Zebeth Media Solutions

black founders

ZebethMedia wants to hear Black founders’ stories of VC fundraising • ZebethMedia

On Friday, ZebethMedia reported the latest Crunchbase venture capital data, and the news isn’t very good from a diversity point of view: Black founders raised a paltry $187 million out of the $150.9 billion in venture capital allocated in Q3 this year. To put that into perspective, that’s only 0.12% of the total investment made in the quarter. The story launched a conversation on Twitter about the current state of venture funds for Black founders. It unearthed pain and heartbreak, but it also brought to light the resilience of founders and investors who still have their hearts set on change. It also surfaced the reality that the powers that be — most, if not all, of the rich, white men, LPs and institutions with outsized power — are sticking to their old habits instead of doing much to truly bring about change in how venture capital is invested. One way to hold folks accountable is to keep openly talking about inequities. This is one reason why ZebethMedia has decided to create a forum for Black founders to — anonymously or not — submit their open, honest experiences of what it is like to fundraise for their startups today. We want to hear what investors still say to you behind closed doors. We want to know how often you’ve had to codeswitch, and what the anxiety levels are still like when walking into certain rooms. We want to know the good parts, like who are the allies, but also the bad parts, like who are the bullies. We acknowledge that this is not a new conversation, and there is much fatigue in constantly having the same conversations. But, it’s important to hold on, as there is much work to be done. The questions are below (click the form and scroll). Answer what you wish, as you wish; you can name names, or not. Please try to answer with a paragraph or 2-3 sentences and provide explicit examples where you can. We will publish many of the responses by the end of this year. Thank you for your help!

Black startup founders raised just $187 million in the third quarter • ZebethMedia

The amount of capital raised by Black entrepreneurs continues to decrease. The latest Crunchbase numbers show that Black founders raised $187 million in Q3, a staggering decline from the nearly $1.1 billion they received in Q3 2021 and a sizable drop from the $594 million the cohort raised in Q2. Black founders raised just 0.12% of the $150.9 billion deployed in Q3. Within that, Black women raised 49% of all the capital allocated to Black founders in Q3, according to Crunchbase, pacing the number at around $91.63 million. To grab crumbs, it’s good, at least, to see that Black men and women appeared to receive nearly equal amounts of funding this quarter, even though the number they split is appalling. Frankly, there are homes worth more than $187 million. Adam Neumann raised more in one round than all Black founders could in one quarter. Adele is worth $220 million. However, these numbers are not necessarily surprising. ZebethMedia reported investors often retreat to their networks amid economic downturns, taking fewer risks on minorities. “When the venture capital industry catches a cold, underrepresented founders catch pneumonia.” Tiana Tukes, investor, Colorful VC Perhaps this is best exemplified by the fact that the capital raised by Black founders this Q3 is roughly on par with the $180 million allocated to the cohort in Q3 2020. However, Black founders were able to raise that $187 million from just 32 deals, compared to 2020, when it took 93 deals to hit $180 million. In total, Black founders have raised a little more than $2 billion in venture capital this year, a decrease from the stunning $4.72 allocated in the record-breaking year that was 2021.

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