2025 has been a year of intensity and contradiction. Volatile markets. Ongoing war. A weaker dollar, but IPOs — like Chime — are starting to trickle through. Public markets are making new highs, choosing optimism on AI over geopolitical risk. At the end of the day, data has been better than expected – it’s the economy, stupid.
At Endeavor, our true north has never changed: it’s the entrepreneur. But the best founders don’t just dream big — they dream right. That means aligning bold ambition with fundamentals that scale, and timing matters. Above all, it means paying it forward — because real success is never a solo sport.
So, what happened in Q2?
This quarter Melvyn Lubega was appointed to Chair SA’s Digital Service Unit in The Presidency and momentum continued as the Startup Act Roadshow gathered founders, funders & policymakers to shape SA’s startup ecosystem.
We extend both a warm welcome to our newest Local Scale-Up joiners: Dream Drive and Contract Corridor, as well as our E Squared Venture joiners, Zaio and Excel@Uni, who are looking to make an impact, and we celebrate Aura’s Series B capital raise, led by Partech and AfricInvest.
We also officially launched two new programs this quarter:
- The Africa Agri-Tech Scale-Up Program, in partnership with FMO – Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, supporting eight ventures building the future of agriculture in Africa: Agnify, agriBORA, Agro Innova Ltd, Evet Inc, Kitovu Technology Company, Maltento (Pty) Ltd, Pumpkn, Vetsark.
- Endeavor & E Squared Pathways Program (Allan Gray), designed to support early-stage entrepreneurs ready to grow, featuring: Cape Codes, Fintr, Palé AI, SANRAE, Sellers Plug, Khon’Structure, Mabu Tribe, TBC, Visionary Writings, Wyer.
We continue to strengthen our global network – the Endeavor Catalyst Investor Day took place on the 14ᵗʰ May in London, where Tjaart van der Walt shared Tyme’s story, and in good company. The message was clear, the future is elsewhere and it is AI driven. Around this, we hosted a London Diaspora Event, a reminder that South African diaspora have a meaningful role to play in local ecosystems. Endeavor Global’s Catalyst Funds are a powerful mechanism to enable Endeavor to reach sustainability while at the same time building community and a shared goal to pay-it-forward. Please reach out if you’re interested to learn more about this unique investment opportunity to do well by doing good.
In Global News, we highlight the next in-person Endeavor International Selection Panel in Cambridge, UK happening on the 9-11ᵗʰ September and then in Stellenbosch on the 10-12ᵗʰ December, which will be held at the newly renovated Spier. Please register here if you would like to attend the Stellenbosch event, and reach out to us if you would like to be a sponsor.
Lastly, for our network – click here for our recently launched local talent exchange and a link to our network events.
Local Endeavor Events & Network News
Outliers Retreat in Comporta, Portugal, over 120 of the world’s top tech founders gathered quietly for the Endeavor Outliers Retreat — no stages, no press — just real conversations among peers.
Innovation City Awards honoured Pieter de Villiers with an Honorary Award for his impact on African innovation, and Melvyn Lubega with a nomination for Entrepreneur of the Year.
Africa’s VC Market Is Reawakening — In a recent interview on Classic Business, Endeavor South Africa MD Alison Collier shared how SA has the talent, institutions, and ecosystem to lead Africa’s next VC wave.
Founder Stories podcast debuts with Tinashe Ruzane of FlexClub.
Entrepreneur News
2025 Global Outliers Named.
Yoco, Go1, Tymebank & Onafriq named 2025 Global Outliers — top 10% of Endeavor’s global portfolio. Read more
InnoVent and TTRO Celebrate 15 and 10 Years with Endeavor.
A decade-plus of scale, innovation, and ecosystem impact – their journeys reflect the power of long-term support and the multiplier effect in action. Read more
African Innovation Recognised on TIME100.
Four African companies feature on the 2025 TIME100 Most Influential Companies list — three are led by Endeavor Entrepreneurs, including TymeBank. Read more
Onafriq & Circle Transform African Payments.
Onafriq and Circle launch a Ghana pilot with PAPSS to revolutionize cross-border payments and boost seamless intra-African trade. Read more
SweepSouth Expands Beyond Cleaning.
Now offering childcare, elderly care, and office cleaning, SweepSouth is evolving into an all-in-one support platform for busy South African households and workplaces. Read more
Local Scale Up News
Welcome to the latest joiners in our pipeline:
- Dream Drive: Steven Tyler and Matthew Chapman, Co-Founders – Dream Drive is a first-of-its-kind, skill-based gameplay platform in South Africa that gives participants the chance to win their dream car or a cash alternative. Read more
- Contract Corridor: Raphael Segal and Norman Kreztmer, Co-Founders – Contract Corridor is a purpose-built AI-driven platform that is revolutionising Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM). Read more
- JabuPay enters Côte d’Ivoire to power Francophone growth. Read more
- Pineapple is rewriting the rules of short-term insurance in South Africa and is now arguably SA’s fastest-growing short-term insurer. Read more
Global Endeavor Events & Entrepreneur News
Are you still the right person to be CEO? Don’t miss this interview at Endeavor Week where Matt Harrisencourages founders to ask this questions, not out of doubt, but out of responsibility.
In June, we hosted our 103rd in-person International Selection Panel in Warsaw, where we selected 21 entrepreneurs leading 14 companies. Among them were Jooble, an international job search website born in Ukraine that serves an average of 30 million monthly users in 67 countries, and Docplanner, a Polish platform that connects patients with healthcare professionals and a market leader in Poland, Italy, Brazil, and Mexico.
Other cool stuff to double click on
- Reflect on the six realities reshaping venture capital. From mega-funds to liquidity droughts and AI as a platform shift, legendary Benchmark partner Bill Gurley breaks down the uncomfortable math behind today’s and tomorrow’s private markets.
- Retire the one-size-fits-all definition for venture. Samir Kaji lays out how the VC industry has split into two extremes — mega-funds and small specialists — and why LPs need to stop treating them as one and the same.
- Ask the hard question before the market asks it for you. This sharp reflection by Jake Saper calls on pre-2023 founders to decide whether they’re ready to fully reinvent for the AI era or step aside.
- Reframe what makes a great investor. Formula 1 champ turned VC Nico Rosberg explains how the sport’s recent surge in popularity turned into profitability — and how his F1 experience gave him a unique edge when backing startups like Polish AI powerhouse ElevenLabs.
Closing the quarter
As Q2 ends, we’re left with the same question that sparked this reflection: do winners dream big, or dream right? The truth is, they do both — and they know when to switch gears. They tune into the moment without losing sight of the mission. They make the unit economics work and dare to reshape industries.
Winning at Lord’s — the “Home of Cricket” — was not just about skill. It was about legacy, ambition, and belief. For South Africa, winning a Test match at Lord’s was always a big dream, but it was a dream executed right.
In a world that’s testing convictions, the founders who endure are those who stay sharp, stay generous, and stay ambitious — in the right direction. That’s the kind of dreaming we back at Endeavor. Enjoy the thrills of Wimbledon, Rugby, Tour de France, F1, and here’s to dreaming big and right in the next quarter.
Warm regards,
Alison Collier, Endeavor South Africa MD.