Ashish Jain

At our annual meeting last week, Carta Head of Insights Peter Walker shared a master class on #seed VC deal dynamics with a special focus on the South. Carta is Valor's fund administrator, and we sure enjoyed having Peter come out from SFO to join our community of courage in person. Listening to his talk, founders and investors will learn: 1) How #valuations and amounts raised play out for founders right now--including the perceived (but not that meaningful) differential between the South and Silicon Valley 💰 2) Where #SAFE dilutions are trending, and why stacking SAFEs is more dangerous than ever ⚠️ 3) How #M&A in the South has recovered, even surpassing the Northeast in the most recent quarter 📈 Here are some highlights and a video for those who want to dive in. https://lnkd.in/gYwsQ6Jv Please share with smart founders and investors you care about. CC: Steve George Catherine Abely Megan McDougall Gary Peat Jean-Luc Vanhulst Cliff Baker Sean Cook

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Q3 is out and Q4 is in!  This is a great read about Base10's strategic switch showcasing how Carta is simplifying fund administration for emerging managers, which is especially important now rolling into the year-end busy season. 

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In the season finale of Brex's Controllers Classified podcast, BCV partner Sarah Hinkfuss spoke with Erik Zhou to discuss the VC investment landscape and how BCV approaches due diligence for growth-stage companies. For founders, there are three things that are important to share with investors: 1. Your unit economics, or how you think about your business drivers. It’s by far the most important thing today and those inputs (e.g. customer cohort data, gross margin, sales and marketing costs) give you a complete picture of the business. 2. Your business model, or how you think about your future. It doesn’t have to be a huge, complicated spreadsheet. Rather, it’s an important instrument to show people how you think about the business. What is your view of the future and what do you believe are the most important drivers of the business? 3. Your memo, or your narrative. A popular format today is to tell your story in a memo, not a deck, and it’s great because the writing process forces more complete thoughts to give investors a full view of your business and vision.

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Late-stage VC funds are earning dismal returns relative to the S&P 500 and take little risk. So why are LPs continuing to fund them? What the heck is happening in VC and can we fix it? In his three-part series on why VC is dead, Joe Merrill condenses conversations he's had from leading money managers all over the world into what's happening in VC today. Read the first part here and stay tuned for part 2: https://lnkd.in/gmCMx6wR #vc #article #latestage #earlystage #learning

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Advice from a CFO who’s crushed 4 private equity deals: In our recent Thrive community Q&A, Robert (Bob) Gold shared a simple but critical insight: "The skillsets are just so different... You need to laser focus on inbound and outbound cash and be very adept at liquidity management." Why? Because in private equity, managing cash flow and liquidity is even more important than having experience with exits. Here are the 3 biggest lessons Bob shared for CFOs looking to excel in PE: 1️⃣ Cash Flow is King: It's not just about budgeting—it’s about knowing exactly where every dollar is coming from and going. 2️⃣ Liquidity Drives Decisions: Ensuring your business has the cash it needs to stay agile and invest in growth is non-negotiable. 3️⃣ Working Capital is a Game-Changer: Managing payables, receivables, and inventory effectively can be the difference between success and failure in PE. For aspiring CFOs in private equity, this advice is Gold (pun intended 😅 ). Focus on these fundamentals, and you’ll be set up for success. 💡 Want more insights like this? Join our newsletter for exclusive tips, strategies, and advice from top private equity leaders. Don’t miss out—stay ahead in your career! 👉 https://lnkd.in/eMkPX8kr 

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Discover how @PinegroveCP is set to acquire SVB Capital, backed by key creditor groups, paving the way for enhanced venture capital liquidity options. #VentureCapital #Acquisition #StrategicPartnership

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If you’re a fund CFO, your fund is likely run on tons of spreadsheets. It’s an opaque system that’s error prone and can make for a painful audit season. Carta Fund Administration gives GPs, LPs, fund CFOs, and their fund admin partners unprecedented transparency into fund transactions. What Carta provides: ✅ A 400-person fund administration team, including 150 fund accountants with an average 10+ years of experience servicing some of the largest private funds in the world ✅ A shared source of truth and transparency into every transaction for GPs and fund accountants—no more costly errors resulting from mistyped manual entries ✅ Real-time reporting—most clients can access a draft version of financials on the first day after the quarter closes ✅ A highly-auditable event-based accounting platform—trace any number back to the journal entry, event, and document that created it We purpose-built Carta Fund Administration for private fund CFOs. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/gmza-8gC #FundAdmin #VC #FundAccounting #FundAudit

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We mapped out the biggest software PE investors of the last decade!🚀 📊Leading the pack are TA Associates, Vista Equity Partners, Thoma Bravo, Hg, and Battery Ventures. 👉They are not just backing companies but are helping founders scale their software business to new heights. 🌟 For founders in the software space looking for PE investment, we have covered detailed profiles of these PE funds that include their investment criteria such as investment size, geographical focus, revenue requirements, and board seat preferences. 👉The strategies of these funds range from growth equity to full buyouts, impacting software companies at various stages. 🔥Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/dXzrEG2B #software #privateequity #softwareinvestor #mergersandacquisitions

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Another very interesting piece of Thought Leadership by our Polish Globalscope Partners Ltd partner, Aventis Advisors, regarding the biggest PE investors in the Global Software vertical in the last decade. Congratulations Marcin Majewski and the rest of the team for such an insightful research. 🔥Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/dXzrEG2B #LiberdadeCapital #AventisAdvisors #GlobalscopePartners #GlobalTeam #ThoughtLeadership

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In this episode of "This Week in Startups," hosted by David Weisburd and featuring Jamie Rhode, CFA, Matthew Mulvey, and Jason Calacanis, the discussion covers the resurgence of venture capital distributions, Sequoia Capital's liquidity strategies, and the impact of economic conditions on VC funds. Dive into the insights on how venture capital firms are navigating current market conditions and the strategies they are adopting to stay ahead. Catch the full episode on YouTube to understand the dynamic landscape of venture capital investments and emerging trends. https://lnkd.in/eaRHvjeD #Venture #VentureCapital #VC

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US CEO Cactus Raazi joined Anthony Pompliano's Crypto Investor Day to discuss how asset managers can successfully navigate the crypto market with Josh Neuroth, VP of Product QuickNode. At B2C2, we know what institutions look for in a partner: 🏆 Best-in-class credit rating and counterparty management 📈 Appropriate balance sheet for block trades 🖥️ Fully-automated middle and back office As a leading provider of institutional liquidity for digital assets, we're proud to provide our clients with 24/7 fully automated block trading, backed by our balance sheet and high credit rating. Get in touch to learn more. #institutionaltrading #crypto #liquidity

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Fin Capital’s Fintech CEO Pulse Report is out! We surveyed over 50 CEOs and C-suite leaders of private companies from our portfolio and the broader fintech industry during June and July 2024 to get a quick pulse on what’s top of mind for fintech’s leaders. Here are some key takeaways: Optimism in the Air: More than 60% of CEOs reported being bullish or highly bullish on the fintech industry for the second half of 2024. Regulatory Changes on the Horizon: CEOs identified Cryptocurrency, Open Banking, and Buy Now Pay Later as the top three sectors likely to see increased regulation by the end of 2024. CEOs Want Business Development Support: Beyond capital and fundraising, business development support emerged as the top area where CEOs seek investor assistance.For more insights, including comments from my colleagues Ren Riley, Logan Allin, Matthew D. Mann, CFA, and Stephanie Perez, check out the full report here: https://lnkd.in/euHK8-9B

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Howard Chan, Founder and CEO of Kurv Investment Management, joined "The Options Playbook" on Yahoo Finance with host Seana Smith to reflect on Big Tech and how investors can play options in tech for 2025. Howard noted that despite strong fundamentals and earnings supporting the sector, valuations have become overstretched, and there is a need for the market to "exhale before it can inhale again." Tune into the full segment here: https://lnkd.in/giS4w8f9

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The Information broke news that Insight Partners has just secured $10B in funding for their latest flagship fund. This is perfectly timed given their multiple $1B+ companies sold over the past week. This is a clear sight that #limitedpartners still have in their #privateallocations even during the current slow markets for #IPOs and #M&A. This would also appear to be good news for #AIfinancing and #SaaSFinancing. What do you think? #Management #VentureCapital #PrivateEquity #CapitalMarkets https://lnkd.in/gXu_s8Qj

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Fast-growing mortgage servicing platform Valon, cofounded by Andrew W. and Jonathan Hsu, has secured $100 million in a Series C funding led by Westcap Mgt. Ltd. and Andreessen Horowitz, valuing the company at $1.1 billion. Valon intends to use the fresh capital to boost product development and expand its reach to new markets. Read the announcement in the news section on colaeb.com

The growing array of companies serving the Office of the CFO will gather at Jefferies' Fourth Annual Office of the CFO Summit today to discuss the most important trends, opportunities, and challenges for software companies operating in this space in 2024 and beyond. In preparation for the Summit, we sat down with Evan Osheroff, Managing Director, Software Investment Banking at Jefferies, to explore what is happening in the CFO office today and its implications for software companies and investors. http://spklr.io/6040Qbhn

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Pleased to share that Fin Capital’s Fintech CEO Pulse Report is out! Fin Capital surveyed over 50 CEOs and C-suite leaders of private companies from our portfolio and the broader fintech industry during June and July 2024 to get a quick pulse on what’s top of mind for fintech’s leaders. Here are some key takeaways: - Optimism in the Air: More than 60% of CEOs reported being bullish or highly bullish on the fintech industry for the second half of 2024. - Regulatory Changes on the Horizon: CEOs identified Cryptocurrency, Open Banking, and Buy Now Pay Later as the top three sectors likely to see increased regulation by the end of 2024. - Headwinds persist. Despite overall bullishness on fintech, CEOs report a weak IPO environment and flag that macroeconomic volatility, regulation, and high interest rates remain top challenges for their companies. However, with abating inflation, CEO’s believe we could see rate cuts begin in September, which could positively affect asset values and market buoyancy, including the IPO window. For more insights, including comments from Logan Allin, Christian Ostberg, Matthew D. Mann, CFA, and Stephanie Perez, check out the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gK6usfwM

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