Matt Wichrowski

I couldn’t be prouder to be a Venture Partner at Isomer Capital (aka the best European FoF - at least for me) as we just announced the launch of our pioneering £100m secondaries fund. This fund is dedicated to acquiring stakes from LPs in various VC funds, tapping into a massive and largely unexplored market. 🌟 Key Highlights: - Focused Investment: Primarily targeting stakes in VC funds, with selective investments in private companies. - Robust Funding: Already over 20% funded, thanks to strong support from Nordic family offices and a German foundation. - Market Potential: With a growing number of private tech companies and a VC liquidity crunch, Europe's VC secondaries market is poised for rapid growth. - Track Record: This isn’t Isomer’s first foray into the secondaries market. As a firm we’ve done several secondaries deals with portfolio companies and VC firms, including early-stage VC Seedcamp (in 2021) and mobility giant Bolt (in 2023). - Expert Team: Welcoming the amazing Omolade (Rachel) A., formerly of Coller Capital, as a principal to lead this initiative. 💡 Investment Strategy: - 65-75% of the fund will buy "LP interest" stakes in VC funds. - 15-25% will be directed towards stakes in companies. - Up to 15% reserved for flexible investment opportunities. 📈 Looking Ahead: We're targeting returns of 2-3x, with significant distributions expected in the next 4-7 years. As one of the few players in this space, we're not just participating in the market—we're driving it forward. Read all about it here: https://lnkd.in/dc7sbC3G #VentureCapital #SecondariesFund #EuropeanVC

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I’ve just found a video of Marc Andreessen outcompeting other VCs in startup funding rounds with their new $7.2bn fund. In all seriousness the split and timing of their mega fund structure is interesting. 2/3 focussing on infrastructure and growth. Rest - the uje. Except for one phrase that I think is just awesome - they’ve allocated $600m to ‘American Dynamism’. I almost don’t care what that means. I just love the notion and will be borrowing the theme for our UK future fundraises. UK Dynamism is long overdue. The United States of Freedom leads the way for our ecosystem and they’re suggesting back into growth kids. Yes inertia. Yes this will take some time to deploy! But back into growth all the same. Where as is the norm in startup land - timing is everything. Congrats to A16z. I’m not in the slightest bit envious. #venturecapital #vc #startups #investing #startupfunding #oldwhitemen #lps #fundraising #vcfunds #usausausa

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Striking: Zenobē, a UK climate tech startup, raised £600m from KKR and £270m from Infracapital, bypassing VC entirely. Zenobe captures excess energy from wind farms to stabilize the grid and reduce gas power reliance. This means: Zenobe secured one of 2023's biggest startup fundraises — without any venture capital. #battery #fundraising #venturecapital #energystorage #infrastructure #growthinflection Sifted: https://lnkd.in/g8wF-xA5

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In a recent Sifted article, I share thoughts on emerging managers esp. Solo-GPs, here's what I think 👇🏽 https://lnkd.in/eYx7h5Qv I’m a solo-GP building OpenseedVC, here’s what some think this means; 🔻That there is key-person risk 🔻That there is little accountability or governance 🔻That it is a one-person show Here’s what it ACTUALLY often means; 👇🏽 ✅ We've set up governance that foster accountability, not bureaucracy ✅ As a fund, we have a dizzying depth of complementary skillsets ✅ We build conviction and move quickly; critical for early stage ✅ We are process geniuses, automations and efficiency is in our DNA ✅ We have a lean, mean team optimised for high for efficiency There is no "founder-like fund" quite like a Solo-GP emerging manager. For us at OpenseedVC, we invest up to $150k at the angel stage, and are flexible. We can lead your angel round. We can follow if the terms work for us. We don't take board seats. Whatever it is, we are first investors in ambitious and experienced operators just as they start their technology companies! We are founders ourselves, and have parallel experiences to the most ambitious and resilient founders, and this is ultimately superpower 💥 Solo-GPs are outliers, and in the business of #VC #venturecapital, outliers signal potential for outsized opportunity. #operators #openseedvc #europe #africa #soloGPs

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🌱 Calling all Seed Founders! 🌱 Are you an early-stage startup seeking investment? My latest article is a comprehensive guide to the UK's SEIS and the investors participating in it. Here's what you'll find inside: ✨ Understanding SEIS for early-stage 💼 Must have documents to secure funding 🕵‍♀️ List of 24 active SEIS funds across sectors If you represent a SEIS fund not yet featured, feel free to comment below or reach out to me directly. 💬 I'd love to include you and help connect more founders to the right investors. Link to article in the comments 🔗

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Great episode for early stage VC's and capital allocators to check out. https://lnkd.in/ekz7JHJd #vc #fundraising #venturecapital

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Ever wonder what its like to run a Private Equity fund? Now you have the chance to follow along with successful investment managers by participating with Fund Launch Partners. Join me and Lincoln Archibald and next week for the Third Thursday @ Three to hear about direct investment opportunities with General Partnerships in the one of the fastest growing portfolio investment sectors. Pick up a free ticket here: https://lnkd.in/dd2yzxDd #HolyGrailofInvesting #GPOpportunities #FundLaunch #Alternatives

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🚀 From Garage Startup to Financial Powerhouse: The Full Journey of Mattioli Woods plc 🚀 Join me as I explore Ian Mattioli's journey from a garage startup to the financial giant Mattioli Woods plc. Ian shares insights on work-life balance, structuring a startup, and evolving from pensions to wealth management. Discover how his vision shaped Mattioli Woods plc and our health tech ventures, Care Hires and Kanabo. Ian helped Care Hires grow to a platform connecting 19,000 care workers with care homes across the UK. At Kanabo, he's supported our growth as a telemedicine startup listed on the LSE, connecting 4,200+ pharmacies and launching medical cannabis clinics. A must-watch for entrepreneurs and startup founders seeking inspiration to turn their vision into reality. Learn how these lessons drive innovation and growth in Care Hires and Kanabo Full Version linked below 👇 #Entrepreneurship #StartupSuccess #WealthManagement #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipLessons #Inspiration #HealthTech #MedicalCannabis Leicester Startups, Loughborough University, University of Leicester De Montfort University, Avihu Tamir, Nizam Bata ACCA, Tharaka De Alwis.

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Space tech-focused investment firm Seraphim Space Space launched its second VC fund, SSV II, to back early-stage startups in the global space tech market. The fund aims to build a portfolio of 30 startups, investing in seed and Series A stages. The latest fund's target size is larger than its predecessor's, which closed at £70M ($90M) in 2017. The fund's investment themes include AI applications for space data, in-orbit computing, space-enabled communications, and microgravity for science. Eutelsat is one of the limited partners that contributed to the latest fund. Seraphim Space aims to stand out with its track record, having returned three times the original investment from its first fund. The first fund's returns were driven by five exits, including Siemens' acquisition of UltraSOC and four IPOs of Arqit, AST SpaceMobile, Nightingale, and Spire Global. The British firm listed its growth fund Seraphim Space Investment Trust (SSIT) on the London Stock Exchange in July 2021, getting about £250M (~$300M) in gross proceeds. The fund's market cap touched an all-time low of £130M ($162M) in July 2023. The market for space tech is expected to grow significantly, with the World Economic Forum and McKinsey estimating it could be worth $1.8R by 2035.

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"Is the UK a hard place for DeepTech funding?" I always love answering this question. The UK and Europe is one of the best places for DeepTech funding! 🤘 We have some of the best DeepTech funds based right here in Cambridge with Cambridge Innovation Capital, IQ Capital, Martlet Capital and Amadeus Capital Partners. Last year, The 2023 European DeepTech Report reported the UK was one of the top three countries to receive the most DeepTech funding across Europe seeing a total $3.4 billion raised. 💥 DeepTech is one of the most resilient funding sectors to be in right now. 🚀🚀🚀 Cambridge Future Tech Lucie Polakova #venturebuilding #deeptech #deeptechfunding #cambridge Pic: Talking careers in tech at University of Cambridge 🤘

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Great to see SIS Ventures make this list by TechRound https://lnkd.in/eDtRbggM A bit more about what we look for below. If you're a founder and these hit the mark 👇 then please get in touch Investment targets SIS Ventures is focused on high-impact, high-growth potential businesses our investee companies are innovation-led, often spun out of Scotland’s leading university innovation programmes. Portfolio companies are also carefully selected for their commitment to developing their environmental, equality and diversity, social impact and governance practices. SIS Ventures seeks to provide equity investment to: ✔ High growth potential with a global scale and intent to provide significant impact ✔ Focus on social and/or environmental impact, aligning with impact themes / at least one of the UN SDGs ✔ Product or service backed by defensible technology or proprietary know-how ✔ EIS or SEIS qualifying ✔ Low capital-intensive businesses ✔ Sector agnostic, but historically invested across Life Sciences, MedTech, Climate Tech, Circular Economy, Biotech ✔ Pre-seed – Series A ✔ Headquartered in Scotland

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Normally I don't pay much attention to different ranking articles about startups to watch, etc. When we invest, we need to have a conviction about startups that we want to invest in before any article mentions them. However, I agree with Sifted about Ki Hydrogen. In my opinion it's an exceptional company with great team and very promising technology (hydrogen production using biomass electrolysis while needing up to 70% less energy). The hydrogen economy is already at around $200 billion, with over $500 billion of estimated infrastructure investments. The key misconception is that hydrogen is mostly used in the transportation industry. In fact, that is less than 10% of the hydrogen market. Congrats to Koji Muto, Michael Stanton and Carl Banbury, PhD for their steady progress! We are honoured to be working with you on bringing the world hydrogen made from waste at scale.

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Great insights from Adam Agius on what to consider when raising debt for a search fund buyout. Most relevant to the UK market, but a worthwhile read for all searchers. There's more debt capital keen to support search acquisitions than ever before, but approaching it naively can be very costly...

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Numbers & insights from a deep tech venture studio that launched 11 companies (all are active) in the last 7 years, reaching £85M valuation across the portfolio: 1. Post Urban, initially bootstrapped by Luke Robinson, an academic with a PhD in physics from Cambridge, now operates with external funding from a UK-based fund. 2. Launched 5 companies during the first 5 years and 6 companies during the last 2 years. 3. All 11 completed pre-seed rounds; 1 of them got Series A, 2 of them are approaching their Series A. 4. The startups have collectively raised ~£25M in venture capital, in addition to receiving grants. The total valuation of the 11 companies is ~£85M, half of which have not yet undergone subsequent funding rounds. 5. Initial equity splits: the venture builder 20%, CEOs of startups 35% (vests over 4 years), CTOs – 20-25%, employees 10-15%. 6. The initial valuation of startups was £2 million, with £300K invested by the venture builder. The last 2 startups were at £3.5-4M initial valuation. 7. Building deep tech ventures requires significantly higher initial funding because these projects need more time to develop demonstrable products. Two portfolio companies hit £1M in ARR. 8. The venture builder has increased the capital for the last 2 startups to ensure they reach meaningful milestones. The CEOs of the startups were able to secure additional funding through their networks, £350K and £450K, respectively. 9. The deep tech investor pool is smaller than that for sectors like SaaS, which requires a stronger proof of concept and market readiness to attract funding. 10. 3-4 times, potential customers became investors in Post Urban Ventures. This is a great approach because it secures investment and validates the concept by gauging whether these potential customers truly believe in the solution and its market necessity. 11. They don't start with a technology or an idea; instead, they integrate insights about global problems and, by actively engaging with advisory boards, founders, and industry experts, identify pain points and align them with technological solutions. 12. They do not bring universities in as co-founders but source scientists or professors to contribute to research and development. This involves leveraging academic expertise to support the technical aspects of startup projects until a prototype is developed. 13. The studio maintains strong connections with major academic institutions, including Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial College, and UCL, supporting its deep tech focus and facilitating access to new technologies and potential founders. 14. Areas of focus in deep tech: AI (Knowledge Graphs, NLP, DNNs, Computer Vision, Edge AI, Active Learning), Quantum Technologies, Biotech, AgTech, Enterprise SaaS. Watch the full interview to gain insights into the portfolio companies, handling IP collaborations with universities, key challenges, and team construction: https://lnkd.in/dCi7fZ7G

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🚀 The Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati US/UK Entrepreneurs Report for Q1 2024 is out! Here the Highlights for #TechInvestors and #Deeptech Founders 🌍 Key Insights from Wilson Sonsini's Latest Report: 🌐 Global Venture Capital Trends - Mixed Valuations: Early-stage valuations showed mixed signals. Seed valuations matched 2023's median but dropped quarter-over-quarter. Series A and B saw slight increases for the second consecutive quarter. - Fundraising Peaks: Despite mixed valuations, fundraising amounts increased across all stages for the third consecutive quarter, with Series C and later stages hitting a two-year high. 🇬🇧 UK Market Update - Investment Volume: £2.42 billion invested in Q1 2024, down 36% from Q4 2023 but up 3.7% from Q1 2023. - Deal Sizes: Mean deal size for Q1 2024 was £4.92 million, higher than Q1 2023 but lower than Q4 2023. - Top Deals: Monzo Bank secured a gigadeal of £339 million. Other notable deals include ElevenLabs (£65.2M), hyperexponential (£65.2M), and Storegga (£65.2M). 📈 Convertible Notes & SAFEs Benchmakrs: - Convertible Notes: Interest rates are up, with 80% of pre-Seed and 63% of post-Seed notes having rates of 8% or more. Maturity periods are trending shorter, especially for post-Seed notes. - SAFEs: Median raise amounts remain under $1 million, with valuation caps becoming more prevalent. 🌱 My Deeptech & Climate Focus Spots: Climate tech is continuing to be ever more real (i.e. true hardware deals done, vs the ESG platforms that dominated climate tech investing for a while): - Storegga: Raised £65.2 million for renewable energy tech, focusing on carbon capture and reduction. - Tokamak Energy: Secured £76.5 million for fusion technologies aimed at large-scale clean energy production. 🔍 Key Takeaways for Investors & Founders: - Stay Informed: Mixed signals in valuations suggest cautious optimism. Keep an eye on fundraising trends and convertible note terms. - Focus on Innovation: Deeptech and climate tech are attracting significant investments. Opportunities abound for those addressing global challenges and the bold investors who back them. #VentureCapital #TechInvesting #Deeptech #ClimateTech #StartupFunding #UKTech For more detailed insights, check out the full report by Wilson Sonsini here:

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🚀 Exciting News! All investors and founders at London Tech Week this is FOR YOU 🔥 Today! For #LondonTechWeek 2024 We're hosting the Deep Tech Showcase!! Co-organised with Frontier Deep Tech and powered by Mishcon de Reya LLP 🌟 Join me and the Silicon Roundabout Ventures folks + co-organisers for drinks and snacks today from 5pm at Mishcon's London office: You'll find an immersive in-person event highlighting some of Europe's most innovative technology advancements. This is your chance to network and explore emerging technologies, connecting with like-minded founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders who are shaping a better world through next-generation technologies. We are proud to present an incredible lineup of pioneering companies: 1. Seabird Technologies - Charting new waters with cutting-edge ocean exploration solutions 🌊 2. clare&me - Digitizing mental health with groundbreaking tools and resources from Berlin 🧠 3. Greenjets - Revolutionizing travel with bespoke electric jet engines ✈️ 4. Hirsch and Mann Hirsch and Mann - Creating bold digital and physical experiences for premium brands 🌐 5. Urban Legend - Offering a healthier twist on traditional doughnuts 🍩 6. Pi Energy Inc. - Providing affordable solar energy with the flexibility to power just about anywhere ☀️ 7. Toast - Award-winning social enterprise brewery turning leftover loaves into liquid gold 🍺 8. Lumirithmic - Portable high-end facial scanning and animation technology 🎭 Calling all investors and founders! This is an event you don't want to miss. Come and witness the future of technology and innovation. Secure your spot now and be part of this transformative experience. Register in the comments 👇 Let's shape the future together! 🌟 #DeepTech #Investors #Founders #Networking #Defence --- I'm a solo Venture Capitalist on a mission to channel start up capital to hard to build technologies 🔥 ❤️ & Follow+ to keep up with the journey 🛣️

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Another smashing Tin Men School event done and dusted last week. This time I got to answer some very interesting questions. What most never discuss is that as VCs, we have to pitch for funds too. It’s a similar process, just that it’s to LPs. Some great topics from the floor that we got to discuss over Q&A: 💭 Q: How important is the deck? A: It’s for everyone who’s not in the room. It’s easy to refer to incase an investor forgets, but it shouldn’t steal the show. I often present without one. Treat it as a conversation - tends to work more naturally and without the audience being distracted by the screen. 💭 Q: What should startups do more of in fundraising? A: Share your ‘why’, people buy the why. When you do that you tell the story in a way that’s unique to you. Ask for specific feedback: Don’t accept generic feedback like: “It is not in our mandate.”  Get to the underlying ‘Why’ so you can make changes.  Qualify investors and keep list of them to focus your time on.  We are selling trust. When the time is right, it’ll pay off. 💭 Q: How important is personal branding for founders? A: It can’t hurt to have a strong brand, it increases the familiarity before outreach. For platforms like Linkedin - the big cost is time. Be strategic, but don’t overdo it. 💭 Q: Would it be better to raise from the US since there’s more capital there? A: It depends. Not every founder has a strong network in the states. Without an edge and business relevance, it can be tougher to raise your round, though not impossible. There’s capital in Asia, though not as deep as the US, but you’ll have to put some effort to find it. Eugene Cheng 🪄 also shared some very useful technical know-how in building pitches and a compelling fundraising stories. I’ve gotten feedback that plenty of founders found value in this session. Big thanks to our partners AppWorks and Aspire for working with us to make this possible. P.S. We’re always looking to invite experts with relevant insights to share with founders in our community at Tin Men Capital. Know someone to recommend? Tag em’ in the comments.

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