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20VC: a16z's Angela Strange on Why Every Company Will Be A Fintech Company, How Founders Should Think About Niches and Optimal Insertion Points, How To Transition To Become The System of Record & Are We Entering A Period of Bundling Or Unbundling for Fint

Sep 8, 2020

Angela Strange, a General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, shares her journey from Google's product manager to a leading fintech investor. She discusses why every company is becoming a fintech company and how removing barriers is enhancing product quality and accessibility. Angela explores optimal market insertion points, the significance of transitioning to the 'system of record,' and the current trend of bundling versus unbundling in financial services. Her insights shed light on the evolving landscape of fintech and its impact on various business models.

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ANECDOTE

AWS Analogy

Angela Strange uses Amazon Web Services as an analogy for the future of fintech.
Just as AWS reduced costs and complexity for startups, so too will fintech infrastructure companies.

INSIGHT

Barriers to Entry & Product Quality

Lower barriers to entry improve product quality by increasing consumer choice and competition.
Consumers will choose better products, making customer acquisition harder, but quality and personalized services justify subscription models.

ANECDOTE

Gaming as a Financial Gateway

Angela Strange suggests gaming could become a financial services entry point for the next generation.
Children might earn and manage allowances in Robux, creating early financial experiences.

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Angela Strange is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, one of the leading venture firms of the last decade with a portfolio including the likes of Facebook, Github, Slack, Airbnb, Asana and more. As for Angela, she largely focuses on investments in financial services and is currently a board member of Addi, SynapseFi, and Tally. Prior to a16z, Angela was a product manager at Google where she launched and grew Chrome for Android and Chrome for iOS into two of Google's most successful mobile products.

In Today’s Episode You Will Learn:

1.) How Angela made her way into the world of venture and came to be one of the leading fintech VCs with Andreesen Horowitz?

2.) Why does Angela believe that every company is going to be a fintech company? What is driving this shift? How does removing the barriers to entry for more products change both product quality and cost? How does Angela think about the role of regulation here?

3.) How does Angela think about what makes the best insertion points? How big does the initial wedge into the market have to be? When do you need to be able to prove you can transition from the insertion to the wider market? How does Angela fundamentally assess market size today?

4.) How does one transition to being the system of record? Do you have to be the system of record from day 1? Which examples are most striking for Angela on becoming a system of record? What are the biggest challenges in making this transition? Which metric tells you if you have become it?

5.) Does Angela think we are in a period of bundling or unbundling? What are the leading indicators of each? How does Angela assess the Fintech M&A market today? Will we continue to see large consolidatory moves in the form of Credit Karma, Plaid etc etc?

Items Mentioned In Today’s Show:

Angela’s Fave Book: Investing: The Last Liberal Art

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