Philippe Lavertu

"Simply put, there is too much capital seeking too few opportunities, particularly at the seed stage. Multi-stage firms have eliminated pricing discipline at seed stage and the proliferation of seed firms has made the task of investing at this stage as competitive as it’s ever been, leading me to believe that indexed seed investing in today’s environment will produce poor returns. What does this mean for today’s environment? It’s never been more important to break away from median performance. While there is risk in breaking away from the pack, the risk (at least performance wise) of staying part of the herd is simply far worse. Median returns for the recent vintages are simply terrible. One could argue that funds are still in their j-curve phases, but I suspect this doesn’t explain the divergence we’re seeing between GOOD performers and GREAT performers. More than ever before, it’s clear to me that playing the same game as everyone else will not work, so fund managers should question whether they are really capable of being in the top 5% of whatever strategy they are employing. From a LP perspective, allocators should likely ask the same of their managers and consider whether allocating to indexed mega funds or indexing across too broad of a portfolio of managers is tenable in achieving their return targets." https://lnkd.in/g8GqHY-P

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Excited to announce our investment in Alta Resource Technologies alongside Leonardo Banchik (Voyager Ventures) with participation from Orion Resource Partners, Overture Ventures, and WovenEarth Ventures. Rare earths are critical in products from magnets to ceramics and it's important for the US to develop its own supply chain. While the US has some of the best rare earth resources, separating them has historically proven expensive and environmentally unfriendly. Alta through it's computationally designed and optimized proteins allows the US to bring back rare earth production with a cleaner, lower capex, and lower opex solution - and that's just the beginning. Congrats to Nathan Ratledge and the entire Alta team. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gbGnAJn3

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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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The Silver Tsunami is upon us, and it's reshaping the mergers and acquisitions landscape like never before. With an estimated $10 trillion in assets set to change hands over the next decade, driven by baby boomers retiring, the opportunity for savvy investors and entrepreneurs is immense. Currently, around 30,000 businesses sell annually, but with more than 8 million baby boomer-owned businesses expected to transition, the volume of transactions could increase tenfold. This is a monumental shift that smart buyers are already preparing for. You don't need to be a Wall Street titan to benefit from this trend; many of these businesses will transition to local entrepreneurs and small business owners. Are you ready to seize a piece of this $10 trillion wealth transfer? Position yourself strategically to take advantage of this unprecedented wave of opportunities. Engage with fellow professionals and explore how you can be part of this transformation. Not sure how? Let's talk about it! #SilverTsunami #MergersAndAcquisitions #BusinessOpportunities

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Looking for insights, strategies, and stories from the world of private equity? Check out NU Advisory Partners' curated roundup of some of the best PE podcasts available today (including the Private Equity Value Creation podcast!) Learn about shows that are delivering expert insights into PE trends and strategies, diverse perspectives from industry leaders, and the resources to stay ahead in the fast-paced world of private equity. Explore the full list here: https://lnkd.in/eidRH_-m #PrivateEquity #Podcasts #BusinessGrowth #Leadership

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Cost-effective geothermal energy has the ability to fully transition and decarbonize our grids and industrial systems - in the near term! We believe the team and technology at XGS Energy will realize this vision and we couldn't be happier to be working with them on a geothermal-powered reality.

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It’s time for a due diligence upgrade. Traditional due-diligence has led to a system in which white male asset managers control 98.6% of the investment industry’s $80 trillion. 98.6%! If you're curious about how to better evaluate managers, you don't have to reinvent the wheel! In our interview with Bob Bancroft, I was struck by how cooperative LPs are when sharing best practices. He gives great practical advice on how the Nathan Cummings Foundation changed their endowment approach, starting with leaning on others who did it before him. Bob's been responsible for guiding the transformation of the endowment toward a 100% mission-aligned strategy. And a big step in that transformation has been adopting the Due Diligence 2.0 pledge. https://lnkd.in/g_sr_Rwn For LPs, The Racial Equity Asset Lab runs the pledge today and is a great resource to get started. For GPs, REAL lists of all the Allocators who are using the Due Diligence 2.0 framework and investing in more diverse managers. https://lnkd.in/gBG-ue5K   CC: Earnest Sweat Erika Seth Davies Jonalyn Denlinger

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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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Below is a link to today’s MDB Vested Interests conversation, Traditional Venture vs Public Venture, in case you missed or want to revisit it. MDB Capital President & Chief Market Strategist Lou Basenese sat down with Dave Berkus, TCA Venture Group Chairman Emeritus and Managing Director of TCA ACE Funds, to exchange insights on these approaches to venture-stage investing. Watch video here: https://lnkd.in/gwM3Cwsd

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"Small funds may have more incentive to produce higher returns The alignment of incentives between GP and LP varies drastically based on fund size. Managers of smaller funds who have invested substantial personal capital demonstrate an unwavering commitment to lucrative returns, while managers at the helm of colossal funds, buoyed by significant management fees, may exhibit a diminishing drive. This constitutes an almost incontrovertible structural benefit of managing a small VC fund. Furthermore, fund managers of established funds may, over time, raise larger subsequent funds and grow more risk averse. This can present a sub-optimal outcome for their LPs and, by virtue, manifests a bad omen for VC investing." https://lnkd.in/gHKgea4e

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The next instalment in the Cultivating Advising Success series by Melinda Roy is now live on the Plaid Analytics blog. In this post, we look at the different types of advisors and advisee types. Just as different plants require different approaches in the garden, different students need different types of advising approaches and interventions. Matching your approach and advisor roles to student needs is core to a successful advising program. From confident-independent students who rarely visit advisors, to insecure-dependent students who rely on advisors for decision-making, we explore the types of students who visit (or don't) advisors, and discuss their needs, attitudes, and expectations for advising services. Read the full post here: https://lnkd.in/gVf8FznC As advising success is key to the success of many SEM plans, it is a crucial to design a tailored approach that not only upholds institution mission and values but one that is responsive to changing student needs. Leveraging institutional data to understand your student body, and building a diverse advising team with the skills and lived experiences that reflect the student body is core to having a trusted advising program. Whether they are generalists, faculty advisors, career counselors, or peer liaisons, advisors are essential in helping students achieve personal and academic success. When advisors are empowered and informed, students will be too. If you're restructuring your advising approach, be sure to invest in your advising team to create an environment where every advisor and advisee can thrive. 🌿 #highereducation #studentsuccess #advising

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Data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) illustrates the current "readiness" of #ClimateTechs + their potential impact on carbon reduction. As shown, many techs are at an early stage of being able to have a material impact. Concerningly, some tech funds recently returned capital back to investors recently + closed their funds - citing inability to fund capital intensive techs, found in areas like ClimateTech. This in part may be contributing to the $2 trillion shortfall in ClimateTech, that Deloitte estimates. What this may mean for the future? - The migration of LPs to global, super VC funds within ClimateTech, given the large capital pools needed to fund tech development - Greater specialization from smaller funds, energizing more niche elements of the ClimateTech market - but also altering their / LP's risk profile - A greater role to be played by debt financing in funding growth entities at an earlier stage - impacting cashflow dynamics Will be an interesting space to watch moving forward. We at The Proptech Connection are constantly working with all parts of the Proptech ecosystem. From the leading LPs, funds, techs and adopters in market, providing an independent view. Reach out to us today to find out how we can help. #InvestorTrends #Strategy #Global Ivo van Breukelen Stuart Daun Kiki C. Ethan Ward

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What's the fast river in alts? Listen to the latest Alt Goes Mainstream podcast with Mercer's Gregg Sommer & CAIS' Neil Blundell to hear how they are helping advisors approach private markets. Gregg, Neil, and I had a fascinating discussion about how the wealth channel can approach alternatives and how they can think about both diligence and customization. We covered: * The case for alternatives. * How advisors currently approach alternatives and how they can think about it differently going forward. * How to think about portfolio construction that includes alternatives. * How alts can help advisors differentiate their practice and attract clients. * Following the fast river in a career and why alternatives are “the fast river.” * The meaning of “structure over strategy.” * The rise in popularity of evergreen funds. Thanks Gregg and Neil for sharing your thoughts and expertise on private markets. Thanks to our sponsor, Ultimus Fund Solutions, for making this episode possible. https://lnkd.in/eBtyw6Fm

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Check out our mention in Venture Capital Journal's latest article on VC secondaries! Larry gives his perspective on the benefits of secondaries: “It’s not determined by a process. It’s determined by your process." Secondaries can provide investors with the flexibility to shape their investment decisions on their own terms. 📰 Read the full article below: 

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Last week Peak Energy announced its $55M oversubscribed series A, which Xora Innovation led, joined by lead seed investor Eclipse (Greg Reichow, Ryan Gibson), as well as TDK Ventures (Anil Achyuta), TechEnergy Ventures (Alejandro Solé), Doral Energy-Tech Ventures (Roee Furman), Lachy Groom, and Tishman Speyer (David Aron). Special thanks to 🌱🤝🌍 Anil Achyuta for the original introduction.   Peak is commercializing a new standard in grid-scale energy storage systems based on sodium-ion batteries. Peak’s market is benefiting from the twin tailwinds of renewables and AI, and the company has just the right founding team to scale at "ludicrous speed".   Landon Mossburg, Co-Founder and CEO, is one of the most phenomenal team builders we have had the privilege of backing. He brings deep experience in building battery gigafactories from his prior role as Chief Automation Officer of Northvolt, where he didn’t shy away from sleeping on factory floors for months in Northern Europe.   We have a special place in our hearts for entrepreneurs who have the grit to spend 10 years+ building deep tech startups from the foundational stage to commercialization. Cameron Dales, Co-Founder, President and Chief Commercial Officer, has done it not only once, but twice, at Symyx Technologies and Enovix (current market cap $2.65B).   Liam O'Connor O’Connor, Co-Founder and COO, previously scaled major portions of Tesla’s and Apple’s supply chains, flying over 500,000 miles a year when required. Liam has a deep understanding of what it takes to build resilient supply chains in hypergrowth mode, having previously scaled from <$5B to $40B in spend over a matter of a few years.   The climate tech sector is in need of more entrepreneurs who truly understand what building on a massive industrial scale means. We couldn’t be more excited that Landon, Cam and Liam have decided to apply their talents to enabling grid-scale energy storage.

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I've participated in 100+ conversations with venture fund LPs this year. The most frequently discussed topics include: Team dynamics Sourcing differentiation Decision-making and selection process Portfolio support Sector thesis Track record Model and deployment strategy Network Long-term vision Timing (why now) References Fund infrastructure and reporting

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Too many small and mid-sized businesses struggle with capital constraints out of fear and misunderstanding. Sourcing the capital required to remove those constraints is key to unlocking the value creation potential of these companies. https://lnkd.in/gRYTKEmN #smallbusiness #businesstransformation

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