Welcome to ‘The Startup State’ - a weekly bulletin from the GEN Policy and Research team highlighting key entrepreneurship news, reports, commentary and features from around the world.
News
- Japan is to relax startup visa rules, including by letting VCs and accelerators handle part of the screening process (Nikkei Asia)
- (Indian state) Kerala is to launch ‘Startup Infinity’ centers in the UAE and other countries to offer its sizable expat community business startup support (Arabian Business)
- Kenya is proposing a special tax regime on startups’ Employee Share Ownership Plans (TechCrunch)
- Namibia’s financial regulator is launching a digital ID regulatory sandbox (Biometric Update)
- Malta launches Startup Residence Program providing three-year residency to non-EU entrepreneurs (Yahoo Finance)
Insight
- Outcomes from the Mexican Synergies Accelerator Forum between Startups, Tech Sector and Government (FASSST) (Spanish)
Last week, the Mexican Foreign Minister convened startups, investors, incubators and policymakers to decide, together, the future of the sector. The output, ‘42 actions to transform the startup sector’ (in Spanish) provides a manifesto and pathway to strengthen the Mexican startup ecosystem. GEN will summarize the findings in an English-language blog shortly. - Funding down, exits muted, and valuations flat in rough quarter for European startups
TheNextWeb summarizes the latest PitchBook European VC Valuations Report.
Comment
- Indonesia’s future will be written in code (Makhtar Diop, International Finance Corporation)
- Here’s what the Nigerian tech ecosystem expects from a Tinabu presidency (Ganiu Oloruntade, Tech Cabal)
- Digital Equality 2.0: How to close the data divide (Gillian Diebold and Daniel Castro, Center for Data Innovation)
- Japan’s sleepy tech scene is ready for a comeback (Roland Kelts, author)
- US tech policy must keep pace with AI innovation (Rudina Seseri, Glasswing Ventures)
Features
- AfricanBusiness: Tunisia: Innovative startups are key to economic revival
- TechCabal: Oswald Guobadia believes Nigerian tech should engage government more (interview with the outgoing president’s advisor behind the Nigerian Startup Act)
If you would like to share content for inclusion in future editions of 'The Startup State' weekly bulletin, please email matt@genglobal.org.
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