HoldCo Builders How I Bought 7 Small Businesses and Had One Exit That Returned a 35x MOIC | Dev Shah Interview
Jun 27, 2025
Dev Shah, the 23-year-old founder of Pocket Fund, dives into his journey of acquiring seven businesses without external capital. He reveals how he discovered his first acquisition, Sourcely.ai, which yielded a staggering 37.5x return. Dev shares strategies for building a successful portfolio, focusing on talent acquisition and operational efficiency in India. He also discusses the importance of personalized business models and his motivations for avoiding VC funding, emphasizing long-term growth and organic success.
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Discovering Micro-Business Acquisition
- Dev Shah started buying micro businesses after discovering Acquire.com and realizing you can buy profitable businesses for as little as $5,000.
- This revelation inspired him to dive into acquisitions despite his initial hesitation about business models like agencies.
Why India Powers Micro Acquisitions
- Buying small SaaS, newsletters, and apps under one times annual revenue enables quick ROI and operational leverage.
- India offers a competitive advantage due to affordable, high-quality talent essential for micro acquisition economics.
Master Frequent Deal Sourcing
- Check Acquire.com marketplaces multiple times a week with specific filters to quickly spot undervalued deals.
- Develop deal analysis intuition by consistently reviewing listings and learning red flags and quality indicators.