Verdant Frontiers Fintech Fund’s Post

We've looked at hundreds of African start-up pitch decks, and some rise to the top based on things like: how thoughtfully the problem is articulated, how the TAM is defined (bigger is definitely not always better), and how the solution is differentiated. https://lnkd.in/gPP6c72D

Interesting article from CNBC. This probably highlights concerns around the lack of exit opportunities for Private Equity funds and investors. On the other hand, it looks like Private Credit managers are enjoying opportunities to back tech-centric LBO and M&A transactions.

I found talking to Rhona Campbell from AccelerateHER extremely insightful regarding my Go to Market Strategy in prep for my investor picture tomorrow. for any start ups out there use what's available! I found Rhona Campbell through Barclays Barclays Eagle Labs which is 1. free 2. a simple process. being a start up is very much exploring what available and utilising it to get to the next stage! learn, make mistakes and grow.

This article explains how (some) VCs take value and turn it into personal fortunes, taking money out of productive use for speculative markets. Personal note: I’m a (very little) VC, a former SME CFO and controller-accountant, and an MBA. I cap our equity asks at investment value + reasonable and patient interest. So that value stays IN the company and we aren’t building companies to sell the company, we’re building them to support founders and employees in creating real value and a good life for them and their customers. No less. Some notes on the article: The 1/10 «unicorns» that typical VCs keep and grow are typically the companies that didn’t need a VC in the first place. A direct investment would have been far more advantageous to the founders and the staff. VCs are mostly terrible at DEI, too. «According to State of European Tech 2022, 87% of all VC funding in Europe is still raised by men-only founding teams, while funding raised by women-only teams dropped from 3% to 1% from 2018, and only 1.4% of European unicorns are made up of entirely minority ethnic entrepreneurs.» From: https://lnkd.in/e7wadXmT https://lnkd.in/e-KP-F8M 📣👋 If you’re feeling like hey *I* don’t do business that way: good. Get in touch.

Goldilocks and the three impact reports: What's "just right" for an investor to ask of their porticos? Investors ask founders for a lot of data at baseline. How do we incentivize and measure the impact of our investments without overburdening founders? Curtis, Mike, I have some thoughts. Vote for our panel at SOCAP and let's start a conversation about realistic expectations for startups making an impact.

Your vote is needed to help us shape the conversation around impact measurement and management at this year's SOCAP conference! Please take 30 seconds to vote for our panel, where I'll be joined by Danielle Steer and Michael Haddix Jr. I have had so many conversations with funders and startups around the challenges, misaligned expectations, and realities of impact reporting when entrepreneurs accept capital from impact investors. Bottom line: there are best practices around this, but not all of us are on the same page. This is an opportunity for us to convene and speak with candor about what works, what's reasonable, and how impact investors and founders can navigate the common reality of a cap table that includes impact capital alongside traditional VC. #impactinvesting #socap #impactmeasurementandmanagement #imm #vc https://lnkd.in/dESwctab

🌟📚️ Word of the Week: Priced round! 🌟📚️⁠ ⁠ In a priced round, the investor and the startup founder negotiate and agree on an exact valuation for the company, which then determines the price per share of the equity deal. This agreement allows investors, such as the angel investors to buy equity at a predetermined price. Typically, all outstanding convertible notes and SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) agreements convert into equity at this stage. This critical process provides a clear path towards helping companies fuel their growth while providing investors with an opportunity for significant returns. 🚀📚️ Ready to learn and grow in the investment ecosystem? ⁠ Visit https://lnkd.in/dphzbqda to find more resources for new angel investors!⁠ ⁠ #OntarioAngels #angelinvestorsontario #Education #WordOfTheWeek #StartupSuccess #AngelInvestors

Stephen Whyte recently jumped in on a post where I described what ADCR Capital's mission is, aside with what I currently see that is going on in the market, leading to me starting the firm. He found it spot on, that's already a good start 😅 . In the comment section, he also said: "The challenge we are seeing is the ones that have already had VC funding where the VCs seem to lack motivation to support a restructuring. How do you propose to deal with reluctant VC?" Absolutely love it when people give those open questions to see what you got - or would do, in certain scenarios. It offers an opportunity to share expertise, yet equally so, an opportunity to learn. I then replied I'd have a sitdown with that VC and get to the bottom of why they are blocking it. Typically these are companies that are not performing as they should, so VC's have all the benefits of what I describe here. That I'd also work closely together with this VC, on a strategic and board level so there is consensus on what we're building here. Or try. In case of conflict, I'd attempt to offer a path to an exit. No magic here, depends on their goals, and ambitions, and sometimes deals just don't work out. But you can sit down and talk about it, and see if there would be a potential way forward in any of those 2 directions. Get their buy-in or offer an exit. But then Stephen Whyte pointed out something to me: "Our challenge is we often engage with the founder who has a strained/nervous relationship with their investors now that the dream of being a Unicorn is dead. Here in the UK we have noticed that many investors are holding these investments in their portfolio at valuations that no longer make sense, maybe the are raising a new fund 😉. When the investment is still held at an unrealistic valuation it is hard to engage with the VC as it forces the issue on a write-down" That does quite close the door - doesn't it. See: not every situation is fixable. Sometimes there's a conflict of interest beyond your control. Not too much you can do about that one. You can try, but there are sometimes different forces at play. I found that addition from Stephen educational, worth sharing. #privateequity #founders #vc #venturecapital #tech

As early-stage investors we have the opportunity of speaking to founders solving for a diverse set of problems. Not all business ideas need VC funding for growth. The dynamics of VC funding requires exponential growth in business. Most founders are building structurally good businesses that can compound at 20-30% annually and grow without having to take the risks associated with VC funding. That said, we at Chanakya are looking for founders who are building businesses that can truly scale exponentially. Gautam Kapur | Puneet Malik #venturecapital #bootstrapped #debt

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