University Venture Finance Report: UnblockAfrica Due Diligence

This report presents an analysis of the UnblockAfrica venture, focusing on its potential to provide banking services to the unbanked population in South Africa. The analysis is conducted from an investor's perspective, utilizing a four-pillar venture evaluation framework. The report examines the market, highlighting the large untapped potential and the company's ability to generate profits. It then assesses the team's strengths, including their diverse expertise in business, banking, and fintech, while also acknowledging their lack of practical experience. Finally, the report evaluates the business model, which is based on internet and mobile banking through a single application. The success of the business relies on efficient marketing, customer support, and customer relationship management. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of team collaboration and customer retention for achieving the venture's objectives. The report also provides a due diligence process on the chosen venture.

Running head: VENTURE FINANCE
Venture Finance
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1VENTURE FINANCE
Table of Contents
The Market:................................................................................................................................2
Team:..........................................................................................................................................3
The Business Model:..................................................................................................................4

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The Market:
UnblockAfrica is a company that seeks to provide banking services to South Africans
citizens that up to now have been unbanked. The aim is to offer a fintech technology and
banking facilities to ordinary people. By using the App the people will be able to do money
transfers, make bill payments, make credit Transactions and deposits and all of this can be
checked on the App using the internet on a Smartphone and without transaction any fees!
In developing a business model, forecasting of demand and evaluation of the expected
demand is crucial, because the success of the proposed business model depends largely on the
expected demand. The main operation of the proposed business is banking activities. Hence,
customers opening account with them would constitute the market share for them. In respect
to the market, we can elucidate a robust potential market that can benefit around 54% of the
population. As well as this, as a company, the product can produce significant profits that can
increase dramatically from SAR 138,422 in the first year to SAR 54,677,143 in year five.
In respect of the weakness Market-wise, the business will have to overcome the
reluctance to change from the population. Considering this is a new service for a community
who has been deprived of banking services for such a long time it won't be easy to place
directly on the market.
Many will be reluctant to bank through an App, and it will take time until the
potential customer will accommodate to the benefits of the banking through the internet.
Hence, initially it might become difficult for the proposed business to gain interest of the
customers and to reach out to the customers, but later on, with the increase in awareness of
benefits and ease of doing banking they can gain a significant market share in the banking
industry.

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Team:
The venture has a remarkable team who possess the skill, knowledge and expertise
that can make the business viable and successful.
The key players in the team are:
1. Lerato Dube: a business literate who has the expertise in building the company and who
is capable of envisaging the future of a company. Ms Lerato was able to build the business
model and financial projections.
2. Jaco Brink: Mr Jaco is the brain of the business and capable of developing the App, due
to his knowledge and expertise in the banking system. The company knows that the App has
to be easy to access by every potential customer.
3. Janna Vermeulen: Janna is an expert in Fintech technology and has a PhD in this subject.
She is confident about the potential of a blockchain technology application.
The team was built strategically to address the potential issues of the product and the
market. Therefore, combination of people from diverse fields can become the strength for the
company to formulate their business model and strategies and to build such a marketing
strategy which will help them to achieve the desired demand for their services thereby
achieving their overall business objectives.
On the other hand, the weakness of the team is that although they are having expertise
in different and required areas for the business, they do not have any practical and past
experience. Hence, it might be a challenging role for them to play in a new start up with their
knowledge and with an aim of making the business successful.
Lastly, it can be commented that, a good combination of individuals in the tam can
lead the business towards success.

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The Business Model:
The aim of the proposed business is to provide banking services to the citizens of the
South Africa who are still unable to access banking services. The business model is based on
the internet banking and mobile banking activities through a single mobile application or
internet. They can avail all types of banking services through that mobile application.
As all the operations will be completely internet based and will be made through the
mobile application the main objective of the business will be to promote their mobile
application in various social networking sites and through other advertising channels. To
promote such a banking business, they have to arrange for necessary licences and permissions
from the central bank of the country as well as the authority governing and monitoring the
financial transactions and business in the country.
The business will be operated from its centralised office and through various branches
across the country to serve their customers and to resolve their issues. Hence, if the expected
demand for their services can be achieved than the business will be successful in achieving
their objectives and making significant profit.
The success of the business depends on the number of customers reached and number
of potential customers converted into the actual customers and retained with the company.
Hence, not only the marketing aspect of the venture should be efficient, also the customer
support and customer relationship management must be efficient to retain the customers and
increase the customer conversion rate.
Therefore, the combination and collaboration of each and every team members and
departments of the company is important and necessary for achieving he objectives of the
business and to make the venture successful.

5VENTURE FINANCE