The Human Side of Venture: Lessons from a Pastor-Turned-LP

This week on Swimming with Allocators, Benedikt Langer, pastor turned family office investor and creator of “Embracing Emergence,” shares his journey and investment philosophy focused on backing exceptional people rather than just deals. He discusses the challenges and lessons of transitioning from direct investing to supporting emerging managers, the value of qualitative insights and reputation, and the importance of building trust and community within venture capital. Listeners will gain actionable perspectives on selecting partners, developing authentic investment approaches, the evolving landscape for LPs in the years ahead, and so much more.

Highlights from this week’s conversation include:

• Welcome to Today’s Episode (0:32)
• Benedikt’s Journey in Faith, Finance, and LP Investing (3:14)
• Early Lessons from Family Office Investing (6:13)
• Evolving to Fund-of-Funds and Philosophy on Backing Managers (9:20)
• Framework for Evaluating GPs with Data and Intuition (11:52)
• Insider Segment:Liquidity, Secondaries, and Industry Structures (14:42)
• Deep Dive into Secondary Vehicles, SPVs, and Negotiations (18:54)
• Brand Versus Reputation for Emerging Managers (22:54)
• Approaching Firm Building and Scaling Teams (25:56)
• Importance of Firm Naming and Newsletter Vision (29:14)
• Journalistic Community Vision and Transparent Conversations (31:25)
• Family Office Outlook and the Future of LP Function (34:02)
• Book Influences and Investing Philosophy (35:23)
• Reflections and Parting Thoughts (38:35)

TOV Lending is a family-owned private capital provider offering competitive rates and hands-on service to real estate investors and home flippers. Alongside TOV, Benedikt Langer leads Embracing Emergence—a platform connecting LPs and emerging managers with a focus on thoughtful, values-driven investing. Learn more at  https://embracingemergence.beehiiv.com.

Sidley Austin LLP is a premier global law firm with a dedicated Venture Funds practice, advising top venture capital firms, institutional investors, and private equity sponsors on fund formation, investment structuring, and regulatory compliance. With deep expertise across private markets, Sidley provides strategic legal counsel to help funds scale effectively. Learn more at sidley.com.

Swimming with Allocators is a podcast that dives into the intriguing world of Venture Capital from an LP (Limited Partner) perspective. Hosts Alexa Binns and Earnest Sweat are seasoned professionals who have donned various hats in the VC ecosystem. Each episode, we explore where the future opportunities lie in the VC landscape with insights from top LPs on their investment strategies and industry experts shedding light on emerging trends and technologies. 

The information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available on this podcast are for general informational purposes only.

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