Editor’s note: As Black Business Month comes to a close, WRAL TechWire takes an in-depth look at the rise of “Black angels” who are looking to close the gap in funding for minority owned businesses. This is the first of three parts.
RALEIGH – By age 42, Greg Boone had his hand in three successful exits.
First, it was I-Cubed acquired by KPIT in 2014. Next came iCiDIGITAL, where he served as CEO until it got sold to Beringer Capital in 2017. That merged to form Blue Acorn iCi, which exited to Infosys in 2020.
“It created an inflection point in my life,” says the Durham native who currently serves as co-CEO of Blue Acorn iCi.
“It’s like, ‘Okay, I could get used to this. Growing something, exiting at a bigger valuation. Rinse and repeat.”
Perhaps more importantly, as an African American, he finally found himself in the position where he could use his own dollars to invest in other Black-led startups.
One of his earliest ventures was Creative Allies, a Raleigh-based marketing firm led by a Black female CEO. He’s also an investor in The Diversity Movement, diversity training for organizations founded in 2019.