E52: StepStone's Hunter Somerville on How to Scale LP Capital
Mar 21, 2024
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The podcast delves into StepStone's unique approach to venture capital, their transition to leading deals, and their full life cycle investing. They discuss accessing companies in the secondary market, identifying potential in emerging managers, and StepStone's value-add to funds and companies. The conversation also explores the qualities and mindset essential for success in business, emphasizing dedication, relationship-building, and adding value to portfolio companies.
StepStone emphasizes direct fund investing and partnerships with founders for fund performance evaluation.
Competing with big names requires collaborative strategies and offering value beyond funding.
StepStone evaluates emerging managers through ownership positions and proactive relationship building.
Deep dives
Investing Strategy and Partnerships
Direct investing involves board observation and working closely with GPs to evaluate fund performance, emphasizing partnerships with founders, assistance in recruitment, and customer introductions. Private equity trends in 2024 focus on consolidating companies to reach $200 million in revenue, with multi-stage funds expanding to cover earlier and later stages.
Professional Journey and Firm Evolution
The speaker's journey from an uncertain career path to partnering with Green Spring and Stepstone highlighted the importance of strong relationships and a diverse asset class strategy. Stepstone's venture growth group emphasizes direct fund and secondary investing, collaboratively led by the same team to enhance performance across all areas.
Competition and Differentiation in Investing
Competing against established names like Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia involves collaborative approaches with GPs, seeking scenarios where GPs are excited to co-lead or invest significantly, focusing on being a trusted lead and strategic investor. The shift from passive co-investing to leading rounds was driven by the need to establish a credible brand and offer significant value beyond funding.
Integrity, Differentiated Strategies, and Secondary Sales
Stepstone's commitment to integrity extends to fund inception investments, hands-on partner engagement, and strategic portfolio impact. By adopting a full-lifecycle provider approach, Stepstone remains flexible on ownership percentages and employs diverse entry methods, including strip sales, to optimize asset acquisition and maintain liquidity.
Manager Evaluation and LP Relationships
Evaluating emerging managers involves assessing ownership positions, founder support, and investment indicators to select promising partners for LPs. The emphasis on hands-on relationship building, intense diligence, and a proactive strategy informs Stepstone's approach to fostering valuable connections and investing wisely across different fund stages.
Challenges and Market Outlook
The current venture capital landscape presents fundraising challenges due to overallocation, necessitating new managers to prove profitability and unit economics. Amidst a shift towards profitability-focused operations, the market demands innovative strategies to navigate cyclical trends and sustain high-value returns. Adapting to evolving investor preferences and economic climates remains crucial for long-term success.
Hunter Somerville sits down with David Weisburd to discuss StepStone's unique approach to venture capital, their transition to leading deals, and their full life cycle approach to investing. They delve into accessing companies in the secondary market, identifying potential in emerging managers, and StepStone's value-add to funds and companies.
(0:00) Episode Preview
(1:52) The strategy behind StepStone's diverse approach to venture
(5:13) The transition from passive co-investing to leading
(8:26) The strategy of being a full life cycle investor
(10:13) Different ways to access companies in the secondary market
(15:10) What to look for in emerging managers
(19:20) Sponsor: Deel
(21:36) StepStone's value-add
(23:47) Current market trends
(25:02) Interview wrap-up: David Weisburd and Hunter Somerville discuss StepStone
(25:38) 10X Capital Podcast Newsletter
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