Associated

In 2021, 28% of all Venture Capital investments in Europe had at least one US fund on their cap table, to put that number into perspective, it was 16% in 2017. In this second episode, co-host Francesca Baillieu discusses the key question "Why now are we seeing the influx of US funds entering Europe?" with some of the most knowledgeable investors in Europe. There are many factors as to why this inf...

In Episode 1 of our new series on the influx of US Venture Capital into the European tech ecosystem, we cover how and why European tech has gone from a 'backwater' into one of the most vibrant venture ecosystems globally. This episode features the following guests: Harry Briggs (OMERS) Paul Murphy (Lightspeed) James Wise (Balderton) Hussein Kanji (Hoxton) Briehan Burke (Keen) Jan Miczaika (HV) Zoe...

And to close off Season 6 of Associated podcast, we have the brilliant Sebastian Johansson from byFounders. In this episode we discuss the importance of building your network and how it is linked to the psychology of investing as well as what it’s like to spearhead a new office in one of the most competitive tech ecosystems in Europe.  Also, hot off the press: ByFounders are currently hiring...

What do electric vehicles and sustainable skincare have in common? Well, this week’s guest is something of an expert in both! Emilie talks to us about how she ended up in Jaguar Land Rover’s corporate venture capital arm, and the things she’s most excited about in the mobility industry today. InMotion are hiring a visiting analyst at the moment so if you’re interested hit up Emilie via LinkedIn. J...

In this episode we focus on mentorship; it's described as "in the DNA" of Inovia! We hear what Mike has learned from being mentored by Patrick Pichette, Inovia GP, Chairman of Twitter, and ex-CFO of Google, and about how he's paid it forward by supporting newer starters including Gabriele Paievyte, who joins us too!  Michael McGraw's LinkedIn Gabriele Papievyte's LinkedIn

In this episode Rodney unpacks journey in VC and Growth Equity including his start in investment banking pre the financial crisis, building BGF (the UK government's Private Equity fund), and becoming a Partner at the Foresight Group and building their minority investment business. We also discuss the trials and tribulations of starting Cornerstone, his own fund focused on diverse founders, why he...

In this episode we find out the difference between a VC and VCT as Fred gives us an insight into the consumer-focused VCT fund, Pembroke. Their recent investments in Dropless car-washing and Coat paint exemplify the requisite passion for huge consumer markets, ripe for disruption! We also find out about how Fred may have been on a different path if the plumbing market had been stronger in 2008.

Susan Lin started meeting angel investors aged ten. No, she wasn’t a child entrepreneur - she was the child of entrepreneurs! From these unconventional beginnings, Susan shares the motivations, decisions and international moves that led to her being made Partner at Felix Capital this year. She also speaks candidly about the thought process and guidance she had around starting a family, and about w...

Rakesh Narayana heads up the venture fund for the corporate behind huge household brands like Dettol, Durex and Finish - no mean feat! In this episode Rakesh opens up about the fund's goals, what his team looks for in prospective partners and how Reckitt supports portfolio companies. Ever wondered what the benefits of corporate venture capital are? Rakesh talks us through what Reckitt offers and l...

S6E3! We're excited to welcome the duo Henrik and Jeevan from Playfair Capital. In this episode, we get an insight into both their career journey's into VC (hint: they are both finance escapees but they have amazing side hustles)! We learn more about Playfair Capital's history, an ethos of having an open-door policy, and how angel investing has always been a part of their DNA, and of course, they...

We’re thrilled to have Madison McIlwain joining us this week to discuss her role at Defy VC, including her recent promotion to Partner! We discuss how Madison honed in on her niche of consumer and technology product, focusing on time spent at Gap and the podcast she recently launched, The Room. By Madison’s own admission, she could hold a conversation with a brick wall - and let us tell you, this...

We're back with Season 6! We're super excited to welcome the marvelous Megan Reynolds at Crane Venture Partners! We talk about: - Her journey from studying Classics to venturing into Hong Kong and what made her look into VC. - Her early experience at Entrepreneur First and building a strong thesis on deep tech founders building in Europe and matching her thesis to Crane Ventures. - Learn about how...

Part 4 of 4 on everything we've learned from interviewing for Venture Capital positions at top funds! In this episode Francesca Baillieu and Tunde Adekeye talk about how to dazzle your interviewer with piercing, insightful questions! They share the 'go to' questions they developed throughout their interview processes, and talk about why they're so effective. Whether you're looking to impress an in...

Part 3 of 4 of our mini-series unpacking everything we've learned from interviewing for top VC Funds!  In this episode, Francesca Baillieu and Tunde Adekeye discuss how to answer personal questions in VC Interviews, what qualities venture funds are looking for in you and how to build your own narrative.  They discuss how to answer questions like: Why do you think you would be a good inve...

Part 2 of 4 on everything we've learned from interviewing for Venture Capital positions at top funds!  In this episode Francesca Baillieu and Tunde Adekeye discuss the case studies and technical questions that often come up in the middle of the interview process. There are few resources that let candidates know what to expect, and even fewer unpacking what the interviewers are looking for - t...

4 Part Miniseries We're sharing everything we've learned from interviewing for Venture Capital positions at top funds! In this episode Francesca Baillieu , with very special co-host Tunde Adekeye , discuss the questions VCs ask to check candidates understand how the industry works as well as their appetite to work at their firm. Check out Tunde's blog for further insights and stayed tuned for the...

💎 BONUS 💎 with Raees Chowdhury, Investor at Revolt Ventures and recent Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree! From fashion, through health and to real estate, Raees’s passion for finance really underpins his whole career, and is evident in discussing the unique ‘PropCo’ structure Revolt are developing to drive value in portfolio companies. Raees's journey spans both entrepreneurship (twice!) and consultin...

We're learning all about Antler's hands-on approach to very early stage investing - in conversation with Magnus, the founder and CEO, and Ollie, who joined Antler as a Partner having previously founded a challenger bank for young people.  Antler's unique, cohort-led approach to talent investing means the team spends a huge amount of time coaching founding teams they take on. In this episode M...

This week we escape to warmer climes (virtually) as Francesca and Petra speak to Sacha Haider at Global Ventures in Dubai. With 5 years of experience across various emerging markets under her belt, Sacha takes us through her journey from media to private equity to venture capital. We talk about her geographic focus on the Middle East and Africa, what progression means in a venture capital fund, an...

This week we're joined by Todd Grover, an investor at World Innovation Lab (WIL) to talk all about his unique role spanning the US and Japan. We discuss strategic LP bases, international expansion to Japan and the metrics that get WIL excited. Todd also gives a super helpful, detailed breakdown of the most common ways he's seen early stage businesses achieve impressive metrics - we'll give you a t...

Lois and Francesca are joined by Elena Mazhuha at Genesis Investments. In this conversation we discuss: Genesis Investments’ origins, fund structure and their investment thesis. How Elena’s journey into VC started from attending lecture and then finding her next job through a FB post. Her experience of what it was like being a first employee at a VC fund and how her role evolved. Her experience of...

Miao He is an Investment Associate at Luminous Ventures, having arrived at deep tech via a PhD in Molecular Biology and a stint as a Bioinformatics Scientist and an MBA. She talks to Petra and Lois about now investing in life sciences, healthcare and emerging technology as they discuss parallels between VC and academic work inspired by analysing data with computational methods.  Miao's Linked...

On this week's episode, Francesca and Petra speak to Pauliina Martikainen, Investment Director at Maki. From her start in PR to launching her own pre-seed fund, to joining Maki VC, Pauliina takes us through her journey and what she's learned with her along the way to make her the investor she is now. Plus, we discuss Maki VC's incredible internship programme, Pauliina's go-to productivity tool, an...

What are the benefits of starting out at a generalist fund? What happens when you meet your colleagues for the first time in fancy dress? How does a MasterChef contestant becomes an investor? We find out when Petra and Lois sit down with Mark Shepherd at Beringea. We discuss all of these questions, plus how Mark got into VC, what his 2 top tips are for landing a job (for all the prospective invest...

We are excited to introduce our second episode of Season 5 with the incredible duo: Mark Pearson and Oli Hammond from Fuel Ventures. In this episode we discuss: - Mark and Oli's unique journey's into VC. You'll be surprised to hear their stories! Definitely don't want to miss this one!  - Their thoughts on their current Investment landscape during COVID19 and Oli not shaking hands with a...