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Brian Waswani Odhiambo

Investor

Partner at Novastar Ventures · Board director at Chowdeck

Lagos

Writes $100K – $5M checks · typically $1.5M

Find your path to Brian

63 people in our graph can introduce you to Brian.

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Ask Sjoerd Nikkelen to introduce you to Brian

You →Sjoerd · together at Mophones (2025–2026) →Brian

Ask Jamie Chen to introduce you to Brian

You →Jamie · together at Ignitia AB →Brian

Ask Sam Okafor to introduce you to Brian

You →Sam · together at LivelyHoods →Brian

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About

Partner heading Novastar's Lagos team. A Yale graduate, he was part of Jumia's founding management team, co-founded Zamsolar in Zambia and was COO at Livelyhoods in Nairobi before joining Novastar in 2015.

Board director at ChowdeckYC S22

Intro paths

YC

Chowdeck went through Y Combinator (Summer 2022) — Brian sits on its board, so any YC alum in your network can reach them through the company's founders.

GP

Chowdeck's group partner at YC was Aaron Epstein, General Partner at Y Combinator — the partner who ran Chowdeck's batch and knows the company first-hand. YC profile ↗

→

In turn, Brian can intro founders to Chowdeck's investors below.

Chowdeck's investors · 19

Andreessen HorowitzMenlo Park · $500K – $50M checks · since 2025Brighter CapitalCupertino · $25K – $100K checks · since 2025Cresset CapitalCrosspringsince 2025D Global VenturesHillsborough · since 2025FoundersXPalo AltoGFR FundSan Francisco · $100K – $5M checks · since 2025Goodwater CapitalBurlingame · $5M – $50M checks · since 2024HoaQ$25K – $350K checks · since 2025Maiora Rebel VenturesNovastar VenturesLondon · since 2025Palm Drive CapitalNew York · $500K – $5M checks · since 2025PioneerToronto, Ontario · since 2025Rebel FundSan Francisco · $100K – $5M checks · since 2025Rocketship.vcSunnyvale · $1M – $5M checks · since 2025Unpopular VenturesMiami · $100K – $500K checks · since 2025Velocity DigitalLagos · since 2025Venia HoldingsY CombinatorSan Francisco · $500K checks · since 2022

Co-founders at Chowdeck

FAFemi Aluko
Femi AlukoFounder
OOOlumide Ojo
Olumide OjoFounder
LYLanre Yusuf
Lanre YusufFounder
BA
Babafemi AlukoCEO / Co-founder

Experience

  1. Novastar VenturesPartnercurrent2022 — present
  2. Novastar VenturesWest Africa Directorcurrent2020 — present
  3. Novastar VenturesInvestment Director2019 — 2020
  4. Novastar VenturesAssociate Director2017 — 2019
  5. Novastar VenturesInvestment Associate2015 — 2017
  6. Archbishop Tutu Leadership FellowshipFellowcurrent2024 — present
  7. Moniepoint GroupBoard Observercurrent2025 — present
  8. Moniepoint GroupBoard Member & Lead Investor2021 — 2025
  9. ChowdeckBoard Member & Lead Investorcurrent2025 — present
  10. MAX.NGBoard Member & Lead Investorcurrent2019 — present
  11. TradeDepotBoard Member & Investorcurrent2021 — present
  12. MoPhonesBoard Member & Lead Investorcurrent2025 — present
  13. Ignitia ABBoard Member & Investorcurrent2021 — presentStockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden
  14. Solar SisterBoard Membercurrent2022 — presentGreat Falls, Virginia, United States
  15. LivelyHoodsBoard Member2019 — 2024United States
  16. LivelyHoodsDirector, Operations2013 — 2015Nairobi, Kenya
  17. Afrisolar IncorporatedCo-Founder & Director, Operations2012 — 2013Lusaka, Zambia
  18. Jumia NigeriaHead of General Merchandise2012Lagos, Nigeria
  19. Jumia NigeriaBusiness Development Manager2012Lagos, Nigeria

Skills & more

Facebook2Microsoft Excel2Entrepreneurship40Start-ups34Startups5Business Development28International Development12Marketing8Business Strategy14Research12Data Analysis7Consulting6
+12 morePolicyMarket ResearchE-commerceBusiness PlanningFinanceSales ProcessProgrammingNon-profitsEmerging MarketsSales OperationsWritingStrategic Planning

Languages English · French · Kiswahili · Luo (Kenya and Tanzania) · Yoruba · Zulu

From Brian's professional profile.

Investments

Per curated public sources.

Colleagues at Novastar Ventures

Abel Boreto
Investment Director at Novastar Ventures
Andrew Carruthers
Co-founder & Managing Partner at Novastar Ventures
Asra Nadeem
Startup Education Advisor at Draper Associates
Dayo Oduleye
Investment Associate at Novastar Ventures
Dieko Ojo
Investment Associate at Novastar Ventures
Dominic Michel
Investment Director at Novastar Ventures
Dot Beck
Director, Social & Environmental Value at Novastar Ventures
Ebube Emodi
Operations at Novastar Ventures

Network3

Abel Boreto
Investment Director at Novastar Ventures
Andrew Carruthers
Co-founder & Managing Partner at Novastar Ventures
Dominic Michel
Investment Director at Novastar Ventures

Investors connected to Brian in public investor directories — a warm-intro map.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Brian Waswani Odhiambo?
Partner heading Novastar's Lagos team. A Yale graduate, he was part of Jumia's founding management team, co-founded Zamsolar in Zambia and was COO at Livelyhoods in Nairobi before joining Novastar in 2015.
Where does Brian Waswani Odhiambo work?
Brian Waswani Odhiambo is Partner at Novastar Ventures and Board director at Chowdeck.
What check size does Brian Waswani Odhiambo write?
Brian Waswani Odhiambo typically writes checks of $100K – $5M.
What companies has Brian Waswani Odhiambo invested in?
Investments tracked here include Chowdeck, Ignitia, MAX, Moniepoint, Trade Depot.
Where did Brian Waswani Odhiambo go to school?
Brian Waswani Odhiambo studied at Yale University (B.A (Hons), Political Science/African Studies/Economics); Alliance High School (High School Diploma).

Same school

Shared employers