The Foundations of a Lasting Partnership

This chapter explores the 20-year partnership between the founders of Great Oaks, emphasizing their initial college meeting and the unique strengths each brings to the collaboration. It highlights not only their professional synergy but also their deep personal bond that transcends mere business interactions.

Transcript

chevron_right

Play full episode

chevron_right

Transcript

Episode notes

Today's guest is Neil Mehta, founder of Greenoaks Capital. In 2012, aged 27, Neil left D.E. Shaw to start Greenoaks with his friend Benny Peretz. One of their first investments was in Coupang, a South Korean e-commerce company led by founder Bom Kim. Neil was so convinced of Coupang's potential that he invested 40% of their initial $50 million fund into the company—a bet that eventually returned about $8 billion.

Over its first 13 years, Greenoaks has backed legendary companies like Figma, Wiz, Carvana, Stripe, Discord, Rippling, and Toast—generating over $13 billion in gross profits with a 33% net IRR. Henry Kravis, one of Neil's early investors, describes him as "extremely disciplined" with "exceptional timing" who has "gone against the tide many times."

Greenoaks operates with remarkable concentration: just 55 core companies across nearly $15 billion in assets, managed by only nine investment professionals. Their approach reflects their singular pursuit: finding companies that will become a meaningful part of the S&P 500.

In our wide-ranging conversation, Neil shares this mission along with his framework for identifying exceptional founders, his concept of "jaw-dropping customer experiences," and how his grandfather's gun shop in India shaped his appreciation for builders of all kinds.

Please enjoy my excellent conversation with Neil Mehta.

Neil Mehta's Profile in Colossus Review.

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

-----

This episode is brought to you by Ramp. Ramp’s mission is to help companies manage their spend in a way that reduces expenses and frees up time for teams to work on more valuable projects. Go to Ramp.com/invest to sign up for free and get a $250 welcome bonus.

–

This episode is brought to you by Ridgeline. Ridgeline has built a complete, real-time, modern operating system for investment managers. It handles trading, portfolio management, compliance, customer reporting, and much more through an all-in-one real-time cloud platform. Head to ridgelineapps.com to learn more about the platform.

–

This episode is brought to you by AlphaSense. AlphaSense has completely transformed the research process with cutting-edge AI technology and a vast collection of top-tier, reliable business content. Invest Like the Best listeners can get a free trial now at Alpha-Sense.com/Invest and experience firsthand how AlphaSense and Tegus help you make smarter decisions faster.

-----

Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com).

Show Notes:

(00:00:00) Welcome to Invest Like the Best

(00:06:32) Connecting Craftsmanship to Career

(00:07:45) The Concept of Jaw Dropping Customer Experience (JDCE)

(00:09:48) Building a Successful Business: The Coupang Case Study

(00:17:26) The Importance of Founders & Business Models

(00:30:05) Greenoaks' Unique Approach to Venture Capital

(00:37:54) A Memorable Encounter with Henry Kravis

(00:40:52) Early Career and Lessons from Hong Kong

(00:44:53) The Partnership with Benny