Founder One, a venture capital investment fund that supports early-stage technology-driven impact entrepreneurs who create solutions to make the world a better place, was established. Founded in collaboration with the Turkish Entrepreneurship Foundation, the Turkish Informatics Foundation, and Maxis Girişim Sermayesi Portföy Yönetimi AŞ, Founder One, including Faruk Eczacıbaşı and Sina Afra among its Investment Committee members, aims to invest in approximately 100 start-ups with a fund size of 17 million USD.
Founder One, which invests at the pre-seed, and seed stage in start-ups with measurable impact goals that will create a sustainable positive impact on society or the environment, is established under the leadership of the Turkish Entrepreneurship Foundation and Turkish Informatics Foundation. Focusing on the early stage, the Fund has a fast and end-to-end digital investment process, and the returns of the Fund will support the foundations. Through its vision of impact, Founder One aims not only to generate financial returns, but also to add value to Turkey and the world.
Founder One, a new-generation venture capital investment fund investing in early-stage impact startups, brings together investors with promising early-stage startups. Founder One, which will provide fast financing to startups with a debt financing mix agreement (FIKS) that can be converted into a standard share, aims to make initial investments in up to 100 startups and continue investments in startups with high exit potential, with a fund power of 17 million USD.
Faruk Eczacıbaşı, Sina Afra, Ali Özkan Şahin, Galya Fani Molinas, Mehru Aygül, Cem Leon Menase, Riza İhsan Kutlusoy, Alim Murat Özgen, Selami Düz, and İbrahim Erkan Yağcıoğlu are members of Founder One's Investment Committee, which aims to create both high returns and positive social and environmental impact.
Investment cycle that gives back to ecosystem
Founder One continues to support entrepreneurship and technological advancements by transferring its performance income to its founding foundations, the Turkish Entrepreneurship Foundation and the Turkish Informatics Foundation, with the principle of giving back to society.
"We support entrepreneurship and technology"
Founder One Investment Committee Member and Chairman of the Turkish Entrepreneurship Foundation, Sina Afra, stated that the Fund pioneered a new approach in Turkey: "We continue to support entrepreneurship and technology by transferring performance income to founding foundations with the principle of giving back to society. The high access of the founders of the Fund to entrepreneurs and startups allows us to reach a vast audience. With over a thousand startup applications annually and hundreds of graduate entrepreneurs, we create a strong flow of startup ideas."
"Our aim is to make a measurable positive contribution to Turkey and the planet"
Founder One Investment Committee Member and Chairman of the Turkish Informatics Foundation, Faruk Eczacıbaşı stated, "Through the fund that we have established, we want to start impact investments immediately and solve problems in a measurable way. Our goal is to make a measurable positive contribution to Turkey and the planet by rapidly making investments that will solve social and environmental problems. Unfortunately, our country ranks 70th among the countries that have adopted the United Nations Sustainable Development program. We will also make investments to fulfill the needs in areas such as Renewable Energy and Alternative Energy, Education, Health Services, and Finance. We are looking for scalable, early-stage startups with a positive impact that will lead us to a better future."
Maxis General Manager Murat Özgen stated that they expect Founder One, which was established with the model cooperation as Türkiye İş Bankası group, which has supported the economic development of our country, to touch a vast area in the early-stage venture capital ecosystem of our country with its investments in impact startups and that they are pleased that Maxis' venture capital investment fund family has gained an exceptional member with Founder One.
Founder One
May 13, 2021