Founders Launchpad and Kaya Founders Come Together on New Startup Accelerator Program
Startups need all the help they can get in order to scale up and grow. That’s exactly the purpose behind a new accelerator program that combines the resources of two well-known names in the local startup community.
Founders Launchpad and Kaya Founders have teamed up to launch their flagship accelerator program for Philippine startups. According to a news release, the partnership “leverages the strengths and expertise of both firms to create a comprehensive accelerator program designed to offer more funding and better mentorship to startups” in the country.
The partnership also means that Kaya’s existing accelerator program—the Manila Venture Program or MVP—will be incorporated into the Founders Launchpad brand.
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“We’ve decided to join forces with the Founders Launchpad team to consolidate our efforts to attract the most exceptional talent eager to make a difference in the Philippines,” says Kaya Founders managing director Raya Buensuceso.
Co-founded by Jay Haendler, Simon Bauer, and Thomas Abentung, Founders Launchpad is an early-stage startup accelerator that provides funding, resources, and guidance to high-potential startups to help them launch or scale their businesses. The group launched an ecosystem-disrupting accelerator program and has invested in six promising ventures that is meant to be the start of a much larger portfolio.
Kaya Founders, meanwhile, is an investment firm that provides strategic and operational support also to early-stage startups, providing assistance through funding and harnessing its immense network of partners in various industries and disciplines. Led by seasoned executives and angel investors Paulo Campos, Ray Alimurung, Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng, and Constantin Robertz, Kaya Founders’ portfolio now includes 44 companies across a wide spectrum of industries, including ecommerce, digital health, financial technology, agriculture technology, property technology, and others.
In June 2023, Kaya Founders closed $12 million in funding across two new funds, bringing its total committed capital to $16.5 million, with a target of $25 million.
According to Kaya Founders, startups joining the accelerator program will benefit from a bespoke hands-on approach, and a tailor-fit curriculum created by both organizations. Cohorts will also get access to a network of investors, founders, and industry leaders.
The program also includes access to funding, with the possibility of investments from either Kaya or FL or both; mentorship and hands-on guidance; a co-working and co-living space in the heart of Poblacion, Makati; and post-program support.
“This is the start of our commitment to establishing the best accelerator program possible,” says Haendler. This partnership will help us continue to attract top-quality founders and give them even better guidance, network, and resources than we were able to before.”
“We at FL are very excited for this close partnership as it will allow us to offer more value in terms of funding, mentorship and support to the founders joining our program, which is our main objective at FL,” adds Bauer. “Kaya Founders is one of the leading early-stage venture capital firms in the country, dedicated to investing in the next wave of industry-shaping digital companies in the Philippines.
Interested startups can apply through Founders Launchpad official website.
