Alexey Vorobey

Basics in raising your first investment round in Europe For Pre-seed Tech Startups. About the definition, from whom, and how much? Type of Investment? Valuation? & My advice to you 1. 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞? => has a complementary team => has a Minimum Viable Product => has started to talk and sell to customers => usually has revenue between €0 to €25.000 MRR 2. 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐦 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞? => Angel investors and Accelerators mostly, => But VCs also focus on the entry of the funnel (pre-seed) because they don't have munition in seed/series A/B. => There are also a few family offices, but this is a new concept in Eastern Europe, where I live. 3. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐝𝐨 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞? (𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝) => between €10k to €300k => receive all of the investment vs the investment is unlocked by milestones achieved 4. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? => through direct equity or a convertible loan. There are some SAFE models from Ycombinator and other companies you can use. => In this part of the world, our culture is designed on Ownership. So, you will probably give away equity directly. 5. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? => is subjective. For ex if you create equations demonstrating the valuation based on discounted cash flow, that's 0. => between €100.000 to €3.000.000 => You give away between 1% to 20% of your company. => A maximum of 15% is recommended at this stage. 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐈 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐈'𝐦 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡? => The chemistry is the most important => We need Smart, not Fool Money => Let's find the Angels/people with whom we have the chemistry and vision => and also who can offer expertise on the main business pillars that your startup has and has time to invest their knowledge and expertise in you. For this, I would think about my startup in this way >> What are the Core Foundations of this Startup? >> for ex: 1. Core Business Skilss 2. Specific Business Industry Expertise 3. Advanced Technical Expertise in the Technology we are developing it 4. Go-To-Market expertise // Sales - Marketing And I would find the right people who want to invest € and come to the table with the right expertise on my main business pillars. 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝? I'm a message away. Let's have a talk to see if there is a match to work together. Cheers, and let me know if you have questions or want to approach in-depth subjects on this topic. Have a great day! #fundraising #techstartups #founders #preseed #adigheorghe

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Basics in raising your first investment round in Europe For Pre-seed Tech Startups. About the definition, from whom, and how much? Type of Investment? Valuation? & My advice to you 1. 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞? => has a complementary team => has a Minimum Viable Product => has started to talk and sell to customers => usually has revenue between €0 to €25.000 MRR 2. 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐦 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞? => Angel investors and Accelerators mostly, => But VCs also focus on the entry of the funnel (pre-seed) because they don't have munition in seed/series A/B. => There are also a few family offices, but this is a new concept in Eastern Europe, where I live. 3. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐝𝐨 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞? (𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝) => between €10k to €300k => receive all of the investment vs the investment is unlocked by milestones achieved 4. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? => through direct equity or a convertible loan. There are some SAFE models from Ycombinator and other companies you can use. => In this part of the world, our culture is designed on Ownership. So, you will probably give away equity directly. 5. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? => is subjective. For ex, if you create equations demonstrating the valuation based on discounted cash flow, that's 0. => between €100.000 to €3.000.000 => You give away between 1% to 20% of your company. => A maximum of 15% is recommended at this stage. 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐈 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐈'𝐦 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡? => The chemistry is the most important => We need Smart, not Fool Money => Let's find the Angels/people with whom we have the chemistry and vision => and also who can offer expertise on the main business pillars that your startup has and has time to invest their knowledge and expertise in you. For this, I would think about my startup in this way >> What are the Core Foundations of this Startup? >> for ex: 1. Core Business Skilss 2. Specific Business Industry Expertise 3. Advanced Technical Expertise in the Technology we are developing it 4. Go-To-Market expertise // Sales - Marketing And I would find the right people who want to invest € and come to the table with the right expertise on my main business pillars. 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝? I'm a message away. Let's have a talk to see if there is a match to work together. Cheers, and let me know if you have questions or want to approach in-depth subjects on this topic. Have a great day! #fundraising #techstartups #founders #preseed #adigheorghe

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Atomico, founded in 2006 by Skype co-founder Niklas Zennström, raised two new funds worth $1.24 billion to back European technology firms. • The two new funds are comprised of a $754 million growth-stage fund for startups raising Series B to pre-IPO financing and a $485 million early stage fund. • The fresh fundraising comes as two of Atomico’s key portfolio companies, Stripe and Klarna, have been circled by speculation of upcoming IPOs. Read more from CNBC: https://lnkd.in/d8nDDTha This raises a significant question: several fund managers have personally told me that fundraising is challenging right now. Yet, at the same time, Ilya Sutskever, co-founder and former chief scientist of OpenAI, recently raised $1 billion in just three months for his new AI startup... Are we witnessing a disparity in the fundraising landscape, where select individuals or firms have easier access to capital? #capitalraising #vc #investments #skype

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Great visualization of what VCs are looking for at each stage of funding

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🔊 Attention! How To Web 2024 is your gateway to an unmatched network of angel and venture capital investors. With over 100 investors from across Europe and beyond, this is your chance to connect with the right partners for your startup's growth. Here's a glimpse of who you'll meet: ✅Global VC Powerhouses: - Atomico: Sasha Vidiborskiy, Partner (Focus: Enterprise software, blockchain/web3, developer tools, AI/ML) - Earlybird Venture Capital: Dan Lupu, Venture Partner - Earlybird Digital East Fund: Oguzhan Ozer, Principal - Creandum: Staffan Helgesson, General Partner (Investments include Bolt, Spotify) ✅Regional VC Leaders: - GapMinder VC, Dan Mihaescu (Founding Partner, GapMinder Venture Partners) - LAUNCHub Ventures: Todor Breshkov, Founding Partner & Rumen Iliev, Partner (Focus: South East Europe) - BrightCap Ventures: Elina Halatcheva, Managing Partner (Focus: Global founders leveraging local tech talent) - Early Game Ventures: Dan Calugareanu, Partner (Investing up to €6M in CEE founders) - Underline Ventures: Bogdan Iordache, General Partner (Focus: Startups at the earliest stages in the Eastern European region). ✅Specialized Funds: - NATO Innovation Fund (NIF): Trisha Saxena, Investment Associate (Focus: DeepTech for defense and security) - Salesforce Ventures: Jess Bartos, Principal (Focus: Infrastructure, AI/ML, future of work, B2B fintech) - Columbia Lake Partners: Hallam Dixon, Senior Investment Associate (Providing growth loans to European startups) ✅Angel Investors and Networks - TechAngels Romania : Marius Istrate, Chairman of the Board, and Sabin Gilceava, Vice President (Romanian-based angel network) - Keiretsu Forum Southeast Europe (SEE): Ardian Hoxha, Chapter President - Angel Invest: Oliver Clasen , Co-Founder (50+ angel investments per year, €100k initial check) ✅Corporate Venture Capital - Elevator Ventures (Raiffeisen Bank International's CVC): Suleiman Arabiat, Principal (Focus: FinTech) - MassMutual Ventures: Sam Stone, Investor (Focus: Fintech, Enterprise SaaS & AI, Series A & B) - BCR Seed Starter: Adrian Rosoaga, CFA This is just a snapshot of the investor firepower at #HowToWeb. Whether you're seeking seed funding or looking to close your series, you'll find the right connections here - https://lnkd.in/dTi7pafH Get your ticket, today - https://lnkd.in/dWwB2qBX

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🇺🇦 Majinx Capital, SID Venture Partners and QPDigital are among the top VCs in Ukraine making investments in the crypto sector. Read more about crypto-focused VC firms in Ukraine in our new article. 

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Five investment theses about venture studios at the turn of 2025. The second. Today I want to highlight different types of venture studios from an investor's angle. Why is this important? Because common memes tend to confuse investors rather than help them understand the essence of a studio's business. For example, how do those who call themselves "corporate studios" make money? Do corporations pay them to outsource services such as product management or selecting/packaging ideas for new business unit creation? Or do they invest capital in such studios - similar to CVC? Or do they buy startups made by "corporate" studios? From an investment perspective, we pay attention to studio characteristics other than those that studio teams, entrepreneurs-in-residence, or corporate managers focus on. And the first thing that needs to be done is to remove from investors' consideration those studios whose core business is services. It doesn't matter whether these are services for corporations under the brand "startup-as-a-service," services for gov innovation agencies, or services for startups. Investors in such studios stand outside the sphere of alternative investments. In the second step, studio-as-a-funds should be separated. That is, in essence, funds that have formed special practices for strengthening invested startups to receive a higher (compared to other funds) equity level. Such studio-as-funds boldly fundraise among investors traditionally for VCs. Finally, from an investment point of view, studios working in the equity-for-service model - are not the best organizations for professional investments. They do not have a cash flow like the first type, and they do not have the same opportunities for selecting startups as funds. Equity-for-service can be a great lifestyle business, but a quite controversial model for investors. So what will remain at the end? Only those studios that can be called "full-cycle". Those that start with own ideation and end with sales, re-investing and distributions. Those whose quality of work determines entirely the saleability of startup’ equity. Those for whom a startup is not a service or a purpose of one-time investment - but an object of manufacturing. And for savvy investors looking at studios, only this type can be really exciting. Full-cycle venture studios can regularly and massively sell their final product (startups) mainly in the M&A market. That is why the basic question from the investors considering putting their money in such studios is: what characteristics should have the product of venture studios to open the potential growth of the M&A market? I will discuss it in the third thesis. Inge Grini Renan Devillieres Michael van Lier Adam Juhasz Adrian Locher Amish P. Alexis Vilette Paolo De Stefanis Barry O'Reilly Michael Akampa Matthew Burris Max Pog #venturestudio #entrepreneurship #venturecapital #familyoffices

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Founders often focus on one type of software distribution. There are at least six common ways to distribute software, and most software companies could take advantage of 2-3 of them. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺: Sometimes you can't sell your software fast enough. Other times it is too expensive to sell it customer by customer. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: When companies focus on a single software delivery model, they have one route to viability. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿: • Software-as-a-service (SaaS) • Traditional Software Licenses • End User License Agreements • Software Reseller Agreements • Value-Added Reseller (VAR) Agreements • Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Agreements 𝗚𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿: This short ebook introduces the different types of software agreements and the distribution channels they represent. —— Follow for easy reads and short legal videos: 🗡️ Justin McNaughton #startups #entrepreneurship #softwarelicensing #saas

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Investable vs Succesful Startup For the last 10 years, I built my own global business, scouted & analyzed more than 1000 startups for VCs, and invested in some of them. In the past 5 years, I’ve actively supported startups in their global growth and fundraising. I believe that: -💰 a successful, fast-growing company that has nailed its unit economics and found product-market fit is not the same as - 🦄 a company that is attractive to venture capital or strategic investors. Very few founders understand this at the beginning of their journey. Making a company appealing for investment is a separate, complex, and sometimes even strange task. It can involve things like: ✅ Working on the communication skills of founders and key team members ✅ Planning a decade ahead ✅ Sometimes unnecessary PR and storytelling for the business ✅ Changing the development pipeline ✅ Growing in less-than-ideal markets from a unit economics perspective ✅ Working on the legal structure ✅ Relocating the team And so much more. None of this takes away from having a great product, growth potential, or an awesome team. But often, founders find this work strange and the costs associated with it puzzling. Venture investors, for example, are interested in those who can raise the next round after them, not just those who can get a product out the door. So, you get the gist. This leads to a lot of pain I try to relieve for both startups and investors! 🙌 #venturecapital #startups #globalgrowth #scale #innovations #fundraising

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Fintech mittelstand I became an entrepreneur in 2015 when I fell in love with blockchain and broke the shackles forever impeding my creativity. My calling was to democratise finance. I have failed to make any dent, but the game is not over yet. One thing I wanted to replicate was a mittelstand, the family-owned backbone of Germany’s manufacturing prowess and much of its GDP: the best quality possible known from devoted aficionados. Picture meeting for a coffee and whilst talking, your fingers run spontaneously appreciating the grain of that tabletop. You look under it and spot a brand you have never heard of; an online search finds it is behind the best coffee tables in the world…You are hooked and have become an ambassador. It’s a story of unbending, uncompromising quality, and care in everything you do: you aim to provide the best service and build the best product ever. In that quest, you have to be forever disappointed because it is an antidote to complacency.   Whilst the term “mittelstand” describes SMEs under 500 employees, I take the following attributes in everything I want to build (in no particular order): ✅ Quality – Respect the vision, the brand…treat everything you do as an opportunity to show your craft, as an opportunity to excel. Be proud of your output as good work done, not to build your ego. ✅ People – Without your team, you can’t build anything let alone get clients. Whilst you may not be able to pay market rate at the beginning, pay over it once you can because your teammates are your soul, your sales, your brand. ✅ Clients – Be of service with unparalleled customer service. There is always a human at the end of your tech stack so not only build your products for them but also with them (in mind but critically in flesh through user testing). Solve a customer’s problem without creating any in the process. ✅ Pride – Whilst you treat everyone with respect, you have a mindset where your product is the best in class, the Hermes of your aspirations which means you can say no to anyone that doesn't share your vision...prospect, client, or investor. ✅ Cashflow mission control – Easier said than done. Setting up a business is stressful enough hence having the right focus on the right numbers is important: low operating costs, decent margins, recurring revenues and therefore positive cashflow. ✅ Independence – it’s key to have control of your future to be free to research and develop new products, let alone pivot when the headwinds are too strong. Innovativeness is priceless. ✅ Strong connections – Size matters when it comes to making meaningful connections, knowing each other, and driving towards a shared goal. Your brand is an ambassador of the place it emanates from. It represents the best of the people building it. Be proud, be you...keep building! #motivation #leadership #learning #entrepreneurship #fintech #mindset #success #brand #startuplife #growth #mentalhealth #bankingindustry

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📊 Interesting chart from Meritech Capital on Public SaaS ARR Multiples by Quartile: With similar metrics, you can assume that the intrinsic value of your small SaaS company in terms of ARR multiples is at least 30% lower. Or to put it the other way around: If you are running a small SaaS business, you need better KPIs to get a similar market multiple. As you can see, the ACV / retention metrics of all groups are still quite decent. It's almost impossible to get there with a pure PLG SaaS business - which is why they are usually "worth a bit less" than Enterprise SaaS businesses with a sticky, mission-critical product. Exceptions prove the rule. What surprises you most about this diagram? For me, it was the high ARR/FTE values.

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A reported 50% of early-stage startup investments fall apart during the Due Diligence process. Many tech founders usually think all the legal, finance, and accounting data is just bullsh*t. But it matters a lot to professional investors. Here's a comprehensive guide to Venture Capital Due Diligence, thanks to Rubén D for sharing. Here's a tip: start organizing your data room internally from the early days and you'll effortlessly double your chances of closing investment deals for your startup. DM me if you need help with preparation for a DD. Happy to jump on a call and share some insights.

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What’s Happening. A View From The Castle. "Wake up little Susie, wake up"... After an interminable hibernation large VC funds are awakening. So far this year there have been 115 rounds of $100 million or more for US-based startups, compared to only 73 during the same period last year. "To do that, he’s gotta be willing to die himself and I don’t know if he’s ready to do that"... Malls are evolving to stave off the e-commerce juggernaut. Although E-commerce represents 20% of the $5 trillion total of US annual retail sales, 2X its 10% pre-pandemic share, its growth relative to traditional retail has slowed significantly. Play stupid games… The market value of meme coin Normie plummeted 99% in minutes after an exploiter (which many believe was a company insider) significantly increased its token supply by taking advantage of a smart contract flaw. Launched in March and reached a peak market cap of $130 million in April. First do no harm... Ascension, the largest US nonprofit health system, was targeted by a ransomware group that disrupted critical operations across its 142 hospitals and over 2,600 care sites. Mile high vacancy... Office vacancy in Downtown Denver has hit 32.1%, the highest rate in decades. Slam that gate… A $10 billion Starwood Capital Group real estate fund has been trying to preserve cash and credit by limiting investor redemptions. It was hit with $1.3 billion of withdrawal requests in Q1 but only returned $500 million. "How far to the point of know return"??? Farcaster, a decentralized social network popular in the crypto community, raised $150 million at a $1 billion valuation in a Series A round led by Paradigm. The platform only has 13 employees and has had 350,000 paid sign-ups. Here we go again??? For the first time since the global financial crisis investors in a AAA CMBS tranche have suffered losses (and they were significant). The loan on an office building at 1740 Broadway in NYC was sold at a steep discount - all five lower CMBS tranches were completely wiped out, and the AAA holders lost over 25% of their investment. The buyer is considering converting the property to residential. “The family is one of nature's masterpieces"... Private equity accounts for 35% of family office holdings, up from 19% in 2018. Don't worry, we know what's best for you... Amidst significant redemption requests from investors, Starwood REIT reduced its quarterly redemptions cap from 5% to 1% of the fund’s net asset value, and its monthly cap from 2% of NAV to 0.33%. The firm stated it made the move to free up liquidity without selling properties at below their acquisition costs or for below their loan amounts. Precursor to recession, or the new normal??? The yield curve has been inverted for over two years, longer and deeper than any previous inversion in the last forty years. #investmentbanking #technology #corporatecurrency #privateequity #venturecapital #castleplacement #cpgoapp

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How to Play DeFi LEGO 🌍 Vlad Kamyshov, CEO of Evaa Protocol, explores advanced DeFi techniques on TON Blockchain, demonstrating how to optimize liquidity and leverage of DeFi protocols effectively on legendary Warsaw Hackers League Bootcamp 2024 by TON Foundation and TON Society: https://lnkd.in/eUNzjXxD As a key representative of the TON DeFi Ecosystem, Vlad shares his expertise as a speaker and mentor, inspiring and guiding the next generation of builders. Key Topics: 🔑 Learn from AAVE, Lido Finance, MakerDAO, Uniswap Labs, Perpetual Protocol. 🔑 Insights using Evaa Protocol, bemo finance, STON.fi DEX, and Storm Trade. 🔑 Unlocking the power of TON's DeFi landscape.

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Hey, hey, calling all angel investors, angel networks, early-stage investment networks, founders (yes, you need to understand your angel investors better), innovation agencies, economic development agencies, banks (yes, banks), and anyone else busy building better startup ecosystems around the world. Today, at 18:00 CET, my good friend Rick Rasmussen and I will host What's Your Angel Strategy Webinar. We will cover the eight types of angel investors, how to shape your early angel investor strategy, the basic building blocks of an angel investor network, the most common mistakes angel investor networks do and much more. Sign up and join us. https://lnkd.in/d7xTUxKD Strategy Tools Strategy Sims #angel #Investors

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