Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

15 years ago we were at the peak of Internet hype with the launch of many over-capitalized businesses with a market size & opportunity was limited. The VC market has right-sized (returned back to mid 90′s levels & less competition). But markets value high growth over short-term profitability. Where are we today?

Technical Review 398

Technical Review Venture Capital Valuation Pre-Money Valuation 398

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 5, 2012

Thanks to the SEC, you don't know who's actually fundraising, what kind of performance they have, and you'll never get reached by their marketing. I know how hard it is myself because I used to vet VCs for a living when I was on the insitituional LP side. The whole thing is setup to fail. Still, it seems so random and inefficient.

LP 97

LP Venture Capital Technical Review Nebraska 97

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

I called an (ex) LP to tell him about her and my goals for her. Marketing, recruiting, building data products & tools, event management, analyzing the portfolio, etc. She has an amazing ethical compass with heart, compassion and drive. She’s empathetic and brings great humor to her work as well. And all the platform stuff.

Partner 361

Partner Management Cofounder San Francisco 361

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 5, 2010

Being tenacious without the mental flexibility to pivot based on market feedback is a disaster. If your idea is so amazing that it warrants my hard-earned angel money or the money of my LP investors from our fund then why should I take a risk on you if you won’t take a risk on yourself? Why should I be? I finally called bullshit.

Entrepreneur 293

Entrepreneur CTO Hire South America Salary 293

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

Prorata rights are one of the most important rights of a private market technology investors and yet are seldom fully understood. Because companies are raising way more capital in private markets than they ever did in the past. What would you do as an LP fund if you backed a seed-stage GP who had a position in Twitter, Pinterest, etc.

Technical Review 336

Technical Review Later Stage Early Stage LP 336

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

Taking stock of the venture capital market in 2023, it’s clear to see that we’re in a transition point. In today’s market, I believe small is beautiful, and that specialisation matters. 2023 will be one of the best VC seed vintages, but most institutional LP's are not leaning in. Support emerging managers.

Venture Capital 215

Venture Capital Technical Review LP Institutional Investors 215

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 20, 2018

We were working on their go-to-market strategy for Europe and Carly was Group President of the division where I was advising (a $19 billion line of business) at Lucent and she flew out for the final presentations. I had learned that this is a standard line every LP uses to have an “easy no” for VCs. What have you got to lose?

LP 189

LP Software Review Europe Founder 189

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

I had a chance to discuss AngelList Syndicates with Naval at Michael Kim’s Cendana LP/VC conference on a panel with Naval, Roger Ehrenberg (IA Ventures) and Mike Brown, Jr. Many of the good and great of our industry are talking about AngelList. Must be doing something right! Bowery Capital). AngelList does this.

Syndicate 356

Syndicate Syndication Cofounder Early Stage 356

David Teten

MAY 20, 2016

Our meetup is focused on how to use technology to enhance investing in private markets, including VC, growth, buyout, and distressed. Membership in the Meetup is open exclusively to: Institutional investors in private markets (VC, growth, buyout, distressed, etc.) I asked him to write a guest post: Hi!

Private Equity 113

Private Equity Equity Cap Table Venture Capital 113

thebarefootvc

JULY 3, 2017

You don’t have to look that far into the past to see the danger in this – Binary Capital and Rothenberg Ventures, both first time funds that raised substantial capital, imploded due to questionable behavior on the part of their founders (Binary already discussed above, and Rothenberg for spending too lavishly on fund marketing events).

LP 65

LP Technical Review Silicon Valley Limited Partner 65

Agile VC

OCTOBER 23, 2012

The VC industry (both the GP part and the LP part) pays attention to the sector’s returns, but the broader tech ecosystem only occasionally tunes in. 2) No Synthetic Alternative – If an LP can’t “buy” VC as an index, could they replicate the returns of an index some other way?

LP 176

LP Accredited Investor Carried Interest Distribution 176

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 23, 2017

by Joe Duncan, founder of Duncan Capital LP. This combinatorial model works because it’s diversified, can best withstand bear markets, benefits from technological synergies, and it’s the mix of products and services clients value. Fintech is triggering a profound rethink for financial institutions, from retail to investment banking.

Technical Review 154

Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Software Review IPO 154

Genuine VC

SEPTEMBER 7, 2010

The famed business strategist Michael Porter described a set of successful general strategies which firms employ to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage: differentiation strategy and cost leadership strategy for those firms with a broad market scope, and a segmentation strategy for those with a narrow market scope.

Seed Stage 191

Seed Stage Belgium Differentiation LP 191

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2017

It’s hard to remember that in 2012 it was still hard for LA VCs to persuade investors into funds that LA was a viable market for great venture capital funds or convince many VCs that LA was a market worth investing dollars into startups. But this post is about the broader context of LA.

IPO 191

IPO Los Angeles South Korea Armenia 191

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 7, 2018

This might get slightly longer the more you’re in market but really you should never really have more than 15–20 potential investors you’re actively working on none will get the time / attention / focus they need. I figured I was wasting my time unless the LP was leaning in on my first meeting. I measured twice and cut once.

LP 215

LP San Francisco Minneapolis Minnesota 215

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

New funds have formed, old market leaders are gone or walking dead. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. Patience is a virtue.

IRR 205

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 205

David Teten

JANUARY 23, 2021

Yohei Nakajima, Founder of Untapped.vc , said, “Before pitching LPs and building my firm, I talked with over 50 people I knew to get feedback.” . Set up the basic marketing toolkit: deck, website, accurate online databases, and social media accounts. . The less widely marketed your fund is, the more valuable it is perceived to be.

Private Equity 78

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review 78

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 19, 2015

Meeting a lot of candidates to find your head of marketing is all well and good but if 2 months later you still have no one in the role you’re still down a person. I worked with a successful portfolio company recently that had to make some big moves in the market. Opening is easier than closing.

LP 150

LP Warrant Portfolio Framework 150

Babbling VC

OCTOBER 3, 2011

Fortunately, for those of us in the market long enough, it's actually good news. For those of you not in the know, they are one of the largest limited partners ( LP's : investors in venture capital funds) in Europe and are basically in almost all the funds throughout the market. This for me is a no-brainer. This is a tough one.

LP 82

LP Europe Germany Venture Capital 82

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

In 2019 market conditions often are such that founders retain control of the board through the A-round, usually in a 2–1 (common to investor) ratio but sometimes it’s 3–2 (common to investor). Further, if you don’t trust that VC to serve on your board then why would you take money from them in the first place?

Venture Capital 236

Venture Capital Startup Angel Investor Silicon Valley 236

Version One Ventures

JULY 24, 2019

Performing market research and due diligence for potential investments. Reporting for our investors, including writing quarterly updates and preparing LP advisory board meetings. Working with existing portfolio companies, including helping out with hiring, financial modeling, and research.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Advisory Board Due Diligence LP 124

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 3, 2015

And as I’ve written about before – building a personal brand is extremely important in today’s competitive job market. In a crowded market – venture capital – where it is hard to break out and be noticed. And was fortunate enough to get a reference call from an LP asking me this very question.

LP 150

LP Israel Technical Review Deal Flow 150

thebarefootvc

FEBRUARY 19, 2014

”, almost exactly 2 years ago to this day at Bloomberg LP’s headquarters in NYC as part of Social Media Week. I overviewed demographic and economic trends globally and outlined the opportunity for technology companies to access growth in the emerging markets. You can view the full presentation here.

India 107

India North America Ukraine Silicon Valley 107

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2021

I counsel first-time VCs (as well as founders) to have mid-funnel strategies to get from first LP meeting to close and to put a disproportionate amount of time into this area (I say more about this on the podcast starting at timecode 27:41). that’s your target market. Why buy me? Why buy now? Why Buy Anything? Why Buy Me?

LP 375

LP Southern California Los Angeles Differentiation 375

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 5, 2014

Oh, your top priority right now is a marketing hire? raising capital, building LP relationships, infrastructure and platform investments, recruiting for firm, budget/audit, evaluating overall firm strategy and performance. Let me go get five great candidates for you! 3) General Relationship Building. Hey, want to grab a coffee?

Software Review 124

Software Review Balance Sheet Cofounder Technical Review 124

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 12, 2020

I took my last LP meeting the first week of March and clearly, I didn’t close anyone that I had met with at that time. Not everyone produces LP money with the snap of a finger—not even Alan Patricof. I spent some time updating my deck, doing some outreach and started lining up early February meetings. He seemed paranoid.

LP 145

LP Technical Review Software Review Valuation 145

View from Seed

JANUARY 27, 2021

What hasn’t changed is that our heart lies in working with founders to find product/market fit and to begin to grow. As a small fund, NextView has a tight-knit LP base, many of whom have been with us from our earliest days. Because of this, we are always grateful to all of our LPs for their trust.

LP 411

LP Early Stage Seed Stage Venture Capital 411

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

New funds have formed, old market leaders are gone or walking dead. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. Patience is a virtue.

IRR 156

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 156

Version One Ventures

MAY 3, 2023

Version One has made only one investment in the region ( Headout , a fast growing marketplace for travel experiences) and I had written a small LP cheque into an emerging fund manager ( 1947 Rise , run by the awesome Shiva Sangwan ). billion people, India itself represents a massive market.

India 86

India LP Silicon Valley Vertical 86

David Teten

JUNE 1, 2011

Deal aggregation websites Increasing in popularity, trying to increase market efficiency. Flow is a function of reputation and share of mind in target market. Signature and messaging will vary by market and audience, but must be internally consistent. Benchmark yourself to overall market activity. Intermediaries.

Private Equity 122

Private Equity Deal Flow Equity Developer 122

Feld Thoughts

MARCH 24, 2017

This means FC avoids trends and relentlessly questions entrepreneurs about how their product enables specific use cases and market opportunities. Founder friendly” is an overused term, but there is a big difference between marketing this as a concept and living it every day.

Founder 76

Founder LP Technical Review Seed Stage 76

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

In liquid markets, most of the calories expended on technology and analytics are focused on trade selection, or “ origination ”. I use another live Google doc to maintain my database of companies I’m marketing to other VCs. 2) Market . Many tools designed for B2B marketing in general are also relevant to investors.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2021

The Valley has obsessed with a quick up-and-to-right momentum story because we were thought to live in “winner take most” markets. But markets have changed and I think investors, founders and experienced executives who want to join later-stage startups can all benefit from playing the long game. It literally drove FOMO.

Venture Capital 363

Venture Capital LP Valuation Later Stage 363

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 5, 2024

They wear multiple hats: investor, marketer, recruiter, and more. Example: Emerging managers handle everything from deal sourcing to LP communications to social media in-house. Stay Agile and Evolve Emerging managers must be ready to pivot their investment thesis as markets change.

Management 103

Management Technical Review Venture Capital Generative AI 103

VC Cafe

APRIL 29, 2020

Proptech is one of the few exceptions to this, with most companies falling within the moderate impact category, due to the current freeze on the property market. I might go deeper on other European markets in a future post. VoIP, EdTech and eHealth have fared particularly well, with very few companies at risk. Source: Pitchbook.

Israel 124

Israel SBA Technical Review Startup 124

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

New funds have formed, old market leaders are gone or walking dead. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. But the reality is that the more interesting the market, the more likely there is to be rapid and unpredictable change. Patience is a virtue.

IRR 136

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 136

David Teten

MAY 16, 2017

Sapphire Ventures’ Top 10 tips for pitching an LP . Trusted Insight LP Panel. Who Invests In Investors: Homebrew LP Shares VC Performance Goals, Importance of Diversity & What They Look For In New Funds. Hunterwalk.com: Homebrew’s Second Annual LP Meeting: Why We Do Them. Mahendra Ramsinghani : How LPs conduct DD.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60