To accelerate 15 green businesses, Anglo American Foundation and Grindstone collaborate

A South African accelerator supporting and empowering business owners in the green sector has been launched by the Anglo-American Foundation (AAF) in collaboration with Grindstone, an accelerator renowned for engineering high-growth entrepreneurship.

By giving them a special chance to raise money and gain market access, the partnership aims to find and support 15 tech and tech-enabled startups. The partnership will support environmentally responsible behavior and foster sustainable practices, with a strong emphasis on youth employment in South Africa.

The Grindstone accelerator in 2023 will be a six-month program created specifically for startups in the green sector from post-seed to Series A. This year’s accelerator will bring in 15 high-growth, innovation-driven green startups by leveraging the ecosystem and strategic partners.

A thorough gap analysis, workshops on strategy and people, marketing and sales, funding and valuation, and monthly in-depth coaching sessions are just a few of the dedicated funding readiness support services provided to the chosen startups. At the end of the program, the winning company will also get a cash bonus. Along with a minimal data room and access to a network of potential investors, startups will also graduate from the program.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with the Anglo-American Foundation on this groundbreaking initiative. Over the past 24 months, we have seen a large increase in green economy startups applying to our programmes. We have also dramatically increased the percentage of youth and female-founded businesses, with an intentional strategy to balance our cohorts from a diversity perspective,” said Catherine Young, managing partner at Grindstone.