Ascension’s Post

A while ago, at SXSW, we invited APAC's top VCs from Peak XV Partners, Prosus Ventures and Investible to share why they're investing in Australia and why you should or shouldn't raise funding. We wrote about the insights they shared and what stood out to us in Startup Daily. For founders considering whether to expand into Asia or raise venture capital, here were our main takeaways: 💰 Don’t chase funding unless it aligns with your long-term goals. 💰 Build relationships before entering new markets. 💰 And most importantly—solve meaningful problems with passion. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/gEiq39hJ

Pleased to announce our $2.4M funding round, led by Motivate Venture Capital and Recursive Ventures, with participation from Carthona Capital and a long list of stupendous founders and angels. Our mission is to help thousands of startup workers and families to more safely and easily build equity wealth. Founders and employees cannot escape the fact that most startups fail. But by enabling a moderate amount of secure, cashless, tax-neutral diversification. By normalizing "equity pooling", in a way that does not reduce alignment with the company they founded or work for. Workers can make these startup statistics work FOR them, instead of against them. And since you can't outrun the math, over long periods of time -- this is a big deal. A big thanks to Alon Zieve, Avi Wiesenberg and Lev Gelfenbuim, for their partnership on this important mission.

You will have seen that Index Ventures has raised $2.3bn in new funds to support founders from seed to IPO. We believe we are at a historical tipping point in which entrepreneurs have unprecedented opportunities to create new, category-defining businesses. Since starting out almost 30 years ago in 1996, 🚀 108 Index-backed startups have reached a valuation of +$1bn 🎉 23 have surpassed a valuation of $10bn 🌐 57 have IPO’d 💪 and 200,000 jobs have been created by our portfolio companies As we wrote “Index is not in the business of aggregating assets or facilitating moderately successful companies. Instead, we’ve spent decades figuring out how best to identify and coach truly transformative founders – those who have been put on this Earth to build their business and would be doing it whether they got funded or not.” Personally, it’s such a privilege to partner with Hanno Renner at Personio, Job van der Voort at Remote, Charmaine Chow at GetHarley, Tom Leathes at Motorway, Jaroslaw (Jarek) Kutylowski at DeepL, Marcia Kilgore at Beauty Pie, Vidya Peters at DataSnipper and many more, and to be able to help with their most crucial talent decisions. More in the comments 👇🏼

News (article): Frontline pushes startups for New York expansion as it closes $100m seed fund #nyc #expansion #europe === "One of our controversial takes is that it's better for European startups to open their first US office in New York rather than San Francisco," Zoe Chambers, partner at UK and Ireland-based Frontline Ventures: ➡️ For a long time New York was just consumer folks — but it’s becoming a hub in the B2B space, too, particularly for European leaders. ➡️ Startups are heading to New York for capital — and customers. ➡️ Given the density of Fortune 500 companies, there is an obvious draw for businesses selling software to enterprises; be where your customers are. ➡️ Having a crossover of time zones between two teams trying to integrate and run a business together is genuinely more important than you realise. ➡️ It’s all contributed to a growing community of European expat founders, CEOs and execs — and created an attractive support network in the region for incoming startups. 👉 Full article: https://lnkd.in/eF-JknAq == ➡️ Deal readiness New State Ventures operates as an independent deal maker for software and technology-led businesses. We collaborate with high-growth companies, their founders and investors to drive deal readiness and transaction value in preparation for and execution of investments, acquisitions and exits. 👉 Contact: DM (or https://lnkd.in/eFAxZ9W) #newstateventures #founders #investors #venturecapital #privateequity #dealreadiness https://lnkd.in/eF-JknAq

Build, scale, exit and then retire on a beach somewhere warm, thats the dream right? 😎 🏖️ Not for Anthony Rose founder & CEO of SeedLegals, with multiple exits under his belt we asked him "Why haven't you retired yet?" at Hotbed's Founders Camp 👀 SeedLegals guide, educate and empower startups and small businesses to automate the legals they need, dramatically cutting down the time and expense companies used to spend with traditional lawyers and accountants. 🖐️ 35,000+ startups, SMEs and investors use SeedLegals 💷 £1billion+ raised with SeedLegals 🥇 UK's #1 for funding rounds 🥇 UK's #1 for cap table management 🥇 UK's #1 for EMI Option Schemes 👥 100+ employees 🏢 Offices in Holborn, London and Station F, Paris 🌍 They operate in the UK, Ireland, France, Singapore and Hong Kong ♻️ Enjoyed this? Repost to your network and follow us Dose Of Venture #startup #founder #venturecapital

Navigating Secondaries: Unlocking Liquidity Options for Startup Stakeholders - this is what our Founding Partner Peter Sandberg has been invited to speak about at the EU-Startups Summit 2024 on #Malta in 2 weeks from now, May 9-10th. We're excited and grateful for the opportunity to increase the awareness of our unique offering on secondaries, invited by Thomas Ohr, Ana Metz, and Anastasiia Ponomareva 😊 Ping or DM Peter if you'll be in Malta during the event, and are curious to hear more 🚀 ✅ #EUstartupSummit #secondaries #liquidity #alternativeinvestments

We’re proud to announce that we have raised approximately $8B of new capital, across our core VC funds and separately managed accounts, to fuel the next generation of groundbreaking technologies and businesses. As we venture beyond with entrepreneurs globally to expand what’s possible, the future has never been brighter.    For 25 years, we've been committed to partnering with founders from their beginnings, investing early in companies like Stripe and Airbnb, and creating companies like Livongo, Commure, and Homeward. By scaling our global seed capacity in Europe and India, we’re staying true to our core, while playing the long game to unlock outliers. We’re also doubling down on the founder experience through GC Famiglia — our community of founders, business leaders and policymakers who we support with world-class programming and services. Creating transformative impact through applied AI and global resilience mandates moving beyond the traditional scope of venture capital. So our GC Transformation Flywheel connects innovators with adopters to scale impact through uncommon collaboration. This is reflected in our Health Assurance Transformation Company and GC Institute, and in our new products like the Customer Value Strategy to give founders more non-dilutive opportunities to grow their business. We’re grateful to our LPs for believing in our expansive vision, and invite you to learn more from our CEO Hemant Taneja here: https://bit.ly/gc-xii #VentureBeyond #GlobalResilience #AppliedAI #Startups #VentureCapital 

Congratulations on this incredible milestone! Raising $8B in new capital is truly a testament to the groundbreaking work you’ve been doing for the past 25 years, supporting visionary founders and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. The commitment to early-stage innovation and the focus on applied AI, health assurance, and global resilience resonates deeply with those of us striving to create lasting impact. At CarSpare, a one-of-a-kind online marketplace for car spare parts, we are on a mission to scale globally and revolutionize the automotive aftermarket. We’re actively seeking investment and strategic partnerships like a CFO to help us unlock new growth opportunities. Your approach to non-dilutive capital and founder-first support through GC Famiglia is exactly the kind of collaboration we’re looking for as we take our platform to the next level. It would be an honor to explore how CarSpare could align with your vision of transforming industries and scaling impactful innovations. Looking forward to connecting and learning more. Best regards, [siddharth saxena] Founder & CEO, CarSpare #VentureCapital #Investment #Innovation #AI #AutomotiveAftermarket #Collaboration #CFO #GlobalExpansion #NonDilutiveGrowth #CarSpare #NextGenTech #Impact

Exciting News! We are thrilled to welcome Antler and Capria Ventures to our community as our newest members! Antler backs driven founders from day zero to greatness, operating in 30 major startup hubs globally. With over 1,200 investments in 5 years, it's one of the most active early-stage investors. Led by Romain (رومان) Assunção and Dr. Jonathan Doerr, the MENAP initiative focuses on funding startups that deliver both financial returns and significant impacts on social inclusion, education, health, and the environment. Their innovative approach and dedication to positive change align perfectly with our community's values. Capria Ventures is a Global South VC firm focused on investing in fintech, agtech, B2B SaaS, and jobtech companies that can leverage the power of Generative AI. Managing funds across India and the Global South, including LATAM, Africa, MENA, and SE Asia, Capria is dedicated to driving impactful innovation in emerging markets. Their comprehensive approach and commitment to fostering growth in these regions make them a pivotal player in the venture capital landscape. Capria’s focus on transformative technologies and industries highlights their role in shaping the future of global entrepreneurship. Excited to collaborate with Romain (رومان) Assunção, Susana Garcia-Robles, as well as the great teams at Antler and Capria Ventures!

Unlocking the Value of Stock Options 💼💰: Why Startups are Embracing Secondaries 🚀The story of Mikus Krams and Janis Vavere from Lokalise isn't your typical startup narrative. Instead of waiting for an IPO or acquisition, they seized an opportunity during Lokalise's Series B round to cash out some shares, kickstarting their venture, Trace.Space. 💡As Europe's IPO market has slowed down over the past years, secondaries offer employees and early-stage investors a tangible path to liquidity and empowerment. By allowing stakeholders to sell shares, companies like Lokalise, Printify, Wise, and Revolut have shown to reward dedication and foster a culture of ownership and entrepreneurship. 🌱In Europe, where exits can sometimes take longer than in the USA, secondaries provide a glimpse into the potential rewards of startup life. Employees gain financial security and the freedom to explore new ventures, ultimately driving innovation and growth. 🔄 For early-stage VC funds, secondaries offer a chance to realize gains and reinvest in promising startups. It's a win-win scenario that fuels the entire ecosystem. 💬✨If you're interested in understanding more about secondaries or exploring opportunities in the secondaries space, feel free to reach out - Giano Capital is here to help. Source: Sifted's Zosia Wanat, "The taste of stock options’: Why startups are letting their staffers sell their shares. #PrivateEquity #VentureCapital #Secondaries #StartupEmployees #Exit #IPO #Exit