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Thesis & Presentation

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Ask about how to build a fund Thesis and presentation, including brainstorming tactics, customer development, necessary slides, and templates. The model includes program materials, blog posts, and curricula from the VC Lab accelerator.
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Thesis & Presentation

Can my first fund target both seed stage and pre seed stage

In the curriculum and talks, it was mentioned to target one stage only for first fund. However, when I ask the AI, it tells me that one can target both seed/pre-seed in first fund. Which advice should we follow? Also, upon looking at one of the websites of your alums, Geek Ventures, it seems they target both seed and pre seed. 
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Do High Networth individuals know the term THESIS well enough?

I've noticed some people don't know the term THESIS. What is the best approach regarding this? Always explain upfront or just wait for people to mention they don't understand?
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Where can I find an example of a VC Prospectus?

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Where in DecileHub is our firm's rating and feedback for thesis and deck review?

Where in DecileHub can I find my Thesis Review and Deck Review ratings and feedback? 
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Cedar Tree Capital is launching a $10M venture fund to invest in the top pre-IPO companies by helping employees exercise their deep in the money options in exchange for a percentage of the shares upon an exit event, leveraging the partners' track record of 55.5% realized net IRR.

Revised thesis, pls provide feedback :) Thanks! 
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Namaste ! Request you to please review my thesis and share your feedback. Gratitude

ANANTA is launching a $5 MM seed fund in India to back Healthcare & Life Sciences companies, leveraging my experience of mentoring 20 startups, collectively raising $10 MM, and achieving 20% month-on-month growth.
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CREDX Ventures - Thesis Feedback | Cohort 15

CREDX Ventures MAFIA Fund 1 is launching a $3 MM seed venture fund in Delaware, USA to back underdogs & visionary founders in the US, Canada & India focusing on impactful tech startups with operator experience in building Fintech and D2C companies.
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Hi. I will appreciate your feedback on my fund´s thesis

Danta Fund is raising a USD$2MM venture fund in Costa Rica to back pre-seed agri-tech startups in Latam, leveraging my network of 50 VCs to co-invest and 30 large U.S. corporations for exit opportunities 
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While presenting fund thesis - what has been the most effective stats to show as secret sauce I.e. IRR, MOIC , TVPI

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https://decilegroup.com/base/16-thesis-and-presentation/2367

Can you help refine this thesis: "Hacer Partners is launching a $2.5m venture studio/accelerator fund in Chicago, USA to back working mom's start-up founders in North America leveraging on the partner's 15 year experience as a working mum operating a $150 million aum start-up studio."
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https://decilegroup.com/base/16-thesis-and-presentation/2358

Can you provide an example of a one-pager fund overview that I can provide a connector?
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Should I mention my accelerator program in my thesis?

We run a co-founder matching program which is one of our main sources of dealflow. Should I find a way to insert it in my thesis? 
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Attribution on corporate data covered by confidentiality

As a new fund manager with experience in steering several million of corporate IT spend in the niche I am going to invest, how can I show attribution? Majority of the information (project details, financial info) are covered by confidentiality agreement and cannot be directly shared.  Any suggestion on at which level I can share quantitative information, acceding to your previous experiences?
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What slides are needed in a fund presentation?

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Are there any good examples of government-backed VC's? Working on a $100m fund and would love to see how their thesis/fund is presented, where fund-raising is not the challenge, but deal-sourcing and selection may be.

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Team slide for solo GPs

For the purposes of presentation completion for the upcoming review, do you expect solo GPs to have confirmed non-GP team members on the Team slide or is it sufficient to have one individual, the GP, on the Team slide?
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Fund Presentation - Clarification on Value Add Slide

What should distinguish the Value Add Slide from the Thesis Slide and the Track Record Slide, if the Value Add is already part of both the Thesis and the Track Record ?
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Are there any recent studies done around venture studio funds?

Hello everyone,  Are there any expert studies published recently around sectoral trends, future prospects and potential impact of the venture studio integrated venture capital model? Something that captures emerging market trends, the impact of this model to foster innovation, and maximizes value creation for both the portfolio companies and the fund's limited partners. Thanks! Ashwin
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Conflict on thesis with LPs

What should I do if an LP encourages an investment which doesn't align with the investment thesis of the fund?
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Fund manager base

How important is it for fund managers to be located or based in the target geography of the investments?
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location of the VC fund as per VC Lab template - what if the team is distributed?

• Question to VC Lab faculty and all: what if the GP team (3 partners) are residing in the following places: one in San-Francisco, the second in London, the third in Miami. Just to remind everyone, the template thesis as per VC Lab model assumes in the Country/City section that the whole GP team lives in one single location and does not seem to encompass the possibility of a distributed team of GPs and investment managers. This is how is is described in the curriculum article (https://govclab.com/2021/09/15/venture-capital-investment-thesis) [Country / City] This is the city or country where the New Managers are living or plan to live while running the fund. Now, most funds have a life of at least 10 years, so make sure to pick a city or country where you and your fellow New Managers plan to be for some time. In addition, if you are living in a large country, then it is better to specify a city or region. “East Coast” is better than the United States.
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How small a niche would be exciting for LPs?

Considering our extensive experience and connections in the blockchain industry, we are currently exploring the idea of identifying a specific metric to prioritize. In this regard, we are contemplating the potential of a particular niche. Given our background in the media sector, we possess a network, a proven track record, and reputable credentials, and have successfully nurtured and accelerated a media company. Moreover, we possess financial and user data that can be verified. Therefore, we are contemplating whether concentrating on investing in crypto media startups is too limited in scope for a fund.
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What is the difference between pre seed and seed phase

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Which region as fund jurisdiction?

Most Blockchain companies are domiciled in offshore jurisdictions. Do we choose jurisdiction, the place where the founders are living (digital nomads), or the country of origin as the place the fund is being launched for the thesis?
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Are projected returns and liquidity necessary to include in our slides?

Are projected returns and liquidity necessary to include in our slides?
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Which Companies to Include in Investor Deck: Higher Multiple or Value Added Ones?

If we have some companies that are doing well but we are not super active while we have added much more support to other firms who are doing well but did not have the same valuation progression, is it advisable to include the higher multiple or the value added ones in our Investor Deck?
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What is a suitable term for investing in sex education, digital health, psychological health, gadgets, and dating?

What is a good term to use for the areas we want to invest in, which include sex education, digital health, psychological health, gadgets, and dating?
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What are your thoughts on the strategy of extreme diversification with investments?

What are your thoughts on the strategy of extreme diversification with investments?
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Should I Highlight My VP's Startup Success or Their Assistance in a Co-founder's $40 MM Series B?

Should I leverage one of mine VP success in their startups or helping others? For example a co-founder's $40 MM series B
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Should I Include My Fashion Tech Exits in My Food Tech Fund Portfolio?

Confusion point: I have two exits but it's in fashion tech not food tech which is what I'm current building foodtech fund. Do I list my portfolio exits or do I leave it out for foodtech?
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1. Can Funds Raised Cover Legal and Formation Costs Outside the 2% Management Fee?2. What's the Ideal Allocation Distribution for Pre-Seed Investments with 80% Failure, 10% 1x Return, and 10% 25x Return?

Two quick questions 1. Are we able to use funds raised to pay for lawyers fund formation costs etc as a separate cost not associated with the 2% management fee? 2. What is the right distribution for our allocation/fund economics slides i.e. 80% will fail 10% will return 1x and another 10% giving us a 25x (all preseed investments)?
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Is it Appropriate to Use Fun Nicknames for Team Members in a Professional Presentation?

Guys on the Team slide is it ok to use “fun tone” giving members nicknames e.g. “truffle hunter” to who’s in charge of sourcing deals and “booster” to the one in charge of supporting companies and adding value or is it un-professional and you advise against?
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Is a 5-10 MM Fund Size Suitable for Co-Investing 10-15% in Series A Rounds with 50-100 MM Funds?

In my Investment Thesis the typical target is to invest in A round not as a lead but rather as a side investor with a value around 10-15% of the entire round. Am I interpreting the table correctly by giving the fund a size of 5-10 MM (which corresponds exactly to my experience and commitment as a team) that co-invests with Series A funds of 50-100 MM?
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Does Accelerator Program Experience Matter to LPs for Founders with 3X Growth in Startups?

Keeps coming up that founder experience doesn't matter investor experience does. My experience is in running accelerator programs generating applications picking startups to participate connecting them helping them grow. Of 1500+ applications generated picked 100 and they've gone 3X so far in <5 years. Does this matter to LPs?
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Do We Need to Disclose Fund Advisors' Carry Percentage in Pitch Decks for Prospective LPs?

*-Disclose the carry percentage of Advisors-* Hello I have three web3 entrepreneurs who are about to say OK to join my fund advisory board. Do we need to disclose in the fund pitchdeck we send to prospective LPs the fund advisors' carry percentage?
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Should I Update My Investment Thesis to Include a Second Country and Target Both Angel and Pre-Seed Stages?

I came up with some questions based on the week's deliverables: 1) my ideal deal flow includes companies from both the US and overseas. Should I update the thesis and a second country that I know well since this could be in line with my investment strategy? 2) Is it ok to target both angel and pre-seed at the same time or do we have to focus on a particular stage?
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What Defines Network Size: LinkedIn, Personal Contacts, or Email Contacts?

I know you like to see specifics with the thesis. What defines a network size? Is it LinkedIn connections? Personal contacts? Email contacts? I see people saying things like ’leveraging our network of 600+ connections”. Curious what encompasses that number? Thanks!
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Clarification on Returns Slide: Are These the Anticipated Portfolio Outcomes?

I have doubts with the analysis and content for the 'Returns slide'... do you mean the different type of returns we anticipate... something like 1/4 of the portfolio we will lose everything 1/4 we will lose 30% 1/4 we will make 2X and the other 1/4 will make 20X???? I know it should be more elaborate but is this what you mean?
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Should VC Deck Target 3x or 5x Returns and Reference Total or Net AUMs for 30% Gross IRR over 7 Years?

Guys for the VC deck when declaring target returns shall we go for 3x or 5x? Also shall this refer to total AUMs or AUMs net of fees? 30% gross IRR over 7 years would lead to a gross multiple of 6x which net of 20% management fees would result in 5x. Sounds about right to me no?
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Should We Seek Advice from Potential LPs and Connectors or Rely on Neutral Confidants for Thesis Testing?

When it comes to testing our thesis and asking for advice from confidants would you recommend these be people who are purely providing advice? Or could this be a way of engaging early on people who we think could either be LPs or Connectors and making them feel a part of the process?
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Are 30-Minute Zoom Meetings Ideal for Feedback, Investment Pitches, and LP Pitches for Startups?

Setting up the various zoom meetings. Do you recommend each of these to be 30 min? - feedback investment pitches LP pitches. Also are investment pitches for startups pitching to us? I may re-name that to be more clear.
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What is the Market Practice for Reporting IRR: Separate or Blended for Partial Exits from the Same Investment?

track record IRR question: I had two partial exits from one investment one in 2020 the other in 2021 should I report on IRR for each partial exit or report a blended IRR since it refers to the same portfolio company? What would be the market practice?
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Do Global Design Partners Backing Our Fund Benefit Us? Should We Include It in Our Thesis?

Our fund is backed by our global design partners (corporates). Does that work for or against us? Should we mention it in our thesis or leave it out?
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Can Combining Real Estate Investment with VC Management Strategy Fit Within the VC Lab Framework?

Feedback from investors is: They would love to BUY real estate and give it in exchange for equity with us as managers of the house and deal flow. They want the risks of Real Estate and the returns of VCs. This is VERY fine for us and our vision. We will leverage our network of 2000 past members to source startups internationally and we have 5 partners ready to open locations outside of US. Thoughts? If we go this route can we stil “fit” in the frame of VC lab and if so how?
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Is Startup Traction a Valid Thesis Metric and Which Datasets Best Showcase Accelerator Program Success?

Are startups traction a viable metrics to add to the thesis? If yes what datasets are best to show? They are startups that I supported through accelerator programs.
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Do Fund Managers Typically Include Gross or Net Returns in Returns and Liquidity Slides?

For returns and liquidity slides do fund managers usually include gross returns (after fees) or Net returns (after fees and 20% carry)?
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Should Venture Partners Be Included in the Team Slide of Initial Presentations Alongside General Partners?

Should we also include venture partners in the team slide for the initial presentation or just the general partner/s?
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Is Referencing a $1bn+ M&A Transaction Book Executed by a Venture Partner Beneficial in a Thesis?

If a venture partner has executed a large M &A transaction book ($1bn+) is that useful to reference in the thesis? Adeo Mike
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Should I Include My Successful Angel Investments in My Thesis?

Would you recommend mentioning my previous angel investments in the thesis? As an example: I have 10 angel investments and two of them turned to be unicorns.
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What are the Impacts of Missed Opportunities on Dealflow for Unlaunched Funds?

*-missed opportunities-* I was advised by a VC (raising 4th fund) to put a slide with 2-3 names of companies on-thesis we had an allocation to but could not eventually invest in because the fund wasn't launched in order to show dealflow. What do you think?
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