Q. How does the VC world’s retreat influence your view of the valuation of startups?
A. We have an established system of valuing prospective companies, and it takes into effect the multiples that are being paid for similar companies in the space, including both venture investment going in and exit valuations on sale or IPO. Because VC investment is constrained currently, valuations have come under pressure for the companies that we are considering. We are seeing very good companies and are confident that we will be able to settle on investment valuations that will be good for the companies and our investors.

Q. How many subsidiaries do you plan to have within the holding?
A. We expect to close 10-12 companies over the next 18-24 months. There is no limit to the number of companies that can eventually become a part of our holding company.

Q. Investment from Africa, how would it be protected in form of guarantee?
A. There are no guarantees in venture investing in general. As we noted, our methodology of taking on significant portions of the administrative functions and making sure that our companies are suitably and appropriately funded ought to give our companies a leg up in terms of their ability to thrive…and our ability to exit successfully.