Marc Cohen

Europe's tech market has some catching up to do. #eu #techmarket #technology #techcompanies #marketvalue #financing #growthcapital #scaleups #commercialisation

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Space was very interesting, recording is available here: https://lnkd.in/d-Zy5dku (you might want to skip the first 5 minutes or so) Learn about #DVT, #Restaking, and much more 🤓

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European VC Fundraising Uptick Germany's KfW Capital, has reported a significant uptick in VC fundraising, indicating a positive trend for startup investments. Jörg Goschin, managing director at KfW Capital, noted that fundraising was sluggish in 2022 and 2023, but things are "steadily improving." He highlighted that KfW Capital examined around 220 funds last year, expecting an even higher number this year. Goschin stated, “I think we can say that the light at the end of the tunnel which we saw last year is getting brighter.” KfW Capital is a prominent limited partner (LP) in various European VC funds, including Germany’s Project A, Earlybird Venture Capital, and France’s Partech. Since its establishment in 2018, KfW Capital has invested in 120 VC funds, with nine funded this year. Goschin also mentioned an increase in capital calls from VCs, which he described as a “reassuring” sign that investments in startups are also on the up. In analyzing the types of funds being considered, KfW Capital found that 50% of the 220 funds were from the ICT sector (SaaS startups, AI, marketplaces, and e-commerce). About a quarter of the funds focused on life sciences, while the remainder were generalist funds without a specific sector focus. Notably, KfW Capital is also witnessing an increase in deeptech funds seeking investment, which Goschin identified as necessary, given the longer development times associated with these types of investments. Gender diversity is a key focus for KfW Capital in its due diligence process, with 46.3% of the funds having at least one female GP in 2023. The firm’s €200 million emerging manager facility, aims to invest in funds with €50 million in AUM that prioritize representation of women and non-binary individuals in leadership roles. Its first investment through this facility was in Nucleus Capital, a deeptech and climate tech VC fund led by GPs Dr. Isabella Fandrych and Maximilian A. Schwarz. In terms of increasing private capital in VC, Goschin highlighted the launch of Germany's €1B Fund of funds last year, which aims to boost investments in German and European VC funds. He noted the importance of mobilizing private capital, especially as state budgets become tighter. “The mobilization of capital from private investors is very important, especially from a point of view as a sovereign investor,” he remarked. ✅ Looking to raise capital for your #VCfund and increase the international pool of your LPs?   🤝 Need warm #LP introductions?   📝 Selling #secondaries to increase liquidity?   🧐 Looking for co-investments (Series A/Series B)?   ▶ Please use G+QUANT's link for inquiries and fund decks, or send an inquiry to [email protected] #VentureCapital #VentureFunding #VentureDebt #Fundraising #Innovation #Technology #Entrepreneurship #Investing #Network #Investors #LPs #GPs #EmergingManagers #Economy #Business #Founders #Startups #StartupFunding #ai #artificialintelligence #unicorn #secondaries #secondarydeals

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Latest insights from Coinbase Mid Year Review, with implications for technical Web3 founders: 🔧 Resilience in the Digital Assets Class: Even in a turbulent economy, digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum are proving resilient. Regions with clear regulatory frameworks, such as the UAE, are becoming innovation hotspots. These bell weather tokens green light founders' confidence to innovate on the frontier in #blockchain and #Web3. 📈 Accelerating Adoption from Layer 2 Blockchain: As fees on blockchains continue to deflate, adoption accelerates, as measured by Total Value Locked (a measure of locked tokens), total transactions, and active wallets (a measure of user activity on blockchain). Certain Layer 2 blockchains are hitting tipping points of adoption in 2024. 🧠 Harmonizing #AI and Web3: The report highlights how integrating AI into Web3 platforms can drive exponential improvements in product development, user engagement, and operational efficiency. Think AI-powered smart contracts, automated customer service, or dynamic token economies — these are no longer futuristic ideas but are near term venture opportunities. Why You Should Care: As a technical founder, the robust infrastructure provided by blockchain and the computational power of AI opens up new realms of product possibilities. The report underscores the potential of Web3 gaming and tokenized AI to disrupt traditional models. Consider how these trends can enhance your product offerings and user experience. Furthermore, Apple's recent announcements in their AI strategy will bring AI to the consumer, further opening up product design possibilities that incorporate the aligned Web3 business models. Venture capital is actively looking for early stage investments in this area. We at Decasonic are committed to backing outlier founders harnessing these transformative technologies. We invest in projects that align with our vision of a technology intersections.

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Striking: Zenobē, a UK climate tech startup, raised £600m from KKR and £270m from Infracapital, bypassing VC entirely. Zenobe captures excess energy from wind farms to stabilize the grid and reduce gas power reliance. This means: Zenobe secured one of 2023's biggest startup fundraises — without any venture capital. #battery #fundraising #venturecapital #energystorage #infrastructure #growthinflection Sifted: https://lnkd.in/g8wF-xA5

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🚀 Investment Criteria and Fundraising Success 🚀 🔍 Techstar’s Marting Schilling delved into the success of 58 companies in the Tech Start DeepTech Berlin portfolio (2022-2024), analyzing 17 investment criteria to identify the strongest signals for early-stage fundraising success. 💡 💰 Top Indicators of Success: Monetisation Potential (0.61) Domain Expertise (0.59) Speed of Execution (0.57) Market & Timing (0.55) ❌ Least Correlated with Success: Role Clarity (0.12) Team Co-Location (0.08) Number of Cofounders (0.02) 🌟 To attract investors, founders should emphasize the top 4 categories and spend less time optimizing for less impactful factors like role clarity or co-location. While these might have other benefits, they don’t significantly boost fundraising success. 📈 #Investment #Fundraising #Techstars #DeepTech #StartupSuccess #VC #EarlyStage #Monetisation #DomainExpertise #MarketTiming #ExecutionSpeed

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📆 I’ll be speaking at the upcoming Blockchain Scotland Meetup! Join the event in #Edinburgh Bayes Centre. 💡I’ll be discussing how we at StegX are using tokenization to transform Institutional Real Asset Investing. Thank you for the invitation Dr. Maciej Zurawski and Kevin Murray During my talk, I’ll cover: 🔗Technical Innovation: How we’re leveraging blockchain technology to create new possibilities. 💼 Business Model Innovation: Insights into our approach to digital capital raising and asset servicing. At StegX, we’re building a blockchain-powered marketplace ecosystem that’s changing the way real-world assets like real estate are managed and invested in. Our goal is to make the entire investment lifecycle more efficient and accessible by connecting asset managers, investors, and service providers across the globe. 🌍 If you’re interested in where the future of investing is headed, I’d love for you to join us. 🚀 Follow StegX for updates, and feel free to reach out if you’re interested in exploring opportunities together! 🤝 #Web3 #Tokenization #Blockchain #RealEstate #Innovation #StegX #Investing

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💡 What happened in Web3 in April 2024? See the summary of a few topics in the article below: ▶ ETF Update ▶ Bitcoin Halving: Recap and Impact ▶ Regulatory Update ▶ Consensys vs. SEC ▶ EigenLayer’s Mainnet Launch and Token Announcement ▶ Our Take On Overall Crypto Sentiment ▶ Private Market Commentary ▶ Blockwall Portfolio Update ▶ Key events of the last few weeks ▶ What we’ve been reading 👇 If you want to learn more about Web3 and ventures in the space, make sure you subscribe to our substack channel. #web3 #venturecapital

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💡 What happened in Web3 in September 2024? Have a look at what happened in September, including the following topics: ▶ Market Update: The beginning of the easing cycle, Tether’s tokenization plans revealed? Visa introduces own tokenization platform, further institutional adoption of tokenization, BitGo enters the stablecoin market, Ethena announces new stablecoin ▶ Regulatory Updates: Update on SEC accounting bulletin 121, SEC approves BTC ETF options ▶ Recap: Solana Breakpoint Solana ‘Seeker’, Firedancer update ▶ Key events in September EigenLayer’s $EIGEN becomes tradable, Stylus goes live on the Arbitrum mainnet, British government introduces the 'Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill', Ethereum Name Service (ENS) announces integration with PayPal and Venmo, Bhutan’s Bitcoin holdings have been revealed, former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison has been sentenced to two years in prison, Harris expresses support for digital assets and AI ▶ What we’ve been reading Chainalysis: Crypto Global Adoption Index 2024, BlackRock Bitcoin Report #crypto #web3 #blockchain #innovation #venturecapital #startups https://lnkd.in/ePkr3ceV

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Great article on the importance of #bitcoin to the #election . 50 million wallet holders can influence the elections.

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🌍 Circle Triumphs as First Licensed Stablecoin Issuer under MiCA 🌍 While Dubai tightens its grip on crypto payments, Circle is making waves in the European Union! 🚀✨ Circle's Milestone: ➡ Regulatory Win: Circle's USDC and EURC are now fully compliant digital fiat tokens under MiCA rules. ➡ EU Headquarters: Circle selects France for its European HQ, praising its forward-thinking stance on digital assets. ➡ Dubai's Ban: UAE's new regulations prohibit crypto payments, posing challenges for crypto adoption. ➡ Circle's Success: In stark contrast, Circle’s regulatory approval highlights a supportive environment in the EU. Circle's CEO Jeremy Allaire calls this a historic moment for digital assets, reflecting the industry's evolution and regulatory acceptance. What do you think about these contrasting developments? Share your thoughts and follow me for more crypto insights! 🔥💬 #Circle #Stablecoin #MiCA #CryptoRegulation #DigitalAssets #UAE #CryptoBan

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Ever wonder what its like to run a Private Equity fund? Now you have the chance to follow along with successful investment managers by participating with Fund Launch Partners. Join me and Lincoln Archibald and next week for the Third Thursday @ Three to hear about direct investment opportunities with General Partnerships in the one of the fastest growing portfolio investment sectors. Pick up a free ticket here: https://lnkd.in/dd2yzxDd #HolyGrailofInvesting #GPOpportunities #FundLaunch #Alternatives

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📊Crunchbase counted 11 new unicorns in March, including the first unicorn from Central Asia - Uzbekistan. Interestingly, among these unicorns, only one is related to AI, but three are related to crypto and web3. However, only 4 out of 11 unicorns are from the United States. Among the curious unicorns is the fairly well-known Liquid Death project, which sells water in cans. He had a $67 million round at a $1.4 billion valuation. Details in the following link: https://lnkd.in/erqXE7MR #startups #unicorn

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As the end of the month approaches, the crypto market faces potential downtrends, yet Shiba Inu and Arbitrum maintain pivotal price levels. BlockDAG, a Layer 1 project thriving from a stellar presale, has become a hot spot for capital, outshining other market giants with its vast potential. Its seamless DApps integration has propelled its growth, setting a bold price target of $30 by 2030. With a presale rocketing past $53.8 million due to soaring investor interest, this Altcoin Season is poised for significant developments, marked by Shiba Inu’s Bull Run and stable Arbitrum (ARB) prices. Read to find out more... #BLOCKDAG #DApps #SHIBA #BULLRUN

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Let’s assume that LLM GPT (n+1) variants do materially increase in reasoning and language skills which enable them to take on tasks with increasing complexity. Will the COGS of servicing those "more complicated" tasks create a market dynamic where older and less performant LLMs are good enough, especially if they are radically cheaper to operate? Maybe that implies some sort of distribution (bell curve?) where most tasks don't need state of the art LLMs, shifting usage and therefore dollars away from the highest performant LLMs. We might even get to a stage where open source models with near zero marginal cost to operate perform the vast majority of future task work. If that future comes to pass, maybe the business models of LLMs will reflect the very nature of current human labor. i.e. We pay interns a lot less than a PhD. Maybe an LLM that can solve a sophisticated analytical problem will need to have a very different pricing / compensation model than one that can only perform more rudimentary and repeatable work.

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💡 What happened in Web3 in May 2024? See the summary of a few topics in the article below: ▶ Crypto Policy: Changing Tides ▶ Approval of the Ether spot ETFs ▶ Bitcoin ETF Update ▶ Bitcoin’s Corporate Adoption? ▶ Blockwall Portfolio Update ▶ Key events of the last few weeks ▶ What we’ve been reading https://lnkd.in/dceZbbB8 👇 If you want to learn more about Web3 and ventures in the space, make sure you subscribe to our substack channel.

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Access to top quartile Private Equity funds from €10,000 is now possible thanks to Moonfare! The democratization of Private Equity enters a new era. Moonfare’s ELTIF 2.0 has officially been accepted by the regulator and is being launched in various geographies over the next few months! Thousands of private investors have already joined our waitlist. You can read more about how the revamped rules are setting the stage for retailisation of European private markets below and sign up for the waitlist on www.moonfare.com! Our sincere thanks to Citywire for writing about Moonfare's new investment strategy. Read the full story here: https://moonfa.re/4aASFim Know someone who would like to read the article? Please tag them in the comments section. #PrivateEquity #ELTIF #InvestmentStrategy

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Out of the $100 billion total in Web3 VC funding, Israel accounts for approximately 4.5%. Given Israel's small population (9.3 million in 2024), Web3 funding in Israel is disproportionately high per capita, which underscores the country's importance in Web3. In this new ecosystem map of the Israeli Web3 sector, you will find over 100 startups categorized into 12 sectors: https://lnkd.in/dUftH4KM #web3 #crypto #blockchain #vc #startups

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7 years ago, we had the chance to invest in a little company called Blockdaemon as the first investor. At the time, crypto projects were on the rise, with many being applications built on top of Ethereum. Blockdaemon took a different approach and aimed to build a crypto infrastructure company. This is something we were particularly excited about and we felt Konstantin Richter was an unrivaled founder to take this head on. Blockdaemon is no longer the little company we invested in. Today, they work with some of the largest institutions in the world like Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, and JPM and are currently valued at over $3.25B. Here's the story in this unicorn video (P.S. I'm aware "uncomfort" isn't a word 😂 ). CC: Plug and Play Tech Center, Scott Robinson, Saeed Amidi, Ivan Zgomba

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