Nikola Damiani

📣 We’ve got a big ESG_VC event planned for Tuesday next week – featuring the latest updates to our measurement framework, news of our 2025 benchmarking with the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), and an introduction to our new platform partners… 📣 On the afternoon of Tuesday 26 November, we’ll be gathering 200+ VCs for the latest update on the ESG_VC Measurement Framework – from what it covers to how it informs industry-leading research, and how you can now work with our accredited data collection partners. This will be our first event delivered in partnership with our cohort of platform partners: Apiday, Novata, and PortF. I’m excited to share with our members how these partners can support a big step up in your ESG initiatives. Join us for a jam-packed event that will feature: 🟢 An update from Suzi Gillespie of the BVCA on how you can take part in our 2025 research – we analysed ESG performance in c.600 VC-backed companies in 2024 and we’re looking to deliver an even more ambitious piece of research next year… 🟢 Insights from Emily Havers of Fidelity International Strategic Ventures on the updates that have been made to the framework and what it means for our members, their portfolio companies, and the broader ecosystem. 🟢 Perspectives from Emily Matthews of Oxford Science Enterprises and Nina Foote of Volution on how the ESG_VC Measurement Framework has supported their work on ESG. 🟢 Presentations from our platform partners: Edouard Audi of Apiday, Conor O'Laoire’Laoire of Novata, and Alex Lu of PortF. It’s going to be a good one so do register. Link to sign up in the comments! #ESG_VC #sustainability #venturecapital

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This is going to be truly transformational for Ukraine.

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Thrilled to have joined the stage today at the invest.austria conference for a panel on "Investing in Our Future Plate". It was inspiring to be on stage alongside my Triple Impact Ventures portfolio founders, Gregor Tegl from Arkeon and Philipp Stangl from Rebel Foods, as well as food-tech investors Sara Böcking from ZINTINUS and Stefan Rathgeber from Graphit NeoTaste. We discussed the major forces driving Foodtech investment—climate impact, food security, and healthier nutrition—and how these themes are shaping the future of what’s on our plates. As the founder of inoqo and an investor, I shared my motivation to champion climate tech and food-tech innovation. With one-third of global GHG emissions and 70% of biodiversity loss tied to the F&B sector, I believe this is one of the greatest investment opportunities of our time. Together, we can make climate action central to the future of food. #ClimateTech #FoodTech #InvestAustria #SustainableInvesting

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A HUGE thank you to everyone involved in publishing the latest report from ESG_VC and the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA) today! The report is packed full of useful insights into how start-ups are actually performing across their work on environmental, social, and governance issues. There's also a brand new roadmap for ESG in start-ups with specific guidance on the initiatives to implement from Pre-Seed through to Series C and beyond. A particular shout out to everyone involved in the production including Suzi Gillespie and Ewa Skornas at the BVCA, David Strong and Dianne Skurray at Marriott Harrison, and Susannah Philipson and Nadeem Muzaffar at Seven Hills, who designed this beautiful report. I'm also massively grateful for all of the hard work that our VC contributors put into compiling data from 587 portfolio companies across the UK, Europe, and around the world - a few names to mention include Ashleigh, Shanice, Lauren, Laure, Michelle, Jason, Hessel, Emily, Beth, Joe, James, Eugenia, Alex, Grace, Emma, Emily, Lucy, Cordelia, Nina, Raj, and Rob. Thank you to you all! And thanks as ever to the remaining members of our steering group for their ongoing support of ESG_VC - Antonia at Seedcamp, Leslie at Astanor Ventures, Natalie at Lakestar, Andrew at Par Equity, and of course Karen McCormick for all of your support at Beringea! Check out the full report via the link in the comments! And let us know what you think about it! #ESG_VC #sustainability #venturecapital

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We are super excited about our latest investment; one that has had us excited from the first meeting... The First Thirty has participated in a £3.5m Seed round into Cerve. At TFT, we are grounded in data and intelligence being an unlock for systems change in food systems and ultimately in human health. But data in a silo will not be sufficient in changing how ALL stakeholders in the supply chain operate or how end users consume data. The data needs to move, to be exchanged efficiently and to be meaningful in today's context with the opportunity to drive future contexts. We have for a long time been looking for a company building the digital infrastructure that could solve for this data efficiency and transport problem in the food system. While we have met some great companies, there has always been a mismatch on scope, approach, domain knowledge, ambition, vision or impact. Then we met Dan Mazig🎗️. There was a sharpness rare to see and a lazer focus on a problem he understood well. But with that was also a calm thoughtfulness around the opportunity Cerve had in front it. Today Cerve tackles an unstructured data inefficiency problem that is a major contributor to food waste. Tomorrow, a structured data exchange can expose new meaningful data to make food systems more sustainable, efficient, healthy and productive. We knew immediately this was what we were looking for. Dan and commercial leader David Walker were the right team, with the right backgrounds, the right approach in today's supply chain context and with ambitious vision about the potential for transformation. TFT and Cerve share a vision that through their platform technology the supply chain can be more efficient today and decommodified tomorrow. Cerve is a platform that has the potential to reshape our relationships and decision-making processes throughout the food system. We are keen to continue to work with an incredible group of investors from the lead SuperSeed to our fellow participants Zenith Ventures and Ponderosa Ventures. Special thanks to Stephanie Mathern and Eric Walters for playing your parts. Congrats Dan Mazig, David Walker, and the Cerve team! Let's Go! #sustainability #foodsystems #humanhealth https://lnkd.in/e7gmEHpt

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A great insight for those interested in learning more about our secondaries activities and venture secondaries in Europe generally.

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Delighted to share news that Bizumi has just received SEIS Advance Assurance! This is great news for private investors looking to offset the inherent risks when investing in startup companies in search of great returns. In summary, the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) provides: Income tax relief of up to 50%: A £100,000 investment could provide a £50,000 saving on that year’s income tax bill.  Up to 50% capital gains reinvestment relief: You could reduce the CGT on gains made elsewhere by up to 50%.  Loss relief: If things don’t go to plan, you can choose to offset any loss, less the income tax relief received, against your income tax bill.  Now don't get me wrong, I have every confidence that Bizumi is a fantastic opportunity, but de-risking your investment through SEIS is a no-brainer! Get in touch to explore how we can become successful together.

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Last episode before the summer break: Diversity in VC: The Importance of Investing in Female Founders with Tülin Tokatli, CFA and Hale Yildiz In the dynamic world of startups, securing venture capital is often a critical step towards scaling a business. However, for female founders, this journey can be fraught with additional challenges due to biases and stereotypes. Our guests in this episode are Tülin Tokatli and Hale Yildiz from Pitch Me First and they discussed the challenges faced by female founders in the venture capital industry. They highlighted the low percentage of funding received by female-led startups and the biases and cultural barriers they encounter during the fundraising process. They also explained the importance of increasing diversity in VC teams and suggested measures such as prioritizing female-led teams and promoting visibility for female founders. In this episode on Diversity in VC: The Importance of Investing in Female Founders with Hale and Tülin, we talk about: - The current situation of female founders in the VC world - Why female-led startups raised only 10% of the total VC funding in Europe - The importance of diversity in the VC industry and the need for more support for female founders - Challenges faced by female founders in raising money, including structural and cultural barriers, gender bias in investment decisions, and lack of institutional and investor support - Recommendations for VCs to support female founders, including increasing diversity in their teams, prioritizing gender equality - The importance of visibility for female founders in media and networking events  - The need for more women in high positions, the importance of education, and the role of data in measuring and promoting diversity. Listen here: https://lnkd.in/dBtMPDcD Read here: https://lnkd.in/d7--SCeq #VC #Femalefounders #VCinclusion

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🔍 Exploring the Shifting Dynamics of Midmarket M&A with Andreas Kinsky 🔍 In a challenging 2023, the M&A landscape for new technologies remains dynamic. Andreas Kinsky, co-founder of PAVA, shares insights on how technology influences the art of buying and selling companies and the current state of midmarket M&A. Dive into the conversation to understand the impact of rising interest rates, industry-specific valuation changes, and the evolving role of technology in M&A. 🔗 Discover more in the full interview: https://hubs.la/Q02KhWxn0 #MandA #PrivateEquity #Technology #BusinessInsights #Finance

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🎉 Exciting time with the incredible team at Isomer Capital 🎉 Super thrilled about the news we shared with the world last week. It has us all buzzing with excitement. At Isomer, we've long been dedicated to providing liquidity in the European VC space. And now, we're taking it to the next level with the launch of our dedicated fund. What is it, you ask? A fund that will invest in secondaries at all levels within the European VC ecosystem—LPs, GPs, companies, founders, angels, and even employees. And because there is limited liquidity solutions to LPs that have invested in European VCs, around 70% of our fund will go towards LP stakes. With the support of our Cornerstone investors, we've reached this significant milestone in our journey. But the work has only just begun, which myself and my incredible team have already started smashing through ... first 2 deals closing in a matter of weeks. Watch this space! 😉 #Isomer #VentureCapital #Secondaries #EuropeanVC #Investing #Liquidity #ImpactInvesting #Teamwork #Milestone

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Swedish Venture Capital firm Creandum recently closed its latest early-stage fund. 💸 €500m Creandum Fund VII raised in 12 weeks, with backing from 30 global LPs including university endowments, pension funds and foundations. 💡 35-40 investments at #seedstage and #SeriesA into technology start-ups across all sectors over the next two to three years. 🌍#Europe 📈 Creandum is known for being an early backer of Spotify, Klarna and Depop. With hubs across Stockholm, London, Berlin and San Francisco, the VC has backed more than 120 exciting start-ups including Laka, Factorial, Tide, Pleo, Kry, Kahoot!, Better Stack, H Company, among others. 💭 “We feel very bullish about the prospects for Europe. In the last quarter, we saw upticks both in funding and valuations largely driven by AI and SaaS. We’re seeing a renewed appetite from US investors for exposure to European tech.” - Creandum 🗞️Mimi Billings Sifted https://lnkd.in/eb326Baw 👏 For the #AudaciousInvestors unleashing innovation and empowering tomorrow🚀 Staffan I Johan I Fredrik I Simon I Carl I Peter I Peter I Daniel I Nick I Felicitas I Richard I Beata I Nick I Iris I Ellen I Team Creandum … #venturecapital #vc #funds #startups #entrepreneurs #funding #tech #entrepreneurship #technology #innovation #stockholm #sweden #fund

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📢 Don't miss out on an invaluable opportunity to join the The Investor Relations Society and the The Investor Forum CIC for an event on May 21st! The event will bring together investors and IROs to explore insights from the Investor Forum’s comprehensive assessment, ‘Shaping Tomorrow’s Dialogues: Bridging Gaps Between Companies and Investors.’ 🎤 Gain valuable insights from: - Douglas Radcliffe, Head of Investor Relations at Lloyds Banking Group - Michael Stiasny, Equity Fund Manager and Head of UK Equities at M&G Investments - Sallie Pilot, Senior Advisor, The Investor Forum CIC This is a unique chance to gain fresh perspectives and network with industry leaders. Don’t miss out! #InvestorRelations #InvestorDialogue #InvestmentInsights

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Mountside - 400+ VC firms with fresh capital and UK focus https://lnkd.in/eERd3pHS Mountside Ventures keeps track of VC forms that recently raised a fund - they are most likely to be actively investing. The focus is mostly, but not exclusively, UK. ----- ♻️Like, Comment, Share Follow Startup Vencha for more, Stop Thinking & Start Doing.

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The dynamics within private equity are shifting, with investment and operating teams increasingly working together to maximise portfolio value. At Fortius Partners, Simon and I anticipated this evolution when we merged Citius and Altius in early 2023. We built a core team of independent operating partners to support investment teams and operating leaders in delivering tangible results. In our first year, we led 14 transformation engagements; this year, that number has more than doubled, with 31 successfully completed. With expertise across sales transformation, pricing strategy, and post-merger integration, Fortius Partners is well-positioned to help investment teams and operating partners drive growth and operational excellence within their portfolios. #PrivateEquity, #DealFlow, #SalesTransformation, #PricingStrategy, #PostMergerIntegration, #GrowthStrategy, #TransformationExcellence, #PortfolioPerformance, #InvestmentStrategies, Fortius Partners Simon Andreas Hofmann #OperatingPartner

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Private Equity Insights, one of the UK’s largest private equity conferences, is just two days away. Beny Meyer, Business Lead Semi-Liquid Private Markets at LGT Capital Partners, will speak on a panel on the democratization of private equity on 4 September 2024. According to Beny, open-ended solutions offer more flexibility and address some of the key challenges of investing in these asset classes. They have the potential to remove some of the friction investors face in accessing private markets. However, when looking at different semi-liquid strategies, it is important to compare apples with apples, as portfolio construction and therefore liquidity profiles can differ substantially. Find out more about the conference here: https://lnkd.in/euG-Ue2Y #lgtcapitalpartners #lgtcp #privatemarkets #privateequity #democratization #semiliquids

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StepStone Group’s venture and growth evergreen fund made 10 secondary purchases in Q4 FY24. The fund’s top three investments included stakes in Lightspeed, Amaranth, and 137 Ventures funds, making up 67% of the quarter’s purchases. Bob Long #Secondaries #Secondary #SecondaryMarket #AlternativeInvestments #PrivateMarkets #RetailInvestors #Venture #VentureCapital #VC https://lnkd.in/eGT_H-Hi

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Taavet Hinrikus and I made the Financial Times Due Diligence email. https://lnkd.in/ez2AuGQx One 'unintended consequence' is that if there is a 45% tax on carry and CGT (raising £40m per year, remember) it for all intents and purposes closes the door on new VCs in the UK. Especially started by teams from non-traditional backgrounds. To meet the GP commit, you need to be already part of the 'wealthy' as you cannot rely on the value you create - nearly half of it will disappear - to fund it. We have both had extremely successful startups which are few and far between. The smaller number of new VCs will therefore more likely increasingly be for people who have inherited the capital or can draw it from their already rich family. Probably not want they have in mind with this policy.

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