Tank Talks By Ripple Ventures

Join your host, Matt Cohen, Founder & Managing Partner at Ripple Ventures for weekly conversations with leaders in the startup ecosystem discussing the truth about investing, building and running startups. tanktalks.substack.com

Latest episodes

Jan 26, 2023 • 1h 16min

How to Turn a Passion for Real Estate and Travel into an Investment Platform for Millennials with Getaway CEO Ali Nichols

Real Estate is one of the best ways to build wealth, and travelling is a great way to spend it! What if there was a way to combine both of those ideas into a single platform? Our guest today is Ali Nichols, Co-Founder of Getaway, who thinks she has figured out a way to combine both of those passions for millennials. On today’s show, we cover how Getaway is combining the demands of younger generations to not only invest in real estate but also enjoy the perks of that investment along the way. About Ali Nichols:Ali Nichols is the Co-founder and Co-CEO of Getaway. Prior to founding Getaway, Ali spent over 4 years as an executive at Bungalow, a technology-enabled residential real estate company, where she ran Operations, Growth, Marketing, Sales, and Real Estate. She spearheaded raising and operating a $700M real estate fund focused on acquiring single-family rentals. Before that Ali was a Strategy & Planning Sr. Manager at Uber and a Consultant at IBM. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Carnegie Mellon University.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I allowed my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at any time. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:(02:33) Ali’s journey into tech(04:56) Ali’s experience at Uber(05:46) Where Ali’s passion for Real Estate developed(07:35) Uber’s real estate division(10:03) The biggest takeaway from Uber(11:12) Ali’s time at Bungalow and helping it grow(13:52) Bungalow’s model for sourcing(15:18) Why she started Getaway(19:11) Finding her co-founder and why their partnership works(23:03) Why vacation rentals is an exciting asset class(26:11) Who Getaway is targeted at(28:09) How this is different from a traditional timeshare(29:56) How Getaway actually works(32:21) Target annual returns to users on Getaway(35:03) Plans to build out their portfolio of Real Estate holdings(36:53) What Getaway is doing with their recent $5.9M raise led by Cowboy Ventures, XYZ, and Night Ventures(37:59) Benefits from having a strong network of angel investorsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: All In* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Lenny* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Airpods* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Fractional real estate investing* 📚- Favorite Book: To Kill A Mockingbird* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: You'll always catch more flies with honey than vinegar Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Dec 22, 2022 • 41min

Backing Emerging Managers with Aakar Vachhani from Fairview Capital Partners

We talk to another amazing LP this week, Aakar Vachhani, Partner at Fairview Capital. Fairview has over $3.5B in AUM that focuses on fund investing, co-investments, and direct investment. They have built a reputation for finding and backing emerging managers with diverse backgrounds.About Aakar Vachhani:Aakar Vachhani is a Partner and a member of Fairview Capital’s investment committee. He is involved in research, due diligence, investment monitoring, and business development for Fairview's venture capital and private equity partnership and direct co-investment portfolios.Prior to joining Fairview, Aakar was with Cambridge Associates, a leading investment advisor to foundations, endowments and corporate and government entities. He was responsible for analyzing private equity and venture capital investments in support of the firm's clients and consultants. In addition, he led research and data analytics projects on the firm’s private equity and venture capital database. Aakar also spent time with MK Capital, a multi-stage venture capital firm with a sector focus on software and cloud services.He holds a B.S. in Economics-Finance from Bentley University and an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurship & Innovation from the Kellogg School of Management.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss(02:35) Aakar’s journey to becoming an investor(05:36) Learning about data and analysis of investing at Cambridge Associates(07:37) Investments in underrepresented, emerging managers he’s most proud of at Fairview(11:05) Why Fairview began looking for underrepresented managers when it started 30 years ago(11:56) How Fairview’s investing thesis has evolved over the years(18:19) Common mistakes and red flags that emerging managers make(20:17) What Aakar does to add-value to GPs(22:30) Advice he’s giving to his GPs right now on how to adjust to the market(24:15) How the FTX reflects on the entire venture industry(27:30) What Aakar is doing ot navigate the current seed and early-stage market(29:57) Using secondary funds to make way in the current market(31:57) Adjusting their return expectations in the market(32:40) Investment sectors Fairview is excited about(34:04) How new investors and family offices should think about the current market(35:35) Best career advice he’s receivedFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Plain English with Derek Thompson* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Hacker News, The Verge* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Owlet* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Health and wellness* 📚- Favorite Book: The Big Picture* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Remember to take a step back and remind yourself of what really matters Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Dec 15, 2022 • 42min

How Family Offices are Navigating the Venture Markets with Dave Sachse from SFF & Family VC

Those of us in Venture Capital also have bosses called Limited Partners, or LPs, LPs are the folks we raise our funds from, and it’s important to that we find investors that believe in our vision of the future and investing thesis. Our guest today is Dave Sachse, Founder and Managing Partner of the Sachse Family Fund, which does direct investments in early-stage companies as well as being an LP. We talk to Dave about how family offices are navigating the venture market.About Dave Sachse:Dave Sachse is a Tech investor and entrepreneur with experience as a corporate software product manager, startup founder, business development leader, and community builder. In addition to technology investing in the private and public markets, Dave is passionate about demystifying VC as an asset class and democratizing wealth generation.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:(02:25) Dave’s journey into tech(04:49) Origins of the family office from the family business(07:00) How Dave got his start in VC investing(07:41) Types of companies that the Sacshe Family Fund Invests in(08:53) The process of determining their investment thesis(10:27) What their investment committee looks like and their due diligence process(11:52) Assessing emerging managers and using quantitative and qualitative methods(14:22) The timescale of VC investing and working with managers(16:40) Dave’s view on GP commits(19:59) Better metrics than IRR and MOIC to judge funds and managers(23:17) LPs asking to delay capital calls(25:32) Have we hit the bottom of the market and what does the near future hold(28:07) Dave’s approach to the current market(29:23) Why you should avoid pay-to-play pitch scenarios as a manager(33:11) Biggest lessons from being an investorFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Venture Unlocked* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Fred Wilson* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: One Wheel* 📈- Favorite New Trend: It doesn’t matter where you live* 📚- Favorite Book: Democratizing Knowledge by Elizabeth Yin and Hung Pham This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Dec 8, 2022 • 32min

How Failing at your First Startup is the Best Education for Young Entrepreneurs with Reed Switzer from Hopscotch

Grit or resiliency is one of the most important traits in modern life, especially if you’re a Founder. Our guest today Reed Switzer is one of the youngest guests on Tank Talks, and he’s been a Founder or Co-Founder of multiple companies. His current venture is Hopscotch, a simple, easy-to-use business payments platform that grew out of Reed’s frustrations as a small business owner.About Reed Switzer:Reed Switzer is an entrepreneur and rising product leader in the financial technology space.Born and raised in New York, Reed got his start bussing tables at a local diner. In his early professional career, he developed a passion for apparel and launched his own brand in partnership with a couple of friends. He later served as Operations Lead for a music streaming startup led by the former CFO of Combs Enterprises.In 2021, studying finance and technology at Wharton, Reed decided to drop out of school to pursue his entrepreneurial spirit. He founded and currently leads Hopscotch, a FinTech startup backed by Stellation Capital, Shine Capital, NOEMIS Ventures, 3KVC, Valar Ventures, NfX, Valor Equity Partners, Red & Blue Ventures, The MBA Fund, Switch Ventures, and Brightlane Ventures.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:02:47 Reed’s career in startups03:46 Using google to learn early lessons in entrepreneurship05:25 The decision to drop out of school to start Hopscotch06:49 Reed’s tenacious approach to cold reach to find advisors and investors09:32 The decision to bring on more seasoned Co-Founders and advisors10:53 Why business payments was such an exciting field to explore12:49 How Hopscotch is aiming to be Venmo for businesses14:28 The difference between Hopscoth and its competition15:41 What the Hopscotch Risk Score is16:15 The Hopscotch business model16:49 Long term vision for Hopscotch18:29 How Hopscotch leverages its data20:25 Dealing with competition in FinTech and SaaS21:46 Who the ideal customer is for Hopscotch22:52 Who Hopscotch is currently serving24:42 How they are dealing with higher interest rates and protecting their business25:51 Best ways they are attracting customers28:03 Plans for their recent fundraiseFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Joe Rogan Experience* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Lenny’s newsletter* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple watch* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Hiking* 📚- Favorite Book: Ryan Breslow - Guide to Fundraising* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Everything happens for a reasonFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Dec 1, 2022 • 1h 2min

Preparing for that Dreaded Security Review with Pukar Hamal of SecurityPal

Security is another issue we all deal with, but the hassle and complexity of maintaining and proving you are secure can be burdensome, especially to growing startups. Our guest today, Pukar Hamal, Founder and CEO of SecurityPal a platform that aims to be an all-in-one solution that combines bleeding-edge, yet simple, customer-facing technology with in-house squadrons of trained, equipped, and efficient “security analysts in-the-loop” to effectively solve the security review process once and for all. We talk with Pukar about his journey through tech starting as an undergrad at Stanford, and how he navigated being a part of two separate acquisitions in his career, and what the opportunity was in starting SecurityPal.About Pukar Hamal:Pukar Hamal is the Founder and CEO of SecurityPal. He started his career as the first campus ambassador for Square at Stanford. He went on to for the government, PwC, and the Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen Foundation, before landing at TalentBin prior to its acquisition by Monster. He was the first business hire at Teamable Software, which was acquired in 2020. He has a strong track record of angel investing and as a scout for Craft Ventures. He did his undergrad at Stanford.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:02:49 Pukar’s journey into tech06:42 What the environment at Stanford was like and how it inspired him to break into tech10:09 Lessons from the two acquisitions he experienced16:15 How he became a scout with Craft Ventures18:53 The problem SecurityPal works to solve29:25 What is a security questionnaire35:45 Types of questions asked in security questionnaires40:25 What a typical security questionnaire process is like for most startups44:19 Why it is important to be honest on security questionnaires48:45 How SecurityPal instills trust in its clients50:53 How Pukar raised a $21M Series A after bootstrapping to $1M in revenue53:42 The importance of the long game and relationships in successFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: The Memo* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Of Dollars and Data* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Air purifiers* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Rising Interest Rates* 📚- Favorite Book: Shoe Dog* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Play the long gameFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Nov 23, 2022 • 1h 2min

How Risk Management Can Protect a Startup from Becoming the next FTX with Evan Dreyer of Tola

With the high-profile implosion of FTX, risk has been in the spotlight. What does risk mean, how can retail and institutional investors mitigate it, and how should founders think about it? Our guest today is Evan Dreyer, Head of Risk Management at Tola, a fast, easy, and free tool for businesses to pay and get paid, however, and whenever they want. We talk to Evan about everything risk and how to approach it.About Evan Dreyer:Evan is the head of risk management at Tola, a financial technology company. Prior to that, he spent over twelve years at Credit Suisse, in both the risk management and investment banking departments. He is an angel investor and LP (including in Ripple Ventures). He has a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Chicago, and a master's in risk management from NYU.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:02:26 Evan’s journey into tech and investing07:01 Evan’s experience at Credit Suisse10:31 Why high risk situations keep happening13:04 The definition of risk and what it means to startups17:37 How early stage founders should think about their risks and address them21:28 What it means to not bury your head in the sand and address risk23:55 Risk through the eyes of an investor28:58 When deal terms mean to mitigate risk actually backfire31:27 Risks in public vs. private market deals35:22 How Evan adds value as an investor and LP39:22 Why Evan decided to leave Credit Suisse and join a startup41:47 What risk looks like to him now that he is a startup operator43:49 Evan’s biggest career lesson47:26 Thoughts on FTX and SBFFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Revolutions* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Matt Levine* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Drones* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Digital yoga* 📚- Favorite Book: Napoleon: A Life* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Don't take anyone else's path to successFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

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Tank Talks By Ripple Ventures

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