Emerging Forward Podcast

Adi
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Business
  • Weekly

How capital truly flows for investors and founders bridging emerging markets including Europe, MEA and APAC. emergingforward.substack.com

  1. 1d ago

    Performance Was Never the Question

    Episode: Performance Was Never the Question Itzel Moncada (Colibrí Strategies and Colibrí Institute) joins to dig into emerging-manager performance, the LP view of risk, the data gaps in private markets, open benchmarks, cross-border fund strategies, and what venture ecosystems outside the US should, and shouldn't copy. Guest bio Itzel Moncada is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Colibrí Strategies, a venture capital advisory firm focused on providing institutional allocators and venture managers with research-driven guidance on risk, structure, and governance. With a background in capital markets and a passion for supporting emerging managers, Itzel's work bridges capital, culture, and community to create enduring pathways of opportunity. Timestamps ·        00:00 — Welcome and introduction to Itzel Moncada ·        00:34 — The question about capital allocation that led Itzel into research ·        02:07 — 2024: co-investors running out of money at the same time, and founders taking the hit ·        03:25 — Testing assumptions: Colibrí Institute's first white paper on emerging-manager performance ·        05:19 — LP feedback: risk, career risk, and "performance was never the question" ·        06:22 — White paper two: emerging managers and risk efficiency ·        07:01 — Why venture data is so hard to get ·        09:08 — Open access: why Colibrí made its data public ·        09:30 — Defining "emerging": Funds I–III, maturity, and GP demographics ·        11:06 — Constraints, scrappiness, and track record ·        12:50 — How LPs source and screen emerging managers ·        15:51 — Portfolio construction and the myth of "safe" large funds ·        17:16 — Building a firm, not a fund (Kauffman Fellows' Zero to Four) ·        19:26 — What emerging managers should copy from established firms ·        20:34 — Is there an information curtain? Benchmarks that skew towards large funds ·        22:05 — How a $25M fund should compare itself to peers ·        23:13 — The 2026 paradoxes: concentration, new funds, smaller checks ·        24:26 — Cross-border: what US research should and shouldn't carry over ·        28:16 — Local strengths: Mexico, Argentina, and building on existing talent ·        31:07 — Why international GPs get screened out: legal structure and fund size ·        32:28 — Dormancy, longer fundraising cycles, and the anchor problem ·        35:11 — AI, fund infrastructure, and why there's hope ·        36:38 — Tacos, tapas, and the Emerging Forward food map ·        37:34 — Wrap-up Links mentioned ·        Colibrí Institute Benchmark — https://www.colibri.institute/benchmark ·        Colibrí Institute Database — https://www.colibri.institute/database ·        Kauffman Fellows, Zero to Four — https://www.kauffmanfellows.org/zero-to-four ·        Itzel Moncada on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/itzelmoncada ·        Itzel's Substack newsletter — https://itzelmoncadavc.substack.com/ ·        Itzel's Substack note — https://substack.com/@itzelmoncadavc/note/c-333714479 ·        Emerging Forward on Spotify — https://open.spotify.com/show/6d7XPiIx4mekiPrgT03w5v ·        Emerging Forward on Apple Podcasts — https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/emerging-forward-podcast/id1893666713 ·        Emerging Forward Substack — https://emergingforward.substack.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

  2. Oct 28

    Europe Needs Liquidity. Not Every Asset Will Find a Buyer.

    Rando Rannus, General Partner at Siena Secondary Fund, joins Adi Bhatnagar to explore Europe’s venture liquidity bottleneck and the practical decisions behind secondary transactions. From Siena’s early Bolt transaction to its market-mapping process, Rando explains how the team assesses opportunities, why management relationships matter without board representation, and why a deep discount does not automatically make a good investment. The conversation also explores how liquidity can fund angel investments, new startups, and the personal commitments of emerging fund managers.Siena Secondary Fund - https://siena.ee/ Rando Rannus on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/randorannus/ Rando’s Siena profile - https://siena.ee/rando-rannus - Emerging Forward on Substack - https://emergingforward.substack.com Emerging Forward on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6d7XPiIx4mekiPrgT03w5v Emerging Forward on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/emerging-forward-podcast/id1893666713 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    Europe Needs Liquidity. Not Every Asset Will Find a Buyer.

  3. Jul 28

    What Science-First GPs Really Underwrite with Marie Lepske

    Episode : What Science-First GPs Really Underwrite with Marie Lepske ; LP communication, technical diligence, fund design, and the sectors the market misprices Timestamps : 00:00 – Intro + Marie’s background 01:28 – Fund thesis + sourcing engine 05:02 –  Technical diligence + deep-tech underwriting 11:40 - Fund construction + IC discipline 22:08 – LP communication + cross-border capital map 31:20 - Mispriced sectors + LP diligence questions + close About Marie : Marie Lepske is a General Partner at Constructor Capital. Over her career, Marie has led over $50M in early-stage investments into 20+ deep-tech startups founded by scientists from Oxford, Harvard, and MIT, including leading companies in quantum computing and advanced technologies. With a background in applied mathematics and physics, and experience ranging from startup co-founder to chief of staff of a global technology group, she brings a rare perspective at the intersection of science, venture capital, and company building. Marie specializes in turning academic research into globally scalable businesses.Links: Marie Lepske - https://cy.linkedin.com/in/marie-lepske Constructor Capital - https://constructor.capital/ Emerging Forward Substack: https://emergingforward.substack.com Emerging Forward Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6d7XPiIx4mekiPrgT03w5v Emerging Forward Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/emerging-forward-podcast/id1893666713 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    What Science-First GPs Really Underwrite with Marie Lepske

  4. Jun 16

    Building Pre-Seed Infrastructure in CEE

    Episode 11 – Building Pre-Seed Infrastructure in CEE (with Petr Šíma, DEPO Ventures) Prague, Czechia 00:00 – Intro & setup Welcome to Emerging Forward and introduction to Episode 11. Who is Petr Šíma and what DEPO Ventures does at pre‑seed across CEE and Baltics. 01:00 – Europe’s fragmented early‑stage market Why Europe has “many problems,” but early‑stage financing is the one Petr is trying to fix. Local angels, local funds, and the structural fragmentation across regions. 01:35 – Building a pan‑CEE pre‑seed platform 60 investments in six years; moving from angel funds to a VC fund while staying at the first round. Why there are still very few groups investing across the region at this stage. 02:15 – “Helping founders by helping investors” The problem of occasional angels, family offices and “equational investors.” Why investing is a professional job, and how bad early‑stage investing harms founders. 04:00 – Educating angels and emerging investors Petr’s work in teaching angels and investors to join the right groups, networks and co‑investors. Why talking to startups as a fund manager is often clearer than as a loose group of angels. 10:00 – Fund + angel network mechanics (DEPO model) How DEPO combines an institutional fund with an angel network. Decision‑making, co‑investment rules and why co‑investors’ specific knowledge matters. 26:50 – Co‑investors and going beyond your home market Why “early‑stage investments are always cooperative.” Using co‑investors to invest in countries where DEPO is not fully present, and what each party brings beyond money. 28:00 – US PowerPoint vs European deep tech Petr’s comparison of the typical US deal (“everything looks amazing… just PowerPoint”) vs. deep‑tech in Europe (“terrible presentation, amazing substance”). Why pre‑seed investors in European deep tech can’t be superficial and must be willing to go deep. 28:45 – Where the next generation of investors will come from Operators and exited founders as Europe’s future “real business angels.” Nordics/Baltics vs traditional economies like Germany and Czechia; who believes in startups as an asset class. 29:30 – LP risk appetite and resilient Europe Traditional European LPs’ risk aversion vs American LPs’ appetite for European resilience plays. Why it’s “crazy” to see a huge European resilience opportunity where ~70% of LPs are American. 30:30 – Light closing: food & global tastes A quick detour into Italian and Thai food as Petr’s comfort go‑tos. 31:10 – Closing thoughts: a once‑in‑a‑generation opportunity Petr’s message that European resilience is a huge, time‑bound opportunity. Final encouragement to listeners to engage with this moment. About Petr Sima:Partner of DEPO Ventures, pre‑seed fund investing in European tech startups building resilient Europe. Board member of European Business Angel Network. Links: DEPO Ventures website - https://depoventures.cz/ Petr’s LinkedIn profile - https://cz.linkedin.com/in/petr-sima-a294681 EBAN (European Business Angels Network) - https://www.eban.org/ Episode 10 (last week’s exits‑focused episode) - https://emergingforward.substack.com/p/cee-liquidity-lab-viktor-manev-ipo-beginning This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    Building Pre-Seed Infrastructure in CEE

  5. Jun 10

    CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits

    CEE as a Liquidity Lab: Why the IPO Isn’t the Exit Short episode intro: After a short break, Emerging Forward returns with Episode 10, a deep dive into what real liquidity looks like in ecosystems that never had enough growth capital in the first place. I’m joined by Viktor Manev, Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at IMPETUS Capital, to explore CEE as a “liquidity lab”: using small, disciplined IPOs as funding rounds rather than ceremonial exits, building quality of revenue and earnings before chasing mark‑ups, and asking harder questions about continuation funds, secondaries and real portfolio value. What we cover Why Series B barely exists in much of CEE – and what founders actually do when they hit the growth cliff. The idea of an IPO as a beginning, not an end – and how that changes founder, LP and exchange behaviour. CEE small IPOs as a missing rung in the funding ladder, underwritten by local wealth, AMs, and pensions rather than mega‑banks. Viktor’s “quality of revenue → earnings → valuation → liquidity” ladder – and why clever liquidity engineering can’t fix weak fundamentals. The “conductor” role IMPETUS plays in small IPOs: coordinating banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers so the whole “symphony” works. How continuation funds and secondaries solve liquidity for GPs/LPs but may not answer the question “is there real value in this portfolio?”. What LPs and emerging managers are still missing about exits and time horizons in CEE and similar markets. A fun closing detour into Viktor’s agnostic travel‑food philosophy – always eat where the locals eat, whether it’s gondoliers in Venice or a canteen in Amman. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro and who Viktor is. IPOs as a beginning, not an end. 05:00 – How “IPO = exit” became dogma – and why IMPETUS is going back to an older model where public markets fund growth. 10:30 – Big vs small IPOs: 4% of deals get 100x the media coverage; the hidden world of sub‑€25m listings. 13:00 – Acting as a “conductor” for €10–20m IPOs: aligning banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers to create real liquidity. 16:00 – The niche: profitable, 40–50% growth companies that are “too boring” for VC but perfect for public funding. 22:00 – Shelly Group: from “nobody will buy us for €10m” to €1.2B SDAX company and what that journey actually looked like. 32:00 – Continuation funds, secondaries and the hard question: is there real realizable value behind the marks? 40:30 – What LPs and emerging managers still miss about liquidity in CEE and similar markets – and why many managers will fail. 41:30 – Viktor’s agnostic approach to food when he travels – and why he always asks what the locals actually eat. About Viktor Manev Viktor Manev is Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at IMPETUS Capital, a private equity firm focused on early‑growth and scale‑up companies in Central and Eastern Europe. He previously served as chief financier of Bulgaria’s Center for Mass Privatization, overseeing the institutional financing of more than 1,000 enterprises and participating in the privatization of roughly 18% of state‑owned assets. Since 1994, Viktor has been involved in structuring corporate‑finance and M&A deals with an aggregate value of over €900m, and has been engaged in the listing process of more than 1,100 companies as a public official, adviser and institutional investor. He holds a BS in Finance from West Virginia Wesleyan College and completed comparative studies at the University of Oxford, and sits on several boards as a non‑executive director. Links & references : 📝 Viktor’s thoughts – “The IPO as a Beginning, Not an End: Rethinking Capital Formation in Central & Eastern Europe” (0100 Conferences). 🌐 IMPETUS Capital – firm website: https://www.impetus.capital/ 🔗 Viktor’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/viktormanev This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits

  6. May 12

    Power Laws at SEA Scale: Why 50–250M Exits Matter More Than Unicorns

    In this episode of Emerging Forward, I sit down with Kevin Brockland, CFA, Founder & Managing Partner of Indelible Ventures, a seed-stage fund focused on Southeast Asia’s B2B ecosystem. We unpack what power-law investing actually looks like in a nascent region, why 50–250M exits matter more than unicorns right now, and how emerging managers and founders should recalibrate their mental models. We cover: Why Southeast Asia is still in an extended funding winter – and why each market (Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore) has its own funding “personality”. The “single-source funding” trap created by government money, CVCs, or family groups dominating early capital – and what that does to the early-stage pipeline. How Kevin designs Indelible’s fund model around realistic 50–250M exits – and why power law still holds even when the numbers are smaller than in the US. Failure rates as a structural fact of life, and where value-add can and can’t move the needle. What this all means for emerging managers trying to raise their first fund in SEA or comparable markets. A grounded discussion of programs like VC Lab: how they help compress the emerging-manager learning curve without replacing the need for deep local context. If you’re an LP, GP, or founder operating between Europe, Southeast Asia, and other emerging markets, this episode offers a candid look at how to think about power-law returns at the scale your ecosystem actually operates in.Episode links Indelible Ventures - https://indelible.vc/ Kevin on LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/kbrockland Emerging Forward newsletter – https://emergingforward.substack.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    Power Laws at SEA Scale: Why 50–250M Exits Matter More Than Unicorns

  7. Apr 20

    Rebuilding Early-Stage Capital in Southeast Asia: An Insider Map with Ankit Upadhyay from A2D Ventures

    Rebuilding Early-Stage Capital in Southeast Asia In this episode, Adi speaks with Ankit Upadhyay, Founder & GP of A2D Ventures and Senior Advisor at McKinsey, about how early-stage capital in Southeast Asia is being rebuilt in 2026.They cover the collapse of earlier early-stage funds, the rise of accelerators, government grants, and angel syndicates, sector opportunities from fintech to food innovation, and why success in SEA may look more like 1,500 profitable 100–500m companies than a wave of unicorn IPOs. - Why 2026 looks “better but different” than 2025 for SEA founders valuations stabilising and resilient teams emerging from a capital-scarce cycle. - How early-stage VC pulled back after fund II struggles, and why CVCs in Thailand and the region moved up to Series B+. - The four realistic fundraising routes for SEA founders today: accelerators, government grants/equity schemes, angel syndicates/family offices, and legacy personal networks. - Why A2D Ventures decided to build a productised angel platform: educating angels, providing regulated SPVs out of Singapore, and giving global investors safe access to local deals. - Sector signals: fintech as infrastructure, consumer & health tech for 700m people, food innovation, and applied deep tech in materials, construction, and biotech. - Rethinking exits in SEA: fewer IPOs, more local and regional M&A, and why “many 100–500m companies” may be a better success metric than chasing unicorn counts. Timestamps 0:00 - Why 2026 looks different for SEA founders 4:00 - What broke in early-stage venture (and why fund II never came) 10:15 - The previous era of startups - four early-stage routes: accelerators, government, angels, legacy networks 11:00 - Building A2D: turning loosely organised angels into a productized platform 15:00 - Cross-regional capital Flow 21:00 - Fintech, consumer, food, and deep tech opportunities with a SEA lens 25:00 – Exits, recalibrating success, and what investors should really expect This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    Rebuilding Early-Stage Capital in Southeast Asia: An Insider Map with Ankit Upadhyay from A2D Ventures

  8. Apr 14

    Beyond Earth, Beyond Hype: Alexandra Vidyuk on Frontier Tech That Actually Works

    In this episode of Emerging Forward, I’m joined by Alexandra Vidyuk, CEO and Founding Partner at Beyond Earth Ventures, for a conversation on how deep tech really gets funded and scaled across global markets. We explore what physics teaches us about venture judgment, how a healthy deep-tech cap table is actually built, why geography is often overrated as an investment lens, and where the next generation of frontier companies may emerge. We cover: - Why a physics background changes how you evaluate frontier companies. - How deep-tech funding stacks combine grants, VC, specialists, and strategics. - Why Europe’s research strength still struggles to convert into aggressive venture outcomes. - How valuation gaps between Europe, Asia, and the US can create real alpha. - Why dual-use space, energy, materials, compute, and robotics remain underpriced but highly selective. - What LPs should really worry about: scientific, engineering, team, and geopolitical risk. Guest links: Beyond Earth Ventures: Website | LinkedIn Alexandra Vidyuk - LinkedIn Episode highlights: 03:00 - First-principles investing and the bottleneck map. 06:40 - Capital stacks, grants, and what deep-tech funding really looks like. 18:30 - Why geography is not the thesis. 29:30 - The next frontier themes worth watching. 34:00 - The real risk stack in deep tech Emerging Forward : Newsletter | Spotify This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com

    Beyond Earth, Beyond Hype: Alexandra Vidyuk on Frontier Tech That Actually Works
See All (15)

About

How capital truly flows for investors and founders bridging emerging markets including Europe, MEA and APAC. emergingforward.substack.com

Information