Vintage Investment Partners’ Post

The 2021 vintage was venture capital’s most irresponsible phase in decades. Three years ago, the #VC industry was flying high, raising record amounts in ultra-low interest times. Fast forward to today and the aftermath of inflated valuations, late-stage financings that overlooked fundamentals, and poor returns have eroded trust among #LPs, some of whom are pulling back from VC. It’s easy to understand why. Here’s a breakdown of VC’s median IRR: 2014–2019 - 19.2% (avg) 2020 – 12.5% 2021 – 1.3% Average returns for 2023–2028 could be 5% lower than 2019-2022, bogged down by the 2021 vintage, according to Preqin. The private markets entered a correction phase after this period of recklessness. It was in many ways a necessary reset to the ecosystem. At Kyber Knight Capital, we believe there are still plenty of reasons for investors to remain bullish and see meaningful venture returns at the seed stage. But it’s unquestionable that 2021 has soured many LPs on VC. The venture community has serious work to do to win back investor trust. #Investing #VentureCapital #SiliconValley #assetmanagement #privatemarkets #alternatives #capitalallocation

Today we announced our 18th fund, $1.6B to partner with the next generation of consequential tech companies as they hit product market fit. To reveal the raise, and our firm’s evolution, we invited Fortune magazine to spend the day with our team. Allie Garfinkle took time to meet and get to know IVP, straight from the team that partners with founders like Jyoti Bansal, George Kurtz, Ilkka Paananen, Bipul Sinha and many more. What do we aim to be? Here’s what Cack Wilhelm told her: “The best of the best… You strip everything away and all that matters is we make 10 good investments a year. That’s really all that matters.” The article reflects our rich history and how we’ve built a venture firm to last. Here’s to our next fund and the next founders who will make history. https://lnkd.in/gdvJPHvj

Most LPs in syndicates look for 3 things when investing... but it is NOT how you gain the largest return on your investment. I lead the Red Beard Ventures syndicate which has over 4,300 LPs and has done over 215 investments to date. There are three things I have realized over the past few years that LPs look for: 1. Tier 1 Investors: a16z, Sequoia, Founders Fund, Kleiner Perkins, Index, Bessemer, etc. 2. Traction: at least $1M ARR, or some type of signal for product market fit 3. Later-stage deals: over the past year I have seen more LPs interested in later-stage companies as they are closer to a liquidation event than earlier-stage companies But, after looking through our investments there are 2 things I have realized about companies that have the largest mark-ups... - The biggest markups often come BEFORE the "signal" from top-tier firms. - Our Web3 / Blockchain-based companies currently have the highest mark-ups compared to other frontier tech deals we have done as there is an additional path to liquidity... tokens. There is something to be said about investing early, even if it means taking on more risk. As an LP and investor, you have the chance to invest at the ground floor and potentially reap outsized returns. So, my advice? Don't just follow the crowd. Develop your own investment thesis and back the companies that truly excite you, even if they're at the idea stage. The risks may be higher, but so are the potential rewards. #vc #venturecapital #investing #earlystage #angelinvestor

🌍 Mastering Exits in VC! Here are some reflections from today’s fireside chat with EstVCA Chair Kaari Kink and Creandum General Partner Staffan Helgesson held at EBAN - European Business Angel Network Congress in Tallinn. 🙌 How to navigate the environment of lack of exits and liquidity: ⚪ If you’re an LP, dividing your investment ticket over 2-3 funds might make sense to diversify and not depend only on one fund’s returns. ⚪ The 3rd fund is the hardest to raise so there might be pressure on the second fund to push for exits and show returns. It’s important to understand that this industry is about riding the winners and not backing out too early. ⚪ Often the best returns come several years after the initial 10+1+1 year fund term so fund managers and LPs should expect a longer holding period, even as long as 18 years, and not get stuck on numbers on the paper. ⚪ That said, selling parts of your position in later-stage rounds and recycling the capital as well as providing LPs with some liquidity is a reasonable strategy. ⚪ It helps to be transparent with LPs at the start that the fund holding period may be longer to ensure good companies can grow to exits. Equally, it helps if you don’t ask LPs to pay for the “overtime” but get approval for holding the positions. ⚪ When it comes to companies that are not obvious winners in the portfolio, it’s important to ask tough questions. Mainly, is this company a complete platform or a feature? If the latter, it might make sense to be part of someone else’s offering and merge. ⚪ The one principle Creandum always promotes is to involve a professional banker: “I have never seen an exit where not including a banker gets you a higher price”. ⚪ Times are never as bad as u think, better times come faster than you think. European landscape is still relatively early in its development but there’s much reason to stay bullish. ⚪ The biggest mistake angels and VCs can make is throwing good money after bad money. When the startup struggles to raise the next funding, it’s a strong sign from the market and you should strongly consider if committing more capital is the way to go. #exits #vc #ebancongress

During a session on funding methods at Creative Destruction Lab Super Session today, the presenter asked what the audience believed is the chief motivation for VCs. One founder quipped that it's raising their next fund. I actually think this is a brilliant observation. Here's an example: a founder raises a good series A and sees a path to profitability without raising again. It'll be a little slower but ultimately more sustainable and a better exit for early investors. But... The series A lead is raising their second fund and needs to show a positive track record. With no exits yet, that track record will be built on the back of portfolio company markups, which can't happen without new, higher valuations from subsequent rounds. So we have a conflict of interest that can lead to substantial friction, and possibly serious problems for the founder if they don't still have a majority stake. Food for thought for founders.

📢 Nada Welcomes Tore Steen as CEO & Secures New Capital to Accelerate Growth We are thrilled to announce that Tore C. Steen has been appointed as Nada's new CEO! Tore, who brings a wealth of experience in the real estate tech investment sector and has been serving on our Board of Directors, is the perfect leader to guide Nada’s next phase in our mission to revolutionize real estate wealth. This milestone comes alongside more exciting news of securing new funding as a seed extension led by our repeat investors LiveOak Ventures and 7BC Venture Capital, marking a significant step in our journey to unlock the trapped wealth within residential real estate. Hear from our co-founder, John R Green, and lead investor, Krishna Srinivasan, about this exciting transition and what it means for the future of Nada: read the full press release here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gcNgQKSJ on Yahoo Finance covered by our friends Benzinga Stay tuned as we continue to lead the industry through groundbreaking innovations! #Nada #Leadership #RealEstate #FinTech #Investment #Growth #Cityfunds

At Sentiero Ventures we're what's typically referred to as a "high conviction" investor. What this means is that we invest based on what we believe are the merits of the company, no matter if someone else is investing or not. That said, as a matter of due diligence, I absolutely care who the other investors are for a couple of reasons: 1) Do they have deep domain expertise that can help the company? 2) Do they offer a complementary value add to Sentiero? 3) Do they have a good/bad reputation that could help/hurt later rounds? So, at this phase, it's really about whether the investors can help or hurt the company in the future, not whether we'd invest because they are part of the deal.

4 VC's walk into a bar, there's chilli margs, 75 founders, and a whole lot of goss. Welcome to #InvestFest - we're lifting the lid on the Australian VC market and asking the questions that founders can't.🤭 Consider this investor insights: #SpicyEdition 🌶 We're asking the questions you REALLY want to know with Alezeia Brown from Main Sequence, Sachin Samarawickrama from Folklore Ventures, Sid Kasbekar from Airtree and Nick Capell from QIC. And we'll be jumping into the hard hitting topics like: 🤑 2025: Fund or Run 🔓 Tales from the vault 🥊 Stolen deals 👀 Looking past the hype 💸 The one that got away 🏃♀️Startups I'd leave my job for... 🔮 Billion dollar bets 😵 Biggest risks (that paid off) Get ready for the Gold Coast biggest Investor x Founder connect on Thurs 7 Nov! Oh and we've still got another INVESTOR drop coming your way🔥 [Some other links you might be looking for] 👉More about InvestFest 2024: https://lnkd.in/gEkBAGQe 👉InvestFest Founder Waitlist: https://lnkd.in/gxtid_U2 👉Investor looking to get involved: https://lnkd.in/gsXH8tGn 👉Keep me in the loop for your other awesome event: https://lnkd.in/exDnxPWj #GoldCoast #Founders #Investors #VCs #Queensland

IVP’s 18th fund isn't just about ushering in the next wave of tech; it's a testament to the gritty reality of innovation. Building an enduring company means being prepared for the grind and understanding that breakthroughs don't happen overnight.    Our strength at IVP comes from our people—dynamic, evolving, and driven by a hunger to make a difference. We've got a team that's not just talented but genuinely excited about shaping the future. We’re true partners to CEOs, offering the kind of tough love that leads to real growth. IVP 18 is not just about investments; it's about building lasting relationships and being the steadfast ally that every visionary entrepreneur deserves.   You can read more about IVP and our 18th fund in Fortune today:

If you have conviction in your vision, don’t wait for the "perfect" moment—just start. Even a small raise, like $2-3M, can give you the momentum to get going. For Amir Farha with COTU Ventures, early investments, like Huspy, helped build credibility with LPs and showcase tangible results. You don’t need a massive first close to gain traction—focus on building progress and using that momentum to fuel future raises. How do you approach building early momentum in your journey?