For Bold Operators
Taking The Startup Leap
Your Hosts🎙️: Maria Rotilu and Yvonne Bajela
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TEASER EPISODE
Your Hosts; Maria and Yvonne share what to expect as you listen to The Startup Leap (TSL)
Packed with insights, real-life stories of entrepreneurs who took the bold step to launch their own companies, TSL your go-to podcast as you transform your business dreams into reality.
Considering taking the leap to entrepreneurship? Want to learn from the stories of others?
Then this is the Podcast for you!
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ABOUT THE STARTUP LEAP
For Those Exploring The Leap to Entrepreneurship
A podcast for operators, builders and technology professionals, tapping into the experiences of bold founders who took the leap to starting their companies.
We navigate how the founders navigated the risk of the leap, decided on co-founders, found their first customers, investors, partners etc. Our conversations are real and raw.
Get ready for a fun discussion at least, and at best nuanced insights as you consider making the move to entrepreneur.
MEET YOUR HOSTS
YVONNE BAJELA
Yvonne is a Partner at LocalGlobe, EMEA’s leading seed-stage venture capital fund.
Prior to LocalGlobe she was a founding member of Impact X Capital and had invested over $200m in companies such as Revolut, Wise (previously Transferwise), Flutterwave and Marshmallow.
Previous roles include investment banking at Goldman Sachs and representation on the board of HarbourVest Global Private Equity.
Outside of investing, Yvonne is a mega foodie, a hiker, and, when she’s not in mum mode, she's reading financial reports for fun.
MARIA ROTILU
Maria is the Founding Partner at Openseed.VC - first investors of up to $150k in experienced operators as they start their technology companies in Europe & Africa.
She's an Operator turned Investor and prior to investing, scaled startups like Uber (Country Manager) and Branch (AI/ML Neo bank for emerging markets), as General Manager to millions of users.
Prior to Openseed VC, she was one of two Fund Managers who built, invested and managed Octopus First Cheque Fund - a £10m Pan-European Fund. She has an MBA from Oxford, and a Computer Science Undergraduate degree and is a Certified Chartered Accountant (ACCA, UK)
On lazy day you’ll find Maria reading a book, watching a sci-fi TV series, cooking up a storm, or tinkering on a low-code workflow to avoid repetitive tasks.
ASK A QUESTION
Got a burning question you need answered by an experienced founder? We would love to answer one of your questions on a future episode 🎙️
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