Dear Friends of Endeavor,
In the final quarter of 2025, Endeavor Entrepreneurs and Scale-Ups continue to translate ambition into action — forming partnerships, shaping public discourse, raising capital, expanding globally, and strengthening the ecosystem for those who come next.
Liquidity has once again dominated conversation — this time marked by the reopening of the local IPO market and the JSE listing of AI-driven fintech Optasia. Optionality matters, and we celebrate this milestone. While the end of the funnel is beginning to bloom, Endeavor continues the quieter work of planting and nurturing the foundational seeds of the next generation of growth.
We were honoured to host the 105th Endeavor International Selection Panels last week in Stellenbosch at Spier, and above all, what stands out: the Endeavor Network is not just growing — it’s compounding, and what remains clear – Endeavor founders don’t just build companies — they shape narratives.
We welcome and congratulate the Pineapple team on passing the International Selection Panel and thank our Sponsors, board members, and panellists. This quarter also saw Kuunda passing the Local Selection Panel, whilst Ezeebit recently announced their Seed fundraise – which marks the first investment into South Africa by Endeavor patron David Frankel’s Founder Collective. We are thrilled.
And while markets continue to shift, one truth remains constant: shocks and surprises are the essence of investment history. In this context, we share a recently penned article on re-framing risk in private capital markets. As G.K. Chesterton observed:
‘The real trouble with the world of ours is not that it is an unreasonable world, nor even that it is a reasonable one. The commonest kind of trouble is that it is nearly reasonable, but not quite.’
Last week, we welcomed the newest Endeavor Entrepreneurs selected at the ISP in Stellenbosch. 18 founders from 11 countries and companies, including a few firsts – our first entrepreneur from Sudan and first female founder from Pakistan, and of course, our very own South African candidate, Pineapple. This global event heads East with the Singapore ISP taking place 2-4th February, followed by Egypt 28-30th April and Athens, July 13-15th. Reach out to sign up!
Lastly, for our network — click here for the recently launched talent exchange, a link to our network events, and our global newsletter. Grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and enjoy the bumper edition we’ve put together.
Local Endeavor Events & Network News
CELEBRATING AN UNFORGETTBLE ENDEAVOR AFRICA DAY GATHERING
This wasn’t just a gathering. It was momentum. It was belief.
It was Africa showing the world what’s possible when ambition meets community.
At our Africa Day Gathering in Stellenbosch, we brought together some of the most inspiring minds on the continent, investors, founders, operators, and family offices, all united by one mission: putting Africa’s entrepreneurial potential on the global map.
Barry Swartzberg, Executive Director & Co-Founder at Discovery Limited and Endeavor South Africa Chairman, opened the day with a message that set the tone: Africa is rising, and Endeavor is here to amplify it.
From there, the insights flowed:
We heard from Endeavors founder Linda Rottenberg and Catalyst Director Allen Taylor, who reminded us that the next decade belongs to emerging markets — “The future is elsewhere… and it’s Africa.
Endeavor SA Board and Founders on global stages: Melvyn Lubega and Pieter de Villiers contribute to global policy discussions and G20 platforms, reinforcing the role of founders in shaping not just companies, but the environments they operate in. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/drKU3Z2w
Western Cape Investment Summit and Public Service gets a refresh with Melvyn at the helm: Conversations reinforced the importance of public–private collaboration in unlocking long-term growth, and public service delivery is getting an innovative refresh as Melvyn pays-it forward Endeavor Style:
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com
VC Model (for SA investors & entreps) Documents go live: The freely available templates aim to simplify early-stage investing, reduce friction in dealmaking.
Local Founder Stories Podcast
Episode 5: Michael Heyink, Founder and CEO of Yellow: From a restless student to leading Yellow Africa, Michael shares how early failure shaped a decentralised approach to expanding access to power and connectivity. Here
Episode 6: Katlego Maphai, CEO and Co-Founder of Yoco: Shaped by a childhood between South Africa and the US, Katlego shares how observation, authenticity, and staying grounded through highs and lows shaped Yoco’s mission. Here
Episode 7: Pieter de Villiers, CEO and Co-Founder of Clickatell: From four lines of code in Cape Town to pioneering chat commerce globally, Pieter shares how Clickatell scaled internationally and enabled payments in WhatsApp. Here
📺 View all Founder Stories episodes
Entrepreneur News
Tyme founders win Endeavor’s top Global Award “The Linda’s”
Coenraad Jonker and Tjaart van der Walt received Endeavor’s top global annual award in New York: Read more
Cheslyn Jacobs appointed CEO of TymeBank South Africa
Effective 1 January 2026, the founding team member and current Chief Commercial Officer steps into the role as the bank enters its next phase of scale. Read more
Clickatell turns 25
From four lines of code in Cape Town to a global chat commerce leader, Clickatell marks 25 years of innovation. CEO and co-founder Pieter de Villiers reflects on the journey and what’s next. Read more
TymeBank & Ozow – Inclusion in action
Ozow joined forces with Orca Fraud to strengthen fraud detection across real-time payments. Read more
Sendmarc expands into Italy
Sendmarc enters the Italian market through a new channel partnership. Read more
FlexClub on Mzansi Unicorns Podcast
Tinashe Ruzane unpacks why traditional vehicle ownership doesn’t work for most South Africans. Read more
Local Scale Up News
Welcome to the latest joiners:
Plentify Series A: Plentify closed an oversubscribed Series A. Read more
JABU x MTN Zambia: JabuPay partners with MTN Zambia to enable instant transfers between JabuPay wallets and MTN mobile numbers. Read more
AURA x M-KOPA (Kenya): AURA partners with M-KOPA to roll out real-time emergency response technology to field agents operating across Kenya. Read more
AURA on Business Week: The interview covered AURA’s expansion from South Africa into the UK and US, and the operational lessons behind scaling mission-critical technology. Read more
Resolute Education on 702: The Money Show discussing how coding, robotics, and AI are reshaping South Africa’s education system and future workforce. Read more
Flood features in ITWeb Africa Brainstorm: how Flood is helping legacy retailers compete in a digital-first world. Read more
Other ‘cool stuff’ we’ve collated for you to double-click on
➡️ Marc Andreessen’s Reading List: Check out the books that influenced the Netscape and a16z co-founder.
Lightspeed dives deep into Money 3.0: Stablecoins.
➡️ Resilience Matters More Than Grit in Entrepreneurs’ Success. Emergence Capital Partners shares how.
➡️ Running is the cheapest sport on Earth. All you need is a pair of shoes, some shorts, and an old t-shirt, right? Not if VCs have anything to say about it.
➡️ A Skeptic’s Pre-Mortem.: Three years in, ChatGPT still isn’t what it was cracked up to be – and it probably never will be
➡️ Learn to spearfish in venture waters. In this energizing episode of the Invest Like The Best podcast, long-time Endeavor mentor and General Atlantic’s Co-President Martín Escobari shares how he balances intuition and rigor to find once-in-a-decade deals — and why he sees global growth equity entering its best window since 2009.
➡️ Build for the hardest settings first. When security threats derailed a surgery in Lebanon, Endeavor Entrepreneur Nadine Hachach-Haram asked: What if I could guide surgeons remotely? That question became Proximie — now used in 50+ countries and 800+ hospitals.
➡️ Know when to ship — and where to build. ElevenLabs has a simple rule: if research takes more than three months, the product team moves ahead. Dive deep into how their Europe-rooted strategy sharpened that discipline, fueling voice nuance, trust, velocity, and global scale.
Closing the quarter
As Q4 unfolds, the Endeavor network enters its final stretch of the year not by slowing down, but by sharpening focus. What has become increasingly clear — particularly in recent months — is the power of quiet compounding: founders backing founders, capital finding conviction, and ideas taking root long before they appear in headlines.
This is how enduring ecosystems are built — through consistent action, shared belief, and a long-term orientation that values progress over noise. Founders playing what is in front of them.
We are reminded that lasting success rarely comes from a single bold stroke, but from a pattern of sound decisions made across cycles — quarter by quarter, cycle by cycle. Chesterton concludes:
“Life is not an illogicality; yet it is a trap for logicians. It looks a little more mathematical and regular than it is; its exactitude is obvious, but its inexactitude is hidden; its wildness lies in wait.”
This is where Endeavor stands — holding both truths at once. Supporting founders who are planting seeds today, even when the harvest is not yet visible. Not only scaling companies, but also shaping the narratives that make the next generation possible.
May the weeks ahead bring rest, reflection, and renewed energy for what comes next.
With gratitude,
Alison Collier, Endeavor South Africa MD.