We are proud to bring you another exciting event, this time with the founding team of fintech and mobility startup Planet42.
During the session, we will explore the correlations between physical mobility and social mobility, meaning how moving from A to B safely and in a timely manner, being able to access opportunities that are physically far away can impact the ability to develop in terms of career, wealth and prosperity.
We will also discuss how traditional banks are failing to provide basic financial services to the population, and what startups are doing about it. Crucially, we’ll look at why banks are so slow when it comes to innovation.
It will also be an opportunity to discuss fintech and tech startups in Africa and their difference with European counterparts, and for aspiring entrepreneurs to ask both founders questions around creating and leading a startup as well as raising millions in funding.
Eerik Oja is the CEO and co-founder of Planet42. He is based in Cape Town and never shuts up about how the winding mountain roads there are perfect for riding motorbikes.
Eerik grew up in Räpina, a small town in rural Estonia. After graduating high school and completing military service, he got his Bachelor’s degree at the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga. He then moved to Tallinn, working as an investor relations specialist for farming organization Agromino, and as an analyst and business development specialist at investment management firm Trigon Capital. In 2014, he became Country Manager of Estonia for financial services firm Mogo Finance, a role which saw him turn the Estonian business into the best-performing branch for the group. In 2017, Eerik co-founded Planet42 together with Marten Orgna with the goal of democratising access to mobility.
Eerik is motivated by the impact Planet42 brings to people unfairly ignored by banks. His vision for a socially impactful business is simple - remove unnecessary hurdles and help people reach their full potential. Eerik is an avid rugby fan, a passion he shares with millions of South Africans, and remains a board member of Estonian rugby club Tallinn Kalev RFC. As a member of the Estonian Founders Society, Eerik also maintains tight ties with his home country’s startup community.
Marten is the CFO and co-founder of Planet42. He grew up in Tallinn, Estonia, and studied Economics and Business Administration at the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga and the City University of Hong Kong. Since then, Marten has built up extensive experience in finance.
Marten spent six years at investment management firm Trigon Capital, first as an analyst and later as the Head of African Investments, where he was responsible for the equity fundraising and sales activities of Trigon’s African projects in Mozambique, Tanzania and Ghana.
His ties to Africa only grew stronger when he moved to Mozambique to serve as the CFO at a cotton farming and logistics business Trigon had invested in. But that wasn’t enough: travelling across the dirt tracks of the continent, Marten was looking for business ideas to get involved in, and financial services seemed to be the best fit. With a vision for a new startup, he declined an offer to work for a London-based private equity fund and instead convinced Eerik to move to Johannesburg to launch Planet42.
In addition to his love for classic Italian cars, Marten has a thing for good wine. So moving to a top-tier wine-producing country like South Africa was a huge perk for him.
Centre for Entrepreneurship
Director
I, Machaka Mosehana, am an ED (Enterprise Development) Strategist by profession specialising in both local and international market linkages in the small medium enterprise (SME) development space. My SME development experience spans over 15 years in private sector, public sector and non-profit orgnanisations. As an ED strategist I lead strategy formulation, planning and the seamless execution of innovative SME development programmes to solve for corporate and public sector transformation agenda, using Enterprise and Supplier Development pillar of the B-BBEE as a driver.
I have a refined skill to facilitate access to market and finance for SMEs. This involves recruiting enterprises with high-growth potential and developing them to a level of investor-readiness. Thereafter, access to market opportunities are unlocked by linking investor-ready SMEs to local and international investment opportunities; thereby contributing to their sustainable development and growth.
I was the founder of a start-up called Fahrenheit Capital whose role is to create access
to market platform for SMEs through Market Linkage Facilitation, Enterprise
Development, Corporate Innovation and Alternative Funding. In 2016 I was appointed
as an Executive Manager: Business Development by AFIDEP (African Investor and
Development Programme) based in Switzerland. My responsibility was to market
Africa as an investment hub for signature infrastructure projects to the international
investor community. During my tenure, we managed to pull investments valued
approximately € 106 million to link to high-growth enterprises and governments who
run high-growth projects in Africa.
Over the 15 years I have created strong relational capital with the South African SME ecosystem key players. I’m currently a Non-Executive Director (Board Member) of Aspire Development Agency and an Acting Director of the Centre of Entrepreneurship at the Johannesburg Business School.
SIGNATURE PROJECTS
INTERNATIONAL ENTREPRENEUR & INVESTOR SUMMIT
A Fahrenheit Capital summit which convened investors and high impact entrepreneurs on a platform that creates access to investment, resources and developmental support. The Summit continues to be an ideal market place for high growth enterprises to meet and transact with angel investors, foreign investors, venture capitalists, corporate South Africa and development funding institutions.
DAIMLER AND BOSCH ELECTRIC CAR
In 2014 SA signed an MOU with German based Daimler and Bosch to assemble Electric Cars, build recharge and car service stations in South Africa. I was appointed to raise match funding and to recruit entrepreneurial youth to be trained in car assembly, operation of recharge stations and car service stations in Germany
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