Evolving Ventures: From Angel to Impact

Taavet Hinrikus is a Partner at Plural, the early-stage fund that backs the most ambitious founders on a mission to change the world through technology. He co-founded Wise in 2010, where he was CEO and later Chairman, which went public in the first-ever direct listing in Europe in 2021. Prior to that, Taavet was Skype’s Director of Strategy until 2008, having joined as its first employee. He’s been an active investor for more than a decade,with personal investments in the likes of Bolt and Synthesia.

In Today’s Show We Discuss:

04:08 VCs are Spreadsheet Monkeys

05:41 Why Banker European VCs Suck More Than The Others

11:20 Why Serial Entrepreneurs Are Better

14:48 Why the 2:20 Fee and Carry Model in VC is Broken

18:01 What are the Biggest Ways VC Investment Decision-Making is Broken

28:26 Why is it BS when VC Firms Need Every Partner to Meet the Founder

31:24 When and Why Will Founders Realise Multi-Stage Firms are Bad Early Investors

34:35 Why Does Europe Need to Build it’s Own Tech Now More Than Ever

37:24 Will Putin Invade More European Countries

39:29 What are the Dangers of Having US Made Tech in Europe

47:12 How Does the Change in Relationship Between the US and Europe Impact How We Build Our Tech Ecosystem?

52:36 Quick Fire Questions and Reflections