provide for its students. We are fortunate to have great business partners, like Robinson Ventures, who offer meaningful experiences for our students.”

ABOUT ROBINSON VENTURES

Robinson Ventures, LLC is an innovation, investment, strategy, and

development consulting firm working in the healthcare and higher education market verticals with offices in South Carolina and North Carolina and clients in across the United States. For more information visit https://www.robinsonventures.com, or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Robinson-Ventures-

LLC-318205488221560/,

or call 716-308- 7357.

ABOUT COKER UNIVERSITY

Coker University is a student-focused, comprehensive institution of higher education

with a strong liberal arts core, located in Hartsville, South Carolina. Coker combines round

table, discussion-based learning with hands-on experiences to encourage active participation in and out of the classroom. A supportive, close-knit community prepares Coker students with the confidence and practical life skills they need to reach their personal best, in college and beyond.

Founded in 1908, Coker is a bachelor’s and master’s degree-granting institution and

competes in 22 NCAA Division II sports. Coker is included among the “Best Colleges” in the South by U.S. News & World Report as well as The Princeton Review, and by Washington Monthly as a “Best Bang for Your Buck” college in the southeast.

1982 Ventures backs Indo AgriTrading Marketplace PasarMIKRO

1982 Ventures has invested in PasarMIKRO, an Indonesian-based Agri Commodity Marketplace startup that empowers disadvantaged farmers by simplifying transactions for both farmers and traders.
– PasarMIKRO has raised funds from 1982 Ventures and prominent angels.
– PasarMIKRO is an ag-tech startup aiming to disrupt Indonesia’s USD$130B agriculture market by connecting farmers and traders.
– PasarMIKRO will use the funds to expand its team and to reach out to more farming communities in Indonesia.

PasarMIKRO was founded by former Altermyth co-founder Dien Wong. Since their pilot in December 2020 the company has helped farmers to trade and finance the distribution of over 5,000 tonnes of eggs and other commodities. Despite the effects of the pandemic, Indonesia’s USD$130 billion agriculture market remains one of the top industries ripe for disruption.

Dien Wong states, “PasarMIKRO is looking after Indonesia’s main providers, farmers and traders who are often overlooked. We are transforming the landscape for a more inclusive digital economy. We foresee that with the digitization of the ecosystem, it will enable a scalable future food value chain.”

The Indonesian-based company provides various services for farmers and traders for their daily transactions such as bookkeeping, lending, and marketplace for farmers and the ecosystem to sell their products easily without limitations.

PasarMIKRO has established partnerships with Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), one of Indonesia’s largest banks, and Rabo Foundation, a social fund backed by European agricultural bank Rabo Bank with a mission to give smallholder farmers the prospect of a sustainable future.

Herston Elton Powers, Managing Partner of 1982 Ventures stated, “Unlike other platforms, PasarMIKRO works with the entire supply chain to enable more efficient agricultural financing and transactions. We have not seen an inclusive financing model in Southeast Asia achieve what appears to be such a product-market fit, and begin scaling as early as PasarMIKRO. PasarMIKRO is incredibly capital efficient and has seen impressive disbursement growth since day one.”

Scott Krivokopich, Managing Partner of 1982 Ventures stated, “Indonesia’s agriculture ecosystem is massive and long overdue for modernization. Dien’s decades of experience in game development and time spent in the field with farmers is the driving force behind PasarMIKRO’s impressive growth.”

The funds will be used to expand PasarMIKRO’s team and reach out to more farming communities in Indonesia.

For media enquiries:
dienw@pasarmikro.id

About PasarMIKRO:
PasarMIKRO is a business-to-business aggregated agriculture marketplace with integrated financing facilities. The platform aims to simplify the transaction of farmers and traders in Indonesia’s agriculture market. For more information visit: https://www.pasarmikro.id.

About 1982 Ventures:
1982 Ventures is the leading seed fund investing in fintech startups in Southeast Asia. Our focus makes us the first port of call for fintech founders and the first money in. Our investments include Southeast Asian Open Banking API Platform Brick, Indonesian Personal Finance App Pina, Indonesia’s first Earned Wage Access platform Wagely, Philippine MSME book-keeping app Lista, Vietnam’s leading investment platform Infina, Vietnam’s leading “Buy Now, Pay Later” Fundiin, Vietnam’s Rent-to-Own Home Financing app Homebaseand Singapore’s automated financial data delivery platform Bluesheets.

1982 Ventures is investing in and supporting the best founders to positively impact the future of financial services in Southeast Asia. For more information visit: https://1982.vc.






Topic: Press release summary

Lifeboat Ventures Selects Founder Institute Graduates to Lead ADU Works

 Lifeboat Ventures is pleased to announce that two Founder Institute alumni have been selected to lead the recently launched startup, ADU Works, under the Lifeboat Ventures studio.

ADU Works, a startup focused on bridging the housing gap through Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU’s)s, is now led by former Containerworks founder Conrad Kimball as Chief Executive Officer. In addition to bringing a wealth of knowledge on ADU policies through his work with the City of Fresno, he is also responsible for building Fresno County’s first factory built HCD approved accessory dwelling unit.

“The Founder Institute program was a great learning experience with plenty of positive externalities; including the decision to join the Lifeboat Ventures family as the CEO of ADU Works. The Lifeboat Ventures model is a perfect environment to create a company with benefits to society and shareholders.”

Joining him at the helm is another Founder Institute graduate, Luzcenit Acosta Guio, who will serve as ADU Works’ Chief Operating Officer. Luzcenit Acosta is the founder of Arakue, a sustainable construction company that delivers sustainable and comprehensive social housing solutions. She has 8+ years of experience leading residential, industrial and infrastructure construction projects.

“Being an Entrepreneur is very challenging, but the Founder Institute Program guides you to be committed and persistent to be successful. Joining the Lifeboat Ventures team has been an unique opportunity to ensure the achievement of the startup’s goals and vision, helping to solve the current housing crisis,” says Luzcenit Acosta-Guio.

“Lifeboat Ventures has selected two Founder Institute graduates to lead this startup, in keeping with its model of relying on data to make decisions. Founder Institute graduates have already proven themselves to be adept founders by weathering this very tough program,” according to Gopi Mattel, GP of Lifeboat Ventures.

Conrad Kimball and Luzcenit Acosta-Guio’s combined experience in construction and ADUs, coupled with the drive and commitment to deliver cost-effective, sustainable housing solutions, are leading ADU Works towards a successful future of innovation.

About Lifeboat: Lifeboat Ventures is a $12M Startup Studio that is creating disaster impact mitigation startups. Startups that reduce the impact of continuous disasters such as storms, floods, fire, and pandemics, have compelling demand in society. The objective is to market-validate inevitable solutions, recruit qualified entrepreneurs, and take them to exit. ​ ​

For more information, visit www.lifeboat.ventures.

About ADU Works: ADU works are pioneers in the pre-finished modular ADU space – helping homeowners create new attractive dwellings on their property in less time and cost. The focus is using innovative design, technology, and eco-friendly materials with budget-friendly costs.

For more information, visit www.adu.works

Lifeboat Ventures

Sangeeta Yadav

(650) 338-2299

www.lifeboat.ventures/

ContactContact

Categories

  • Investment

Lifeboat Ventures Announces 1st Closing

 Half Moon Bay, California – Lifeboat Ventures, a venture fund and studio for disaster impact mitigation software startups, announced first closing for its LV Disaster Impact Fund I LLC.

Lifeboat Ventures was part of the first cohort of venture funds launched as part of VC lab program at Founder Institute, world’s largest accelerator. FI VC Lab saw a need for early-stage venture funds for startups that can impact the world beneficially. Multiple cohorts of VC funds have been completed so far.

In the last 20 years, the planet has had three global emergencies – the 9/11 terrorism, the 2008 financial crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, local disasters such as earthquakes, fires, storms, floods, tsunami, and droughts continue to happen in increasing frequency and intensity. Currently, California and the western states of the USA are going through three concurrent disasters – COVID-19, drought, and fires. These disasters have caused and continue to cause severe impacts to people in all societies. Most problems, such as the ones mentioned above, are well-known. Many solutions have been proposed, but very few have been successfully executed. This is the unique thesis that the Lifeboat Venture fund is focused on – Disaster Impact Mitigation.

“As you can see from the headlines of newspapers from around the world these days, we have a great number of disaster-related problems to solve,” said Fred Durham, CEO of CafePress, a company he founded and took public. “I am an investor because I see that Lifeboat Ventures has the right model for these solutions and I believe in Gopi Mattel’s vision and capability.”

Lifeboat Venture was founded by Gopi Mattel, a serial entrepreneur whose first startup was acquired by Oracle. His second firm currently serves companies in 50 countries and has a staff of over 100. He has 30 years of deep software technology and operational experience. Gopi is a mentor and is the Director of a Founder Institute chapter. He has invested in startups and startup funds. His network includes Founder Institute, customers of 20 years, and various partners.

The majority of startups in the venture capital ecosystem fail to achieve their objectives. The fund uses a venture studio model to reduce the risk of startups failing. The fund identifies problems and inevitable ideas, market-validates them, recruits qualified entrepreneurs from accelerators, provides the first round of funding, provides partners and advisors, provides technology, provides KPIs, provides a project and cashflow plans, and guides the startups to the next round of funding. With careful and engaged guidance, the fund plans to have more exits of its startups than is typical.

This is also what Gopi Mattel, CEO of Lifeboat Ventures, had to share, “Venture Capital has a significant role to play in solving the impact of disasters on people. It is important that investors focus their attention on these types of problems using their resources.”

About Lifeboat Ventures:

Lifeboat Ventures is a $12M Startup Studio that is creating disaster impact mitigation software startups. Startups that reduce the impact of continuous disasters such as storms, floods, fire, and pandemics have compelling demand in society. The objective is to market-validate inevitable solutions, recruit qualified entrepreneurs, and take them to exit.

For more information, visit www.lifeboat.ventures

Lifeboat Ventures

Sangeeta Yadav

(650) 338-2299

www.lifeboat.ventures/

ContactContact

Categories

  • Investment

BMW i Ventures Announces Investment in Battery Startup Our Next Energy.

BMW i Ventures announced today an investment in Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE), a Michigan-based energy storage solutions company working to develop longer range, lower cost batteries for electric vehicles. 

“Our Next Energy is working to fundamentally reinvent the battery while focusing on sustainability, safety and cost; three key factors which will help speed the development and adoption of battery electric vehicles,” said Baris Guzel, partner at BMW i Ventures. “We are convinced that Our Next Energy has the potential to truly transform the space, and we could not be more excited to join their journey.”

ONE has demonstrated two proprietary technologies – the first, called “Aries”, uses Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistry in an advanced structural cell to pack architecture reaching very high cell to pack ratios and system level energy density. This results in an increase in battery range and decrease in costs while eliminating nickel and cobalt based chemistries. The second, dubbed “Gemini,” uses ONE’s proprietary energy management system and chemistry in a dual battery range extender architecture.

“BMW i Ventures has a proven track record of successful collaboration with startups with leading technologies to shape future mobility,” said Mujeeb Ijaz, CEO and Founder of Our Next Energy. “We are excited to collaborate with Baris and his team as we work to demonstrate our core technologies.”

Our Next Energy will use the investment to scale production of its first products.

About BMW i Ventures
BMW i Ventures is BMW’s venture capital firm, investing money and resources in startups in the fields of Transportation, Manufacturing, Supply Chain and Sustainability. The firm has made many successful investments over the years in companies such as AutoFi, Chargepoint, Graphcore, Urgent.ly, Proterra, PureCycle, Solid Power, Tekion, Turntide, Xometry and Zum. BMW i Ventures invests in all stages from seed to growth with a focus on Series A/B.
 
About Our Next Energy
Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE) is a Michigan-based developer of innovative energy storage solutions with a vision to rapidly expand the world’s access to sustainable power. Founded in 2020 by Mujeeb Ijaz, a battery systems engineer with more than 30 years of experience, ONE and its team of experienced battery engineers are focused on safer battery chemistries that use the most sustainable raw materials while creating a reliable, low cost and conflict-free supply chain. Visit one.ai to learn more.
 
BMW Group In America
BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975.  Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003.  The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars; Designworks, a strategic design consultancy based in California;  a technology office in Silicon Valley, and various other operations throughout the country.  BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is the BMW Group global center of competence for BMW X models and manufactures the X3, X4, X5, X6 and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 350 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 144 BMW motorcycle retailers, 112 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers.  BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

www.bmwgroup.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BMWGroup
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BMWGroup
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/BMWGroupview
Google+: http://googleplus.bmwgroup.com

Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwusanews.com, www.miniusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com.