Episode 15: New Reset for Investors
Hi Friends. Thank you for tuning into another episode of Pandocap. We have a special guest today that I will introduce shortly but I wanted to start with why we are focused on this discussion.
Since the black swan piece that Sequoia put out on March 5th, Silicon Valley took a pause and quickly pivoted to get through the pandemic. As March and April passed you saw massive layoffs, term sheets being pushed through quickly and a pivot in product/services. You felt the new brand messaging from companies like Doordash and GoodRx with a focus on the support they would offer the community to get through the pandemic. Now that we are coming out the other end of the shutdown, startups and investors are focused on opportunities that will create the next generation of innovators. These are the build disruptors!
This is where Andrea Walne from Manhattan Venture partners comes in to talk about the shift in the venture community, the continued expansion of private capital in the second market and emerging new normal for the ecosystem.
Q: Andrea can you please share your background with our audience and your journey to your current role?
I joined Nasdaq when they launched their second market offering and now I am a Partner at Manhattan Venture Partners.
Q: We know that investors were putting more of a focus on profitably coming out of 2019. Do you have a gage on how badly the current and future cash flow has been affected for startups?
Investors have pivoted the initial conversations to evaluating burn rate and more due diligence on the balance sheet.
Q: How are you seeing startups shift their features to being remote focused around bringing community or users together?
Companies are focused on bringing their teams, clients, and user groups together to create mini communities remotely that can support each other and build location-based ecosystems. The new workforce will look much different.
Q:Do you see this as a new reset for investors?
Early-stage companies might not need to raise at large valuations you to keep it lean, not centralize around a location and think much more global. Late-stage companies are looking at diversifying locations to keep operation expenses (OPX) low and not have everyone in Silicon Valley.
Q: What are your projections for the end of the year and going into 2021?
Accountability will be key going into 2021 with companies focused on diversity and inclusion, in addition to launching funds to support the minority community.
Thank you again for joining us on this special edition of sharing expert advice on Pandocap and stay tuned as we help give voice to the next generation of build disruptors.