VNTR Capital News Oct 22, 2023 – News, Events, VC Reads
Venture Capital, Web3, and Private Equity – Oct 22 News, Events, and VC Reads
Hello friends,
Happy Sunday!
VNTR Capital Newsletter is delivered to 50k+ investors weekly to share the latest news, events, and articles from the global VC and startup ecosystem.
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Scroll down for VNTR Capital Community News, Upcoming Events, and VC News/Reads.
VNTR CAPITAL COMMUNITY NEWS
Spotlight
VNTR Speed Networking — Join us tomorrow, Oct 23, at 4 pm London time for the VNTR Members Investors Speed Networking with VNTR PRO and VNTR LITE members.
Corporate Sponsorship — We are introducing annual sponsorship packages to connect companies with investors and affluent clientele in 2024, leveraging the VNTR Platform and events. Apply as a sponsor to discuss.
Flagship VNTR Events — sponsor slots available at our flagship events:
Companies can Apply as a sponsor to connect with investors and receive a personalized data-driven plan to achieve their goals.
We are recruiting Chapter Directors in Dubai, Riyadh, Berlin, and Los Angeles to grow the VNTR Capital community. Chapter Directors will serve as super connectors to the global Venture Capital community. Interested candidates can apply here.
This week
We hosted 3 VNTR Roundtable events:
Dubai on Oct 17 (view photos)
New York on Oct 18 (view photos); Thank you, Kelly and Mark Ferraro, for hosting.
Miami on Oct 20; Thank you, Alex Zaretsky and Elena Guzov, for hosting.
VNTR PRO Masterminds — We are hosting 3 Bi-Weekly VNTR PRO members masterminds on Oct 24, 25 and 26. Upgrade to VNTR PRO to join masterminds and leverage premium VNTR services.
Las Vegas — Join us tomorrow, Oct 23, 9 am at the VNTR Investors Roundtable in Las Vegas, a side event to Money 20/20, sponsored by Stellar Foundation.
Barcelona — VNTR Barcelona Chapter will gather international investors visiting the European Blockchain Convention on Oct 25 for an evening Investors Roundtable.
Upcoming
Cascais — VNTR PRO member Gillian Muessig is visiting Portugal. We will gather our Lisbon/Cascais Chapter members for the VNTR Investors Dinner on Oct 26.
Hong Kong — VNTR Investors Roundtable on Nov 3 will mark the launch of the Hong Kong chapter as a side event to Hong Kong FinTech Week.
Thank you to our Partners:
Stellar is a decentralized, fast, scalable, and uniquely sustainable network for financial products and services. It is both a cross-currency transaction system and a platform for digital asset issuance, designed to connect the world’s financial infrastructure. Financial institutions worldwide issue assets and settle payments on the Stellar network, which has grown to over 7 million accounts. The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) is a non-profit organization that supports the development and growth of Stellar, an open-source network that connects the world’s financial infrastructure.
Lingo is a Web3 start-up poised to disrupt the loyalty rewards programs of the vacation industry by leveraging blockchain and real estate. Lingo is easy to understand: Buy Lingo, Receive loyalty points, and Claim points for rewards in real life (vacations, flights, shopping etc). Lingo's unique ecosystem is backed by Real World Assets, and its utility is integrated with 100,000+ hotels worldwide. You can contact Hassam-Moussa Rawat to learn more.
Hawex is a global bank that combines the reliability of traditional financial services with the innovation of web3 technologies. Hawex's core mission is to simplify financial management and democratise access to economic opportunity for more people, regardless of their income or where they live. Our products are based on the philosophy of open opportunities for all. You can contact Max or Ilya to learn more.
EHP is the only three-phase heat transfer technology that contains nanoparticles and a miraculous way to reduce energy consumption. EHP Technology (watch video) is the world's first and only known 5th-generation heat transfer technology, the world's fastest, most affordable, and most efficient heat transfer technology. EHP is the first recycling technology that can reduce up to 70% of our world's global waste heat to go to the air, saving up to 40% of the world's global energy problem. You can contact Anil to learn more.
VNTR Capital events:
Nov 12 VNTR Investors Roundtable Melbourne (Australian Crypto Convention side event, VNTR PRO members get free passes, 50% off with VNTR50)
Nov 14 VNTR Investors Roundtable Lisbon (Portugal Tech Week side event)
Nov 16 VNTR Investors Roundtable Singapore (Singapore FinTech Festival side event)
Dec 1 VNTR Investors Roundtable Helsinki (SLUSH side event)
Dec 5 VNTR Investors Roundtable Berlin (Next Block Expo side event)
Dec 10 VNTR Investors Roundtable Miami (Art Basel Miami side event)
Jan 17 Venture Capital Investors Roundtable Davos (World Economic Forum 2024 side event)
RSVP to Upcoming VNTR Capital Events
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UPCOMING VC EVENTS
Oct 22-23 Share Algarve, Vilamoura, Portugal
Oct 22-24 Money 20/20, Las Vegas, USA
Oct 23-24 SOCAP23, San Francisco, USA
Oct 24-26 Digital Nigeria, Abuja, Nigeria
Oct 24-25 Blockchain Life 2023, Dubai, UAE
Oct 25-26 Urban Tech Forward, Warsaw, Poland
Oct 26-27 Indonesia Bitcoin Conference, Bali
Oct 30-Nov 3 Solana Breakpoint, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Oct 30-Nov 5 Hong Kong FinTech Week, Hong Kong
Oct 30-31 AIM Summit Dubai, UAE
Oct 31-Nov 2 Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology
Nov 1 Chains Beyond Borders, Dubai, UAE (hosted by VNTR PRO member Dariia Vasylieva)
Nov 7-10 Nearcon, Lisbon, Portugal
Nov 8-9 Wolves Summit, Vienna, Austria
Nov 8-9 Reuters Next, New York, USA
Nov 10-11 The Gateway, Dubai, UAE
Nov 11-12 Australian Crypto Convention, Melbourne, Australia (VNTR PRO members get free passes, 50% off with VNTR50)
Nov 12-22 Portugal Tech Week, Lisbon, Portugal
Nov 13 Europas, Lisbon, Portugal
Nov 13-17 AIBC Europe, Malta
Nov 14-16 SALT iConnections Asia, Singapore
Nov 15-17 Singapore Fintech Festival, Singapore
Nov 27-30 Abu Dhabi FinTech Week, UAE
Nov 30-Dec 1 SLUSH, Helsinki, Finland
Nov 30-Dec 1 TechEx Global, London, UK
Dec 4-5 Next Block Expo, Berlin, Germany
Dec 4-8 West Tech Fest, Perth, Australia
Dec 6-7 FinTech Connect, London, UK
Dec 8-10 Art Basel, Miami, USA
Dec 12-13 New England Venture Summit, Boston Dedham, MA, USA
Dec 21-22 Web3 Beyond Borders, Tokyo, Japan
If you would like to submit VC-related events, please respond to this email or Telegram @byuric
Follow us on Social media: Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, Flickr, and Twitter.
Check out VNTR Capital upcoming events
VC Reads
View curated VC news and articles on the VNTR Platform
The Biggest IPOs Of 2021 Have Shed 60% Of Their Value
In normal times, going public at a valuation of over $10 billion is both a rare occurrence and a very big deal. In 2021, however, such enormous IPOs became rather common, even for money-losing startups. More than 20 global companies made debuts on the Nasdaq and NYSE that year at initial valuations above $10 billion. The list included some of the buzziest names in tech and the app economy: ride-hailing platform Didi, EV maker Rivian, Southeast Asian “superapp” Grab, and crypto platform Coinbase.
Web Summit CEO resigns after comments on Israel-Hamas conflict
Web Summit Chief Executive and founder Paddy Cosgrave resigned on Saturday after comments he made on the Israel-Hamas conflict prompted some technology companies and investors to withdraw plans to attend its conference in Portugal next month. "Unfortunately, my personal comments have become a distraction from the event, and our team, our sponsors, our startups and the people who attend," Cosgrave said in a statement.
Generalist Or Specialist? Deciding What Type Of Investor Is Right For Your Startup
Your startup is gaining momentum and you’re ready to raise capital to scale.
Great, but from whom? Not all capital is created equal and choosing the right investment partner could be critical to your next phase of growth. Chances are you’ve started to compile a list of well-known VCs to target, but how do you evaluate the investors to determine who would be the best fit? In my almost two decades of venture investing, I’ve experienced the inner workings of both generalist and specialist VC firms.
Recent IPOs won't pull 2023 out of VC exit value trough
Thanks to a couple of high-profile IPOs, Q3 had the strongest VC exit value since Q4 2021. But those public debuts have not made a major difference to VC' big problem: a lack of cash returns. Despite realizing $35.8 billion in liquidity during Q3, 2023 is on track to be the second-worst year in a decade for exits, according to the latest PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. While the much-anticipated Klaviyo and Instacart IPOs significantly boosted this quarter's exit values, they had a lukewarm reception on Wall Street.
4 charts: Too early to call a recovery in European PE?
European private equity had another slow quarter for dealmaking in Q3, but some green shoots of recovery are starting to emerge. Exit value picked up, certain sectors saw a wave of activity, and there was a record-breaking fund close. Here are four key trends from PitchBook's Q3 2023 European PE Breakdown. European PE deal value fell 4.7% quarter-over-quarter and 2.8% when compared to Q3 2022. However, these figures are not as disappointing as they may first appear: Total deal value for 2023 is still on course to top 2019's full-year total, the previous high before 2021.
The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds: Nirvana Insurance, Nucleus RadioPharma Lead Week With No Big Rounds
There is only one way to describe this week — incredibly slow. For the first time in a while, there wasn’t a round that hit nine figures. In fact, the top round didn’t even hit $60 million. After a strong close to the summer, the fall has brought a chilling effect to big funding rounds.
Venture capital restarts: Navigating the funding desert to unlock extreme value
In the current venture capital landscape, a phenomenon known as the “funding desert” – where the amount of capital that startups need to sustain operations relative to the amount they are receiving is at historic lows – is reshaping how investors and startups interact.
We believe that this scarcity of funding is not merely a hurdle; it’s a forcing function that increases the role that the Venture Capital Restart plays in the ecosystem.
Unlike traditional venture investments, restarts often demand a higher level of conviction due to their inherent complexity and risk. However, when executed correctly—especially for companies that have achieved product-market fit—we believe that these restarts can be a wellspring of extreme value creation. Conversely, VCs that lack the ability to appropriately underwrite and support restarts can leave immense value on the table.
Why European VC Is Outperforming The US
Recent coverage of private market data from Cambridge Associates has surprised many by revealing the extent to which European venture capital has outperformed American venture capital in recent history. Over the past 20 years, 10 years and 5 years, Europe led in net annual returns by 0.31%, 1.92% and 6.24%, respectively. Many in the venture world have responded with disbelief, expressed in three main sentiments. First, aren’t European VCs painfully risk-averse? Second, don’t American VCs have a lot more cash? And finally, when did the U.S. lose its lead?
How Economic Policy and Geopolitical Uncertainty Could Affect Crypto Markets
In the ever-evolving landscape of cryptocurrency markets, 2023 has proven to be a year of formidable challenges. As central banks respond to inflationary pressures with rapid interest rate hikes, and geopolitical tensions cast shadows of uncertainty, the cryptocurrency world finds itself at a crossroads.
In this article, we delve into the critical factors influencing the trajectory of cryptocurrency markets: tightening monetary policies, the resurgence of the U.S. dollar, and the lingering specter of inflation. We also examine the evolving role of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, in the context of global finance and stability.
MIT, Columbia endowments post negative returns for PE, VC portfolios
University endowments including those of Columbia and MIT are blaming poor performance in venture capital for lackluster investment returns, according to reports by treasurers released this month. Overall endowment performance has been a sunnier picture than in 2022, when many endowments recorded their worst annual performance since the global financial crisis. Still, several large institutions recently marked their investments in the red: MIT and Duke posted one-year returns of -2.9% and -1%, respectively, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023.
Private
A source of capital has morphed to a source of entertainment. A reality show, minus hot people and Andy Cohen. The charismatic carnival barkers on CNBC serve up a steady diet of SPACs, social media, and space, and would have you believe that’s the center of the economic universe. It’s not. Of the 310 SPACs launched in the past three years, 10 have registered positive returns. It’s a head fake, as the deeper story goes ignored. The traditional IPO construct is in structural decline, and that’s a symptom of a fundamental shift in the capital markets.
Nordic PE fund closes plummet without Swedish giants wrapping up vehicles
Just six Nordic private equity funds have closed so far in 2023, raising €1.95 billion (about $2.1 billion) among them. The largest close was Fidelio Capital's third fund, which closed on €1 billion in June, according to PitchBook data. Fidelio invests in small and medium-sized growing companies, primarily in the Nordics, Europe and US. Last year, 16 funds closed, raising more than €15 billion—including vehicles by Sweden's EQT and Nordic Capital, the region's two biggest PE firms.
There’s A Multibillion-Dollar World Of Startups, Parking And Deals
Across the planet, roughly 1.47 billion cars and trucks already need a place to park. And each year, we add millions of new ones to the ranks. Given that reality, it’s no shocker that parking is an increasingly big business. Globally, annual revenue from the parking management industry is projected to exceed $10 billion by 2030, growing at a yearly rate of 9% to 11%, per research firm estimates. Startups and their backers are angling for a larger slice of that pie. In the past few years, investors have poured billions in debt and equity financing into companies seeking to streamline the process of finding somewhere to put our vehicles. That includes funding for ambitious consolidation plays. The largest came earlier this month, when Los Angeles-based checkout-free parking startup Metropolis agreed to take logistics firm SP Plus private in a deal worth approximately $1.5 billion.
Europe lacks ‘developed’ VC ecosystems — with the exception of London
Just one European city makes it into the top 10 most ‘developed’ tech ecosystems in the world, according to a new ranking by data platform PitchBook.
London came in seventh in the ranking — based on a ‘development score’ calculated using the value and number of deals, exits and VC funds between Q3 2017 and Q2 2023 — behind San Francisco, New York, Beijing, Shanghai, Los Angeles and Boston.
San Francisco tops the list by some way, with more than double the deal value and quadruple the exit value of the next biggest tech ecosystem, New York.
The new VC USP: Providing chips on tap for their portfolio
In 2023, being a startup means figuring out some way to build AI into your product, while it’s also been the year of companies raising monster seed rounds to build huge generative models. All of this is creating big demand for the specialised AI chips needed to run the technology — and they are in short supply. Some startups are struggling to get quick access due to long waiting lists with cloud providers. In this, some investors have spotted an opportunity. Some VC firms are beginning to invest in the companies building the supercomputers that house and deploy these chips as a way to guarantee startups in their portfolios access to compute (the industry name for this resource). An added bonus is that it might also entice other promising AI startups to take their investment.
So, You’re Thinking Of Taking Your Startup Public. Here’s What You Need To Know
Despite the tumultuous economy we’ve experienced over the past few years, the IPO market may be starting to turn a corner. While a plethora of companies went public in 2020 and 2021, the number has recently declined due to rising interest rates and inflation. However, as the economy slowly begins to stabilize, we’re seeing things shift once more. I’ve worked alongside several companies as they go public — including tactical, hands-on work auditing every single transaction from the start of one company’s life. This work provided insight into key hires, sales deals and other critical strategic factors that greatly contribute to a thriving IPO.
U.S. Risks Unleashing Second 'Eurodollar' Market if It Dallies on Stablecoin Regulation
On Sept. 8, Michael Barr, the vice chair for supervision and Federal Reserve governor said he was “deeply concerned about stablecoins without strong federal oversight.” This is a reaction to the growing recognition among major financial institutions, including PayPal and Visa, of the potential of stablecoins. The Federal Reserve intends to "intensify oversight of crypto activities,” Barr said, a strong statement but not officially forward guidance. In fact, today, there is a glaring absence of much-needed regulatory clarity for stablecoins in the U.S., considering the stakes of the industry and how quickly it moves.
8 New Unicorns Trot Onto The Board In September, While 2 Seasoned Startups Gallop Off To The Public Markets
Eight companies joined The Crunchbase Unicorn Board in September 2023, adding more than $15 billion in value, while two unicorns finally galloped off onto the public markets.
The two highly valued unicorns, grocery delivery platform Instacart and marketing email automation service Klaviyo, marked the first major venture-backed startup exits since late 2021. Instacart was one of the 10 most highly valued unicorn companies, based on its $39 billion valuation in 2021, and Klaviyo was in the top 100, valued at $9.8 billion in 2021.
Spain’s VC resilience to global slump exposes shortage of later-stage capital
Spain’s venture capital ecosystem has proven less vulnerable to the global slump in 2022, but a new report warns this might not be good news. Spain has a larger proportion of early-stage startups than other tech ecosystems. This means the country’s startups have not experienced valuation cuts and funding freezes of the magnitude seen by startups in other advanced European economies amid the global tech slowdown, according to a report by Spanish founder network Endeavor. Later-stage companies around the world have seen their valuations cut as global stocks have come down from 2021 highs, as investors usually calibrate more mature companies to listed tech company prices.
Value of PE exits dropped to near-decade low in Q3
The hoped-for rebound in private equity exits failed to materialize in the third quarter, as PE firms sold companies and other holdings at one of the lowest volumes since the global financial crisis. The value of PE exits announced in Q3 fell 40.7% from the prior quarter to $44.1 billion, according to PitchBook's latest US PE Breakdown, dashing hopes of longer-term recovery for PE liquidity as Q2's boost in exit value proved short-lived. Total exit value tallied lower than any quarter—other than the lockdown doldrums of Q2 2020—since 2008, according to the report.
Meet the generative AI startups pulling in the most cash
While generative AI dealmaking slowed in Q3, the vertical remains top of mind for investors and startups. AI startups are still catching sky-high valuations, powered by all-in bets by Big Tech incumbents such as Amazon, which invested $4 billion in Anthropic in September. The deal is one of the latest in a long list of large rounds like Cohere's $270 million Nvidia-backed Series C and Inflection's blockbuster $1.3 billion Series B led by Microsoft, Reid Hoffman and Nvidia. Investors poured $21.4 billion into generative AI startups this year through Sept. 30, up from $5.1 billion in 2022, according to PitchBook data.
The Window Is Closing For LPs To Earn Their Place In History
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Over the course of their careers, LPs have maybe two to three windows to buy at the bottom. Our current market is one of them. We’ve all seen stories about how LPs are shying away from venture in the wake of macroeconomic trends, war, interest rates — the list goes on. The saying, “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it” rings especially true in our current climate, and the window for LPs to nail one of those two or three career bottoms is beginning to close. This opportunity does not come without risk, which is why those who capitalize on these moments are celebrated in history and why most miss it.
When was the last time Marc Andreessen talked to a poor person?
Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen posted a manifesto on the a16z website, calling for “techno-optimism” in a frenzied, 5,000-word blog post that somehow manages to re-invent Reaganomics, propose the colonization of outer space and unironically answer a question with the phrase “QED.” Andreessen’s vision of techno-optimism could seem inspiring: He imagines a Libertarian-esque world where technology solves all of our problems, poverty and climate change are eradicated, and an honest meritocracy reigns supreme. Though Andreessen may call us “Communists and Luddites” for saying so, his dreams are unrealistic, and founded upon a flawed premise that tech exclusively makes the world better.
California to Require Venture Capital Firms to Report Demographic Information
On October 8, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 54 (SB 54), Fair Investment Practices by Investment Advisers, which requires venture capital firms to collect and report data on the demographic composition of the founding teams of the companies in which they invest. Governor Newsom stated that the intention of this law is to “advance equity and provide for greater economic empowerment of historically underrepresented communities.”
It’s Time for a Purpose-Built Disclosure Framework for Crypto
The crypto market participants increasingly find themselves in the cross hairs of elected officials and regulators who are concerned that investors do not understand the assets they are investing in. Regulators and market participants can address these risks and help restore confidence in crypto assets by coming together to create a standardized disclosure framework that better inform crypto investors about opportunities and risks. Experienced crypto traders rely on a series of dedicated metrics to assess the viability and attractiveness of crypto assets.
European SaaS back to 2019 levels with a GenAI boost
Generative AI is fuelling European software-as-a-service (SaaS) and cloud services startups, according to the latest report published by VC firm Accel.
The 2023 Euroscape report says that although investment into the sectors has returned to levels similar to 2019 (prior to the pandemic), there are signs of recovery from the downturn. “Following the global tech reset of the past 12 months, it’s reassuring to see the cloud ecosystem’s resilience and early signs of a new normal settling in,” says Philippe Botteri, partner at Accel. “Valuations, investment levels and unicorn creation are now back in line with 2019 levels.”
GenAI startups biggest driver of unicorns, says VC firm Accel
Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) companies have become the major driver of unicorns -- startups reaching $1 billion valuation - with 60% of the new ones falling in this category, according to a report from venture capital firm Accel. Funding in European and Israeli GenAI startups was close to $1 billion in the last 12 months compared with over $14 billion in U.S. ones, though skewed due to a $10 billion funding to OpenAI alone, the report said. "A very limited number of companies which have attracted a disproportionate amount of the capital... the investment going into the foundational models - we will see that going down," Philippe Botteri, a partner at Accel, said in an interview.
Cybersecurity Funding Sees Slight Bounce Back From Q2, But Still Down From 2022
Venture funding to cybersecurity startups in the third quarter saw a slight uptick from Q2, but was still down 30% year to year.
According to Crunchbase data, cybersecurity startups raised nearly $1.9 billion through 153 deals announced in Q3, a 12% increase from the $1.7 billion raised in 181 deals the previous quarter. The number of deals represents a 15% dropoff.
However, when compared to the same quarter last year, the numbers point to a significant decline. The past quarter represents a 30% decline from the $2.7 billion raised in Q3 2022 and a 17% drop in deal flow.