6 Questions with Daniel Kwaku Merki (Boxplay Ventures, Managing Partner)

Daniel Kwaku Merki is the Managing Partner of Boxplay Ventures. His career journey from investment banking, restaurant operator and startup consultant to an angel investor has inspired him to find a sustainable and more inclusive way to finance transformative African entrepreneurs. He thus co-creates transformational startups tackling the continent’s most common and challenging problems through his venture-building company.

 How would you describe your job to a 5-year-old?

My job is to identify large challenges and then break them down into smaller challenges that we need to solve over a longer period of time so that we can solve the large challenges. As I cannot solve these challenges alone, I have to assemble a team with different strengths to solve them and ensure they have everything needed to focus on creating solutions.

What’s the most surprising thing you’ve learned since launching your startup or getting into the role?

I overestimated the overall difficulty of doing what we do (don’t understand me wrongly; it is pretty hard) whilst underestimating the consistency required.

What’s one function or area of your job you spend the most time on?

Team management (Building culture, teaching, reviewing work, explaining, pushing, hiring, providing context, inspiring humility)

What three trends in your sector are you bullish about or keeping a close tab?

Honestly speaking, I am not focusing much on trends but rather on fundamental insights. But if am forced to name one, I would name the following:

• The continually expanding tools at decreasing costs that enable storytelling (and the increased reach of the stories).

What gaps do you think startups in Ghana should be building for?

My recommendations would differ based on the founder or founding team. But in general terms, I would say look for real challenges and needs that cut across different segments of the population (while keeping in mind that value creation does not guarantee you can capture/monetize that value creation). Beyond that, I recommend starting small, being open-minded to discovering new insights, and adjusting the business model where needed.

If you were to build a new company, which historical or contemporary figure would you appoint to the board and why?

I would pick Alfred Escher, a Swiss politician, business leader, and railway pioneer. He navigated the political and business spheres and drove a country forward in an unparalleled manner in many aspects (including politics, the creation of large corporations, and infrastructure). I also have two contemporary choices from Ghana but prefer not to name them at this stage.