The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: Scaling from a $4M Angel Fund to $900M, Why Seed May Be The Best priced Asset Class and Not Overpriced At All & The 3 Stages of Fund Scaling and What it Takes To Build a Firm with Aydin Senkut, Founder and Managing Partner @ Felicis

May 27, 2022

Aydin Senkut, founder and managing partner of Felicis Ventures, has transformed a $4M angel fund into a $900M investment powerhouse, boasting a portfolio with 45 unicorns. He shares insights on the importance of diversification with 40-50 portfolio positions and the nuances of ownership in early investments. Aydin reflects on his evolution as an investor, including critical lessons from missed opportunities like Airbnb and Uber. He emphasizes emotional intelligence in venture capital and the significance of mentorship for fostering success.

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ANECDOTE

Felicis Founding

Aydin Senkut's background prepared him for venture capital, from his parents' entrepreneurial spirit to his experience at Google.
Initially wanting to work at a firm, he was rejected, which led him to start Felicis.

INSIGHT

Broad Investment Strategy

Aydin Senkut's broad investment strategy, developed from his diverse background, led him to a multi-stage approach from the start.
This contrasted with peers who focused solely on seed investments, allowing Felicis to invest in companies like Shopify and Fitbit early on.

INSIGHT

Market Evaluation

Aydin Senkut adjusts for inflation when evaluating today's market, noting that $20M today is like $10M ten years ago.
He emphasizes considering factors like real estate and car prices for a true comparison.

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Aydin Senkut is the Founder and Managing Partner of Felicis. An original super angel turned multi-stage investor, he has been named on the Forbes Midas List for the past nine years (2014-2022). Felicis has been an incredible 16-year journey starting with a $4M Fund I back in 2006, their most recent fund in 2021 was $900M. Along the way, Felicis has invested in over 45 unicorns including Adyen, Canva, Shopify, Notion, Opendoor, and Plaid. Prior to starting Felicis, Aydin was a Senior Manager at Google where he spent an incredible 6 years.

In Today’s Episode with Aydin Senkut:

1.) The Founding of Felicis:

How did Aydin transition from a successful angel to the first $41M institutional fund with Felicis?
How did Aydin's mindset change moving from investing personal to LP capital?
What does Aydin know now that he wishes he had known when he started Fund I?

2.) Fund Mechanics: Building a Portfolio

Why does Aydin believe portfolios need to have 40-50 positions to be diversified enough?
Given Aydin being multi-stage, how important is ownership on first check for Aydin and Felicis?
Does Aydin believe it is possible to really concentrate capital into your best performers?
How does Aydin think through outcome scenario planning? What is his biggest takeaway from this?

3.) Aydin Senkut: The Investor

What have been the biggest changes in Aydin's style of investing over the last 16 years?
What was Aydin's biggest miss? How did it impact his mindset moving forward?
What is Aydin's biggest insecurity as an investor today? How has it changed?
Where does Aydin still believe he is weak as an investor? What is he doing to combat it?

4.) The Venture Landscape:

Why does Aydin believe that despite the pricing, seed is the best risk-adjusted asset class?
How does Aydin evaluate where crossover funds will move with the death of many growth rounds?
What segment of the market will be hit hardest by the crunch? What worries with this?
What would Aydin most like to change about the venture landscape today? Why?

Item’s Mentioned In Today’s Episode with Aydin Senkut

Aydin’s Favourite Book: The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable