Work for the home team

Rise of emerging markets on full display at World Cup   [view entire message](   www.wellfound.com Headlines All eyes are on Qatar as the World Cup enters the quarter-finals with 8 teams spread across Europe, South America, and Africa. Some of the storylines playing out in this year’s competition are familiar to the tech community. Middle East momentum The World Cup in Qatar is outpacing previous World Cups in consumer spending. Qatar is showing the prevalence of its tech adoption, with nearly [90%]( of purchases being contactless. Money is pouring into startups in the region as well, particularly in fintech, matching a trend that’s playing out across other emerging markets. Covid-19 [accelerated]( the Middle East’s digital transformation. Demand for e-commerce, education tech, and modernized healthcare remains high, attracting entrepreneurs from the U.S. The UAE remains a [hotbed]( for funding, with 33 of the 50 highest-funded startups in the region. Turkey and Saudi Arabia round out the Middle East’s top three nations by investment. Unlike many other ecosystems, [31%]( of the population is under the age of 15, presenting an opportunity. Young people are connected, with extremely high rates of smartphone use. With its abundance of youthful energy, the Middle East venture capital market is expected to maintain healthy growth. ⌃ Trending Africa rising Small but mighty Morocco is just the [fourth]( African team to reach the quarter-finals. Its success mirrors the success of tech hubs throughout the continent. In a year where venture capital funding across the globe has been significantly [scaled back]( Africa has been an anomaly. In fact, the continent is on track for a [record year]( for funding. Africa’s tech ecosystem netted [nearly $5B]( in funding in 2021, according to some estimates, with about [two-thirds]( of that funding going to fintech. [Flutterwave]( the continent’s highest valued tech company, snagged a $3B valuation and plans to expand payments throughout Africa and the Middle East. There are other bright spots: For example, women-led healthcare tech companies are on a mission to close the [doctor-patient gap]( and provide affordable health services to everyone. The International Finance Corporation launched a $225M [venture capital platform]( to back early-stage startups in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and Pakistan. While many of these emerging markets continue to receive a small percentage of the global capital funding, the population is young, tech-savvy, and, [thanks in part to Covid]( hungry for digital disruption. [5 Top Startups Hiring Across Africa →]( Bet on Brazil?? Brazil may be the team to beat this World Cup, and the South American country’s startup scene is catching fire too. In 2021, Brazil-based startups raised a record [$9.4B in funding]( more than twice as much as the previous year’s total funding. Nearly [3k startups]( make their home in Brazil’s most populous city, São Paulo. These include [11 unicorns]( valued at over $1B. Venture capital firms have helped to contribute to the growth of the startup sector in Brazil and are increasing in number as well. The country added [84 VC firms]( in the past few years, bringing the country's total to over [300](. A little over half of all startups in Brazil have operations [in São Paulo](. They include companies like mobile game maker [Wildlife Studios]( which has been called [“Brazil’s most valuable tech company with the widest global reach.”]( Big tech companies like Uber are [growing their presence]( in the region, too. Other cities with vibrant entrepreneurial communities include Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, and Florianópolis. [Come to Brazil! These 5 Hot Tech Startups are Hiring Now →]( Fielding French talent France is looking fierce on the pitch, and the nation’s startup scene is just as ambitious. VC investment in French startups [doubled to nearly $12B]( in 2021 as the country welcomed 12 new unicorns. A mix of highly skilled young professionals, booming VC investments, and an ecosystem that supports and promotes growth has helped propel the City of Light onto the global startup map. The city boasts the most research professionals, high-tech patents, and annual R&D spending in Europe. Paris also hosts several top startup events, including [Big Data & AI Paris]( and [Hello Tomorrow Global Summit](. The city’s proximity to economic centers like London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Madrid, Rome, and Luxembourg adds to the appeal for entrepreneurs. Leading tech categories include cosmetics, healthcare, aeronautics, digital transformation, and sustainable cities—which makes sense considering the city’s ambition to be [Europe’s greenest city by 2030](. Success stories include online home improvement marketplace [ManoMano]( and crypto security company [Ledger,]( which have both raised hundreds of millions of dollars from investors. To keep up the momentum, France’s president [pledges billions more in tech investment]( and founder-friendly immigration laws. Startups on the [French Tech Next 40/120 list]( plan to create more than 200k jobs by 2025. [11 Hot Paris Startups Saying ‘Bonjour’ to Top Tech Talent]( ☆ From the Founders Featuring Joe Malandruccolo, Compa “There’s this huge information asymmetry out there between the job seeker and the employer. The employer has a whole compensation team, they run compensation surveys, they have a compensation committee. You, as a candidate, you have none of that. So that’s what we’re trying to do — bring it back to a verified, trusted source of data where everyone can agree on the facts to make a decision, because pay transparency is not going way.” In this From the Founders interview, we hear from Joe Malandruccolo of Compa about his efforts to bring pay transparency for everyone. Joe shares about his journey going from being an EMT to a pilot to a consultant to an engineer... to Co-Founder & CTO of Compa. [Read more →]( $ In the news London-based [Surfboard]( a planning tool for customer service teams, raised a $5M seed round led by Speedinvest. The company aims to reduce burnout and increase scheduling flexibility in customer support activities. Los Angeles-based [Carv]( developer of Gaming Credential and Data Infrastructure, raised a $4M seed round led by Vertex. Carv provides gamers with an achievement display, friend and game recommendations, and access to credential-gated gaming premiums. London-based [Visible]( an activity tracking platform for illness, raised a $1M seed round from backers including Octopus Ventures, Calm/Storm, Hustle Fund, and other angels. The company’s mobile app helps people manage Long Covid and other chronic conditions by connecting to wearables to track fatigue and other indicators. Prague-based [Keboola]( a data-platform-as-a-service startup, raised a $4.5M seed round led by Presto Ventures. Keboola’s data platform integrates a company’s entire data stack and promises to automate infrastructure operations to reduce maintenance and focus time. Luxembourg-based [DEFYCA]( a digital securities platform, raised a $1.3M seed round led by QBN CApital and Blizzard Fund. The company has developed a blockchain protocol that enables digital and crypto investors to invest in traditional debt securities and loan portfolios via tokenized assets. ✓ Startups hiring now Utopia Labs Building an all in one stack to help crypto native organizations scale [Apply now →]( Pluto Virtual events that feel like the real world [Apply now →]( RabbitHole Earn crypto by doing on-chain tasks in the best cryptonetworks [Apply now →](   Follow along on our new [Discover](angel.co/discover) page Your one-stop place to discover all things startup related. angel.co/discover Want more startup content throughout the week? We’ve recently launched Discover, an aggregated platform that lets you browse startups, read founder stories, see past newsletters, and more. [Check it out today →](angel.co/discover) Help us spread the word: we'll pay you [$200]( for every friend you get hired through Wellfound! 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