A recap of the tech meets law hangout
The maiden edition of the “Tech Meets Law” hangout was a collaborative event between CrestHall Attorneys and Vendu Technologies. The hangout provided the platform to exchange ideas, and network between the players in the tech and legal space.
The event was held on Friday, the 21st of May and hosted at the RoofTop Chambers, in Lagos Island. It featured two prominent minds in tech and law; Mr. Olayimika Olasewere, the Principal Partner at Rooftop Chambers and Ms. Victoria Fabunmi, Investment Manager, Growth Capital/Co-Creation Hub (CCHub). They both deliberated on the topic of “Preparing for Investment: Company Structure & Corporate Governance”.
Who Were the Sponsors of the Event?
The headline sponsors of this event were Vendu Technologies and CrestHall Attorneys.
Vendu is a wholesale marketplace connecting retailers to African brands they love. Some of its benefits include; brand curation, wide selection of products, last mile delivery, financing and much more. Customers can get early access here.
CrestHall Attorneys is an boutique law firm in the tech and startup scene. They specialize in providing legal, consultation and advisory services to early stage startups and small businesses.
How the event went down
The event started at 3pm with an opening address from Ifeoluwa Duro-Bello, one of the organizers of the event, and a partner at CrestHall Attorneys. Before his address, Ifeoluwa allowed the attendees to introduce themselves, before introducing the speakers and the topic of the day.
After the opening address, Mr Olayimika Olasewere gave a 30 minute presentation on the need for due diligence in corporate governance, especially for startups. He noted that due to the nature of startups and their knack for growing very fast, they may leave some corporate governance and regulatory loopholes along the way. This, he believes, will be detrimental in the long run as Nigerian regulators are known for their high handed nature.
In fact, he points out that investors will prioritize corporate governance considerations when looking to invest in a startup. He advises startups to always have a corporate governance playbook that provides for the structure and organization of all stakeholders within the company.
After his presentation, Miss Victoria Fabunmi took the stage. She talked about startup investment and things startups need to know about investments and capital raise.
She touched on startup funding, how to meet the right investor for your startup, how to write a pitch deck, important clauses in the term sheets and exit strategies for startups. She advises founders to do due diligence when making financial decisions regarding their companies, so as not to be caught in unpleasant situations with investors and other relevant stakeholders.
Then came the time for attendees to ask questions, and the event emphasized the need for inclusivity by encouraging ladies within the audience to ask relevant questions. After the questions and answer session, Ifeoluwa gave a brief closing address and Miss Celine Eleh, also a partner at CrestHall, gave the closing remarks and closing prayer.
After the sessions ended, attendees and the speakers also had the chance to network and share their thoughts on the event and profiles.
Some final thoughts
Due to Covid restrictions, the turnout was considerably lower than earlier anticipated. But it was an engaging and well organized event. The legal and tech industries need more collaboration. Collaboration will allow more growth, as no tech ecosystem can exist independently of a vibrant legal machinery.