--- title: "Startup Stories: Esca | SFC Capital" description: I sat down with Shalom Osiadi, winner of the new entrepreneurial TV show Ready Set StartUP and founder of Esca, a stablecoin savings and payments startup. image: https://sfccapital.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/banner_1689243179.webp --- Disclaimer Please note, company introductions through SFC Capital Ltd ('SFC') are only suitable for ‘High Net Worth Individuals’, or ‘Sophisticated Investors’ as defined by the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000 (FSMA) who are familiar with and willing to accept the high risk associated with private investments. Any investor requesting to contact a company through SFC Capital does so at his/her own risk and is solely responsible for conducting any legal, accounting or due diligence review. There has been no investigation to the accuracy of any information or terms contained herein and we strongly suggest that you seek advice from a person authorised under the FSMA who specialises in advising on investments of this kind prior to commencement of any potential transaction. All content provided by SFC Capital is strictly for informational purpose only and does not constitute business, financial, investment, hedging, trading, legal, regulatory, tax or accounting advice or services. SFC Capital is an appointed representative of SFC Capital Partners Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’) in the United Kingdom (FRN 736284). This website is intended for professional investors only; any reproduction of this information, in whole, or part, is prohibited. SFC Capital does not sell or offer to sell any securities and no information provided by SFC Capital is intended to constitute or to be interpreted as any such offer. SFC Capital simply provides an introductory service where potential partners of all sorts can meet. The SFC Angel Fund is managed by SFC Capital Partners Ltd (‘SFCCP’) which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, firm reference number 736284. Information on the Fund is intended for professional investors only; any reproduction of this information, in whole, or part, is prohibited. The content is for information purposes only and should not be used or considered as an offer or solicitation to purchase or sell the securities mentioned herein. The SFC Angel Fund (the ‘SFC Fund’ or the ‘Fund’) is defined as an ‘unregulated collective investment scheme’ (‘UCIS’) and the promotion of a UCIS either within the UK or from the UK is severely restricted by statute. Consequently, this document is only directed at professional clients and eligible counterparties as defined by the FCA and also to persons of a kind to whom the Fund may lawfully be promoted by an authorised person by virtue of Section 238(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and COBS 4.12.4R. Any decision by an investor to buy shares in a fund must be made solely on the basis of the information and terms contained within the Fund’s offering memorandum. Investment in the Fund is made entirely at the investor’s own risk and professional advice should be sought in case of doubt. SFC Capital Partners Ltd (‘SFC’) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’) in the United Kingdom, firm reference number 736284. This document is intended for professional investors only; any reproduction of this information, in whole, or part, is prohibited. The content is for information purposes only and should not be used or considered as an offer or solicitation to purchase or sell the securities mentioned herein. The SFC Angel Fund (the ‘SFC Fund’ or the ‘Fund’) is defined as an ‘unregulated collective investment scheme’ (‘UCIS’) and the promotion of a UCIS either within the UK or from the UK is severely restricted by statute. Consequently, this document is only directed at professional clients and eligible counterparties as defined by the FCA and also to persons of a kind to whom the Fund may lawfully be promoted by an authorised person by virtue of Section 238(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and COBS 4.12.4R. The SFC Angel Fund is managed by SFC Capital Partners Ltd (‘SFCCP’) which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, firm reference number 736284. Information on the Fund is intended for professional investors only; any reproduction of this information, in whole, or part, is prohibited. The content is for information purposes only and should not be used or considered as an offer or solicitation to purchase or sell the securities mentioned herein. The SFC Angel Fund (the ‘SFC Fund’ or the ‘Fund’) is defined as an ‘unregulated collective investment scheme’ (‘UCIS’) and the promotion of a UCIS either within the UK or from the UK is severely restricted by statute. Consequently, this document is only directed at professional clients and eligible counterparties as defined by the FCA and also to persons of a kind to whom the Fund may lawfully be promoted by an authorised person by virtue of Section 238(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and COBS 4.12.4R. Any decision by an investor to buy shares in a fund must be made solely on the basis of the information and terms contained within the Fund’s offering memorandum. Investment in the Fund is made entirely at the investor’s own risk and professional advice should be sought in case of doubt. The SFC Angel Fund is an SEIS/EIS fund which raises money for early-stage businesses by investing in SEIS and EIS eligible ventures with the aim of returning a profit for investors in the fund. Investment in early-stage companies involves risks such as illiquidity, lack of dividends, loss of investment and dilution. Investment in SEIS/EIS funds should be considered as part of a diversified portfolio. The availability of tax relief depends on individual circumstances and may change in the future. The availability of tax relief depends on the company invested in maintaining its SEIS/EIS qualifying status. There is no assurance that the investment objectives of any investment product will be achieved or that the strategies and methods described herein will be successful. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance and the value of an investment may go down as well as up. Investors may not get back the full amount invested. No warranties or representations of any kind are expressed or implied on this website. I Accept The Terms ## FCA Mandatory Risk Warning & Risk Summary > ## Risk Warning > > **Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong.** ## Risk Summary **Estimated reading time: 2 min** Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) considers this investment to be high risk.   What are the key risks? 1\. You could lose all the money you invest. Investments made by the SFC Angel Fund SEIS (the “Fund”) will be in shares in early-stage businesses. Investors in these shares often lose 100% of the money they invested, as many early-stage businesses fail. 2\. You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here: [https://www.fscs.org.uk/check/investment-protection-checker/](https://sfccapital.com/fca-mandatory-risk-warning-and-risk-summary/%20https://www.fscs.org.uk/check/investment-protection-checker/)    Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA-regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here: [https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumers](https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumers) 3\. You won’t get your money back quickly Even if the businesses the Fund invests your money in are successful, it may take several years to get your money back. The most likely way to get your money back is if the businesses invested in by the Fund are bought by another business or list their shares on an exchange such as the London Stock Exchange. These events are not common. 4\. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.  A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments.  [https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart/5-questions-ask-you-invest](https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart/5-questions-ask-you-invest) 5\. The value of your investment can be reduced The percentage of each investee company that the Fund owns will decrease if the business issues more shares. This could mean that the value of your investment in each investee company reduces, depending on how much the business grows. Most start-up businesses issue multiple rounds of shares.  These new shares could have additional rights that your shares don’t have, such as the right to receive a fixed dividend, which could further reduce your chances of getting a return on your investment. 6\. S/EIS tax reliefs are not guaranteed Whilst it is the Fund's intention to invest mostly in companies qualifying under SEIS legislation, SFC cannot guarantee that all investments will qualify for S/EIS relief (or IHT relief) or, indeed, if they do initially, that they will continue to do so throughout the life of the investment. The tax advantages of investing through the Fund are therefore not guaranteed.  If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here: [https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart](https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart)  Close Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 minutes to learn more. [![SFC Logo + Title x web](https://sfccapital.com/hs-fs/hubfs/SFC%20Logo%20+%20Title%20x%20web.png?width=2000&name=SFC%20Logo%20+%20Title%20x%20web.png)](https://sfccapital.com) - [Startups](https://sfccapital.com/raise) - Investors - [SEIS Fund](https://sfccapital.com/seis-funds) - [EIS Fund](https://sfccapital.com/eis-funds) - [SEIS Explained](https://sfccapital.com/seis-explained) - [EIS Explained](https://sfccapital.com/eis-explained) - [Angel House](https://sfccapital.com/angel-house) - [Advisors](https://sfccapital.com/advisors) - [Portfolio](https://portal.sfccapital.com/portfolio) - [About Us](https://sfccapital.com/about-us) - [Blog](https://sfccapital.com/blog) - [Login](https://portal.sfccapital.com/login) # Startup Stories: Esca [Niklas Föltz, Marketing & Communications Manager](https://sfccapital.com/blog/author/niklas-foeltz) Joining in 2022, Niklas brings international marketing experience to SFC Capital, focusing on marketing strategy, content, PR, and events. - 13 Jul 2023 [Startup Stories](https://sfccapital.com/blog/tag/startup-stories) ##### Share on - - - #### The show that saved his startup – Shalom Osiadi on his experience on Ready Set StartUP I sat down with Shalom Osiadi, winner of the new entrepreneurial TV show [Ready Set StartUP](https://sfccapital.com/blog/behind-the-scenes-of-ready-set-startup) and founder of Esca, a stablecoin savings and payments startup. We will be talking about his experience on the show, so get ready for some behind-the-scenes insights. Also, Shalom shared how he pivoted after the show, what’s ahead for Esca, [startup funding](https://sfccapital.com/raise), his take on the future of crypto, and much more. ##### **What got you into entrepreneurship?** **Shalom**: My entrepreneurship journey started during my teens, around the age of 15 or 16. Despite my parents’ professional careers – my mother as a nurse and my father as a pastor – they always had a knack for business. They wanted to get into e-commerce but lacked the technical skills, and asked for my assistance. I tried it out, made some money during one of my summer holidays in high school, and fell in love with the process. Originally, I planned to study law at university, but I quickly changed all my applications to focus on computing and business. In college, to support myself and earn some extra pocket money, I started a few businesses. My friends and I were importing items like ‘snapback’ hats, which were quite popular at the time. We would then sell them to students looking for rare brands that weren't available in Ireland. Later, I moved on to importing electronics like headphones, which I'd also sell at a margin. This early business experience fuelled my entrepreneurial spirit. Throughout college, I kept nurturing it, and by the time of graduation, I was nominated for a President's Award for innovation in the university. I also won the Faculty of Computing and Engineering Innovation Award, which came with a cash prize of €3,000. This made me feel quite accomplished after my four years in college. ##### **What was the initial idea for Esca?** **Shalom**: Esca began as a peer-to-peer food marketplace. We wanted to enable individuals with a passion for cooking to create their own food brands and sell their products to the public through our platform. That's the concept we pitched on Ready Set StartUP. At the time, we'd been operational for a few months and had about €5,000 in revenue. However, there were issues that led us to pivot later. The diversity in a country like Ireland, in terms of cuisine and thought, is still not great, although it's improving. During the pandemic, I realised how hard it was to find good food, which inspired me to start this business. The idea of Esca, the peer-to-peer food marketplace, originated when I was in college in 2015. I was ill due to my poor diet, and a friend started cooking organic food for me. That greatly improved my health. She could cook, I couldn't. That sparked the idea: why not let people who can cook sell their food? That's how Esca was born. My friend, who's Nigerian, has since created a thriving business, and she was the inspiration behind Esca. ###### **“On the first day of my new job, I received the call from the Ready Set StartUP team”** ##### **How did you end up in Ready Set StartUP?** **Shalom**: I somewhat fell into it. I'm part of several WhatsApp group chats with other entrepreneurs. One day, a link to a new business show offering a grand prize of £100,000 was shared, suggesting that anyone interested should apply. I was sceptical, but Esca needed funds and traditional methods weren't working for us.  I decided to apply and see what happens. I completed the application in less than 5 minutes and then completely forgot about it. At that time, I was looking for jobs as Esca wasn't doing well. On the first day of my new job, I received the call from the Ready Set StartUP team about my application. This took me by surprise and led to a series of interviews. We ended up getting through, all based on a whimsical decision. Eventually, I had to decide between quitting my job to pursue this opportunity or figuring something out. Luckily, my manager gave me a sabbatical which allowed me to participate in the show and work on Esca. ##### **What were your initial expectations going into filming the series?** **Shalom**: I was expecting a very Dragons Den or Apprentice-style thing, as that's what I had been told. I grew up watching The Apprentice and Dragons Den, so I was expecting a business-oriented show. I was there primarily to raise money. So I wasn't quite prepared for what I encountered when the show actually started. However, things worked out in the end. ##### **How was the experience on set?** **Shalom**: It took roughly five weeks to film and it was tough. We would begin filming as early as six or seven in the morning, and sometimes it would go until midnight or 2 AM. On top of that, I had a company to run. It was a challenge, but I think that's the nature of show business. There was quite a bit of drama but the events that unfolded on screen were all organic – the result of the contestants genuinely falling out with each other. To be honest, there might have been some slight nudging from the producers during the reflective moments to heighten the drama a bit. As things progressed, it became more about the business aspect, which I personally enjoyed more. ###### **“I knew I was going to win”** ##### **How did you feel on the way to the final?** **Shalom**: Leading up to the final, I lost a bit of confidence due to the team tasks. We were often at the bottom and never won any challenges. As an entrepreneur, this hurt. But as the show went on, I felt more and more confident about my ability to win. When we got to the semifinals, the final four, there was still some uncertainty. I was preparing my team for any outcome. But when we reached the final three, I knew I was going to win. Despite my previous doubt, I believed in my business acumen, my skills, and my business potential. Compared to the other finalists, I felt my business had more scalability and potential for real-world application. Then, on the final night, we had a wrap party at the Mayfair Hotel. We got to break down the barriers between contestants and judges. It was great to communicate with them personally. We hadn't had the chance to do so until then. After the party, it was back to business. ##### **How was the interaction with the judges & mentors?** **Shalom**: The only time we interacted with the judges was in the pitching space. It was as if they were the Dragons we had to impress. They were always sceptical, especially Tom Blomfield. He looked at me as if unsure whether I was a genius or an idiot. The mentors were great. I'm still connected to most of them today. They opened our eyes to critical aspects like market segmentation and financials, which entrepreneurs sometimes overlook when they're consumed by a good idea. Their insights, coming from their accomplished personal and professional lives, were invaluable. The critique sessions were as intense as they seemed, trust me. It was like defending a dissertation. You're on the spot, and it's incredibly stressful. ##### **Why was Angelika deemed the ‘Queen of Mean’?** **Shalom**: For a long time, I thought it was physically impossible for her to actually smile. Until one day, I was able to make her smile and I realised she was human too. She was the most intimidating judge – all the contestants were very scared of her. She was consistently stoic. Whenever she asked a question, there was no emotion behind it. It was simply facts. It felt like she was saying, 'This is the question, give me an answer.' And even if you provided an answer, she remained the same. It was hard to tell, as you could never really read her. ##### **How were the premieres and seeing the other contestants again?** **Shalom**: It was wonderful to see everyone involved with the show again at the premiere, including Angelika, the judges, and the contestants. As for watching the show, it was more nostalgic than anything. It reminded me of where we were two years ago. It brought back many memories and reminded me of our hustle spirit at Esca, and how we managed to reach that point. It was definitely a nostalgia-filled experience. ##### **What kind of feedback have you received from friends & family about your performance on the show?** **Shalom**: Some of my friends and family have seen it, but I've gotten messages from some of the contestants' family members, saying that they thought I came across well. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. I'm happy about that because I was just being myself. It's always a risk when you're vulnerable on a public stage, so it was great to see people resonate with my authenticity. ###### **“I don’t think Esca would even be alive today if not for the show”** ##### **How did the show impact your business?** **Shalom**: I'll be perfectly honest – I don't think Esca would even be alive today if not for the show. It provided the capital needed to run a lot of experiments. Esca continued as a peer-to-peer food marketplace well into 2021, using the show's support as fuel to test different strategies. We expanded our engineering team, which in turn attracted more people and customers to our business. After the show, we also landed our first corporate customer, Stripe, followed by a university in Dublin. This led to interesting growth, but we eventually pivoted for scalability reasons. But overall, the show was a game-changer for us. Enterprise Ireland invested soon after the show. We were considering co-investing alongside another fund but went with Enterprise Ireland alone. It was due to the Enterprise Ireland investment that I left my previous role. ##### **How did you pivot after the show?** **Shalom**: Esca continued as a peer-to-peer food marketplace until May 2021. We built out a platform with a crypto cashback element, but quickly realised our customers were not interested in food. They were simply there to make money. We then stripped away 60% of our code base and focused on making Esca a stable coin savings and payment solution. Businesses could connect their operations to our solution, transitioning their inflows from volatile local currencies to U.S. dollars. This allowed them to hedge against economic volatility and increase the value of their businesses. Since then, growth has been steady. Now, we have over 40 active customers, which is a 17% growth from last month. We're also serving a significantly underbanked population in northern Nigeria and we're processing between €50,000 and €70,000 GMV a month. We're aiming to scale this to roughly €5,000,000 within the next six months. ##### **What will be the biggest challenges in achieving this growth?** **Shalom**: There's a lot of uncertainty in our initial market of Nigeria due to a new government taking power. Additionally, there are regulatory and compliance issues to navigate. Cryptocurrency is still largely unregulated in many parts of the world, and Nigeria is not an easy market to build a crypto business. However, we're working directly with regulators like the Central Bank to develop solutions that allow Esca to operate efficiently and compliantly. These efforts are still ongoing, but we're optimistic about the future. Nigeria is the most crypto-curious country on Earth. However, the government has viewed crypto as a threat to the economic viability of the local currency, the Nigerian Naira. They've attempted to crack down on financial services companies working with digital currency companies to eliminate the bridge between fiat and crypto. But this hasn't been successful, it's pushed more people into crypto. Since the ban on crypto in 2021, there's been over a 30% increase in trading volume in Nigeria. This technology isn't going anywhere, the regulatory hurdles are the main issue. Despite this, the market is still hot in the country. We've just raised some funds and are interested in raising a pre-seed round of around 800,000 EUR. However, this round won't open until August. Between now and then, our core focus is on revenue growth. The goal for us is to be a de facto fund manager for businesses in emerging markets. Building a business in a currency volatile market is challenging, but we see this as an opportunity to not only help stabilise this volatility, but also to maximise profitability and value for these businesses. ###### **“The crypto industry still feels like the pre-Apple, Microsoft boom of the 80s”** ##### **Where do you see the future for crypto businesses and digital currencies?** The future for crypto is bright, despite what regulators might make us believe. A lot of the current sentiment comes from traditional finance, which I think is genuinely afraid of crypto's potential. However, I see the long-term future of crypto as being less about tokens and more about the tokenization of real-world assets. I believe that stablecoins are the future of digital currencies, and things like Bitcoin will become commodities and slowly fade into the background. Stability is where crypto shines, putting real money on the blockchain and decentralizing it. I think that digital currencies, especially stable coins and the tokenisation of real-world assets, could be saving many emerging markets from economic strife if implemented correctly. The crypto industry still feels like the pre-Apple, Microsoft boom of the 80s. While it's well-understood within the industry, explaining it to someone outside of it can be a challenge. I think there's a need to bridge this communication gap. Esca is working on bridging that gap. I believe we should focus on making a real societal impact in markets that need it, rather than simply dressing up existing systems. ##### **What's your perspective on Nigeria's future?** **Shalom**: The future for Nigeria looks extremely bright. Nigerians are the most educated Africans and hold the most leadership positions of any other African country in the world. The infrastructure is already in place. However, what's missing is the political bridge that will enable us to become economically prosperous. We have an issue of talent retention due to political and economic divides, causing people to seek opportunities elsewhere. However, once these political issues are addressed, I believe the possibilities for Nigeria are limitless. Nigeria has vast natural resources so if we can tackle the corruption in politics, I don't think there's anything Nigeria can't achieve. Consider this – out of the 7 unicorns in Africa, 4 are Nigerian. ##### **What advice would you give to founders that are just starting out?** **Shalom**: What has helped our startup, Esca, to reach where it is today, is persistence. Esca, before I participated in Ready Set StartUP, was a completely different business. There were many instances where I could've quit, even during the struggle of juggling a nine-to-five job alongside building the business. Being a founder is arguably the most challenging endeavour one can pursue. If you are committed to manifesting your vision and doing something intrinsic to you, I'd advise you to go for it, but be prepared to persevere. Don't give up too easily, even if progress seems minimal. Remember, both the good and the bad days are temporary. So, stay persistent, have faith and keep going. ##### **As we wrap up, would you like to mention anything else?** I'd like to give a shout-out to SFC and Angelika for their support. Angelika has been a great help, especially with advice on our fundraising. The last few weeks have allowed me to meet some really cool people, and our appearance on the show was a significant boost. A big thanks to the entire team, to SFC, Stephen, and Angelika, for this opportunity. ## Related Articles 28 Mar 2017 [Events](https://sfccapital.com/blog/tag/events) ##### [Startup Funding Club holds its last Investor Event before closing this year’s SEIS/EIS Fund](https://sfccapital.com/blog/startup-funding-club-holds-its-last-investor-event-before-closing-this-years-seis-eis-fund) Startup Funding Club showcased five promising startups in its last Investor Event before closing thi... [Read More](https://sfccapital.com/blog/startup-funding-club-holds-its-last-investor-event-before-closing-this-years-seis-eis-fund) 18 May 2023 [Startups](https://sfccapital.com/blog/tag/startups) ##### [How to cope with anxiety as a startup founder](https://sfccapital.com/blog/how-to-cope-with-anxiety-as-an-earlystage-startup-founder) Managing stress and fostering mental wellness in the world of startups Leading a startup is an exhil... 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This material is confidential and is the property of SFC Capital. © SFC Capital - 2026 ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Niklas Föltz, Marketing & Communications Manager", "url" : "https://sfccapital.com/blog/author/niklas-foeltz" }, "dateModified" : "2024-03-20T07:55:35.736Z", "datePublished" : "2023-07-13T05:38:00.000Z", "headline" : "Startup Stories: Esca | SFC Capital", "image" : [ "https://sfccapital.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/banner_1689243179.webp" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://sfccapital.com/blog/startup-stories-esca", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject" }, "name" : "SFC Capital" } } ```