Paul Martino

📈🏢 Aby Rosen's RFR Holding is facing a staggering $2.5B debt bill as defaults pile up! 💥 🔎 According to a recent Bisnow article, RFR Holding, a prominent NYC real estate firm, is grappling with mounting debt and defaults. The company, led by billionaire Aby Rosen, has a portfolio of high-profile properties, including the iconic Seagram Building and Lever House. 🏢🏦 📊 The firm's debt load has surged to a whopping $2.5B, with $1.1B in loans maturing this year alone. 💸 The pandemic has hit the commercial real estate market hard, causing defaults to skyrocket. RFR Holding is no exception, with defaults on several properties, including the $200M mortgage on the Seagram Building. 📉 🗣️ "The pandemic has created a perfect storm for commercial real estate," said one industry expert. "Companies like RFR Holding are facing unprecedented challenges as they navigate this difficult time." 🌪️ 🔜 So, what's next for RFR Holding? The company is reportedly exploring options to refinance its debt and avoid further defaults. 💡 With the commercial real estate market showing signs of recovery, there's hope that RFR Holding can weather this storm. 🌞 Stay tuned for more updates on this developing story! 📰🔔 #RFRHolding #CommercialRealEstate #Debt #Defaults #NYCRealEstate

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Some great new additions to Wing Venture Capital's Founder Docs project today! These are from the one-and-only Christopher Lynch, a veteran serial entrepreneur, currently CEO of AtScale, previously with Vertica, DataRobot, Accomplice VC, Acopia (where we worked together in the 2000's), Arrowpoint (where we first met in the 90's) and many other great ventures. I've worked with Chris in multiple companies across multiple decades. Anyone who knows him knows he tells it like it is (even when it may be hard to say it or hard to hear it!), which I have infinite respect for. In his Founder Docs, Chris talks about: - The dangers of overcapitalizing your startup - What it means to be a "transparent founder" - The power of long-term, authentic relationships in an entrepreneurial career Read Chris's stuff and you will come away wiser!

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I recently saw this metric from Carta’s 1Q24 VC Fund Report, which is very concerning. DPI... is nowhere to be found in earlier vintages that probably should start showing DPI. Funding early-stage projects is great, but ultimately, these venture dollars need to exit their investments and pay back their limited partners. That’s where the metric Distributed to Paid-In Capital (DPI) comes in. While managing a fund, we get interim measures during the life of the fund (e.g. IRR, MOIC), but ultimately, “you can’t eat IRR.” If you want to build a lasting venture capital organization, you need to start showing DPI for your fund. Keep in mind that this is traditional VC data from Carta, and is not strictly crypto venture. Crypto venture tends to get liquidity earlier (tokens) and things tend to go parabolic sooner (faster, more unicorns) - but I’d wager that the data here is somewhat similar for Crypto VCs… Not as much DPI as there should be from these earlier vintages. Read the full article, as well as a recap of all the crypto fundraising rounds for August, here: https://lnkd.in/g3eVJ-iF

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Two announcements re: our upcoming first-of-its-kind-event: a) 70+ Attendees are registered! b) The upcoming SiliconXL LaunchAthon is perfect for Job Seekers, Software Engineers and Boston-based Startups For more info or to register, visit ---> https://lnkd.in/efPxJ6Fk www - launchathons - com/boston The upcoming SiliconXL LaunchAthon is designed to provide job seekers with an immersive, hands-on experience that goes beyond traditional training. Through targeted AI coding workshops, attendees will dive deep into advanced AI tools and coding platforms, equipping them with practical skills that employers actively seek. These workshops allow job seekers to build real-world projects in collaboration with industry mentors, creating tangible portfolio pieces that showcase their abilities and problem-solving prowess. For those looking to enter the tech field, our LaunchAthon is an invaluable opportunity to gain relevant, hands-on experience that will make them stand out in a competitive job market. Furthermore, the collaborative environment encourages networking with potential employers and peers, giving job seekers a head start on forming connections that may lead to employment opportunities. For software engineers already in the workforce, our LaunchAthon’s workshops provide a vital opportunity to upskill and explore emerging technologies that might not be part of their current roles. The hands-on experience in AI-powered coding workshops offers a practical way to stay updated with industry trends, experiment with new tools, and learn innovative problem-solving techniques. These workshops encourage engineers to think outside their regular scope of work, sparking creativity and enhancing their adaptability to new challenges. Attending the SiliconXL LaunchAthon can add value not only to their current skill set but also to their role within their organization, as they bring back fresh insights and advanced knowledge that can be applied immediately to drive innovation in their day-to-day work. or startup entrepreneurs, the upcoming LaunchAthon offers an unparalleled opportunity to bring their ideas to life through hands-on experience with cutting-edge AI tools and collaborative workshops. Entrepreneurs will benefit from an environment where they can test, validate, and iterate on their concepts with the guidance of industry mentors and experienced tech professionals. These sessions are designed to accelerate the development process, providing valuable insights into product design, rapid prototyping, and market alignment. Beyond just building, entrepreneurs will also network with potential co-founders, partners, and investors, creating connections that can support their startup’s growth. LaunchAthon is more than an event; it’s a launchpad for entrepreneurial visionaries looking to create impactful, scalable tech solutions in a high-energy, supportive setting.

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LP Tip #8 of #50: Your LP base should match your fund size. We are back with our regular programming. ➡️ Opinions are always my own and based on my experience.  ➡️ My focus for this post is on sub $200.0M funds. ➡️ The $ amounts I state below are guideposts never absolute rules.  ➡️ Some LPs want to have a certain % of the fund and size their investments in this way; others have set check sizes irrespective of fund size. I continue to be surprised at how much time new GPs waste with LPs that are unlikely to invest. I urge managers to better qualify LP leads and be extremely judicious with how they manage their time. In my experience there are 6 LP types that I consistently come across. See below. ▶️ Non- Institutional LPs:  1️⃣ High net worth individuals (HNWI) - There are different tiers of HNWI but assume that this is someone with at least $1.0M in net worth in liquid assets. In my experience they are the fastest to close and conduct limited diligence. I often see them investing $100K - $500K checks in funds. It is possible for a fund manager to close a $5.0M fund on entirely HNWIs. 2️⃣ Family Office - There are different types of family offices. For simplicity sake let us assume that this is a single-family office with an investment team and a set venture allocation. Keep in mind that family offices are hard to find because they do not want to be found. Typically, you find these via referrals from other GPs or your current LPs. I often see <=$50.0M funds composed of HNWI and family office LPs. I have seen a range of investment checks form family offices. 3️⃣ Corporate - I include banks in this category. Due to the market downturn these entities either halted or slowed pacing. In my experience I have seen corporates invest anywhere from $500K - $10.0M checks. This type of LP is often present in sub < $100M funds. ▶️ Institutional LPs:   4️⃣ Fund of Funds (FoFs) - Unlike the other LP types, FoFs need to raise from LPs. I have seen FoFs invest in fund sizes across the spectrum. Depending on the FoF they can invest in funds as small as $15.0M. 5️⃣ Foundations -  These are often investing to align with their mission. I would spend time understanding how you complement their programmatic work. I have seen foundations invest in $45.0M funds and above.  6️⃣ University Endowments - Endowments is where most new GPs waste time. It is important to ask if the university has an emerging manager program upfront. I have seen emerging manager programs invest in small funds ($25.0M - $65.0M). It also helps if the GP was an active alum of the university or had some unique relationship to the university.  If there is no emerging manager program I am often told that there should be a fund target on the low-end of anywhere b/w $150.0M - $200.0M to be considered.

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Insightful breakdown from my great Partner Omri Amirav-Drory on the simple factors that really separate the top 1% of investors from the rest, and how more operators should become investors! https://lnkd.in/gEiZdT2h

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💡Benchmarks in the investment industry serve as a standard for measuring the performance of securities, mutual funds, or investment managers. They provide a reference point for analyzing allocation, risk, and return of a portfolio, enabling investors to make informed decisions. Thanks Peter Walker for keeping us all informed!! Can’t wait for this!! Follow and get on the waitlist for this one! #benchmarks #fundraising #Capitalraise #founders #womenshealth #femhealth #medtech #wellness

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Some VC investors believe that brick and mortar - referring to a physical presence of some kind - should be avoided at all costs. Yet, the track record of clinic and hybrid care businesses in health care indicates otherwise. ==> One Medical (sold for $3.9 billion to Amazon), Oak Street (bought by CVS for $10.6 billion), Lifestance (IPO at $7.5 billion market cap), and PE-backed Premise Health (acquired by OMERS Private Equity for $1.1 billion) If a clinic is indicated as the optimal way to deliver care for that patient population, there are creative ways to build and operate them. Full article below with advice and strategies on how to build and operate hybrid clinics from my teammate Anarghya Vardhana from Maveron, Amir Dan Rubin from OneMedical Group, Steven Eidelman from Modern Animal and more!

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I'm pleased to share that Lightrock has continued to support Thomas Doering and Distribusion Technologies in their $80 million Series C funding round. Distribusion is the leading global B2B ground transportation marketplace, addressing inefficiencies in this €700 billion market. The industry’s progress has been hindered by legacy technology, making multi-modal travel planning and booking difficult and time-consuming. This increases costs for consumers and negatively impacts sustainability as travellers opt for private cars and taxis over less polluting transportation options. Using a single API, Distribusion connects transport carriers like National Express LLC, Amtrak, and Deutsche Bahn with retailers such as Expedia Group, Google Maps, and Alipay. This allows consumers to seamlessly compare and purchase tickets on trusted platforms. There's a high likelihood that Distribusion has facilitated your travel without you knowing it. We led the company's Series B in 2022, and since then Distribusion has grown tenfold, creating the largest global B2B network of ground transport operators. This growth, combined with achieving profitability, has encouraged us to reinvest and continue with this company on this exciting journey. We look forward to continuing our work with this team. Learn more about #Distribusion via the link in the comments. #TravelTech #FutureOfTravel

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💰Sharing a List of 80 Black-led VC funds (US based): About this list: I realized that I couldn’t find a current list of Black-led funds as of 2024 when a lot of new funds have launched over the last couple of years including GPs Sydney Paige Thomas, Terri Burns and more. I have been gathering a list of these funds in my network, and that I could find publicly over time so wanted to share with the ecosystem. Only 2% of VC funds are Black-led: I found 80 funds (maybe there’s more!). There are 3,417 VC firms in the US (according to NVCA). Founders - These funds invest from pre-seed through growth, some with a focus on diverse founders, others more broadly. ⅔ of them have OPEN funding applications that I’ve linked in the sheet. LPs - As mentioned, a number of these funds might not be in the databases used for tracking, so hope to get some more Black-led funds on your radar! VCs - maybe there are some funds you should get to know for deal sharing, etc 👉🏾Link to full list here: https://lnkd.in/gktBhY-W

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“The fund that’s delivering the best returns right now is the one that doesn’t invest in Silicon Valley startups.” That’s what one of the fund-of-funds managers told me. He shared that their most successful investment at the moment is in a fund that invests in projects across the U.S., except for San Francisco/Bay Area. This fund focuses on pre-seed stage, with small checks and low valuations (they invest in about 100 companies a year). Personally, I believe the success of this fund is not tied to geography at all. It’s more about the classic "Spray and Pray" strategy: - Making a high volume of deals (100 per year) - Writing small checks ($50-100k) - Low valuations ($3-5M cap) - Led by an experienced team As a result, they secure meaningful stakes in companies that take off. With that many companies in the portfolio and an experienced team, it’s likely that some will succeed. I think the strategy of avoiding Silicon Valley is driven by the fact that valuations there are much higher than $3-5M even at the pre-seed stage. Silicon Valley has its own advantages - access to more capital, the ability to scale faster, and quick access to everything needed in the tech world. That’s why those who invest exclusively in this region are betting on the higher likelihood that a company will succeed, thus offsetting the higher starting valuations. In the end, the strategies are different, but the results might be similar. The first approach involves more companies, lower valuations, and lower chances of success for each startup. The second approach involves fewer companies, higher valuations, but a greater probability of success for the startups.

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💥 Highly Recommended Post: Great post about VC. The biggest question is in my opinion, why are 90% of VC’s still necessary in the age of decentralised money and AI? I truly do not understand why LP’s and Family Offices can not create investment efficiency by direct investment into startups themselves. I understand it had to work this way initially with the VC middle man, but times change. VC’s just make the process of funding long and boring with fees etc and their own internal business model to justify ROI. It’s a different world now and most VC’s are dinosaurs 🦕 like a lot of jobs are dinosaurs because of AI and WFH etc. Our world has changed and startups can raise and scale in numerous ways without the VC stress and bubble they help create for themselves 🤓 Morpheus thinks 🌿 🌿 Learn a lot about 4IRGPT .com knowledge trading for your professional benefit, creativity, productivity, business or organisation through Perplexity AI. Click here to see why: https://lnkd.in/dY5MmsGh 🪴💥 Watch 💯 uninterrupted 15,000+ videos of intelligence in tech, finance & geopolitics. Keep yourself and family super smart and way ahead of the herd. Click here: https://lnkd.in/dHJ8i_Q5

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If 30-50% of venture firms disappear... What will it take for emerging managers to survive and thrive? Read more about the growing consolidation in VC and the challenges for EMs to differentiate themselves in an increasingly competitive landscape dominated by larger firms from QED Investors' Frank Rotman. #VC #OpenLP #EmergingManagers

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VC Market Update: Riding Out the Post-Boom Bumps. 2021's high-flying valuations and growth have given way to a more complex reality. With longer private timelines, tough exit markets, and capital tightness, startups face unique challenges—but also fresh opportunities. For those navigating today’s VC landscape, strategic planning is key. Whether it's balancing growth with capital efficiency or exploring secondaries smartly, there’s a path forward. And with boosts from AI and future rate cuts, brighter days could be ahead!

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PE - AI & Scarcity of Software Engineers Robert F. Smith of Vista Equity compared the scarcity of software engineers to resources rarer than gold, underscoring their high demand. However, today AI's growing ability to write code will transform Tech PE by accelerating software development and creation. Key impacts include: • More scalable software • Improved code quality • Shift in developer roles • Faster development cycles • Reduced development costs • Faster innovation and prototyping • Custom solutions for larger customers • Risk mitigation with AI-assisted debugging • Competitive advantage for early AI adopters • Lower barriers for scaling software development AI will amplify developer productivity, not replace them, and PE firms integrating AI into portfolio workflows can unlock the next wave of growth. ------------------ #pe #privateequity #investing #ai

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Since early 2021, VC quarterly exit values have plummeted to $50B or below, a stark contrast to the six consecutive quarters of $100B+ exits before then. With IPOs dwindling and M&A activity slow, the future of venture industry exits appears uncertain. Will we see a surge in private venture-backed company acquisitions? This could be a crucial and innovative strategy to boost VC exits. Increased private acquisitions might offer a much-needed lifeline, providing a creative solution to the current exit drought in the venture capital market. #venturecapital #inspireglobalventures

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TVPI is a measure of fund success that many VCs consider extremely important. IRR, MOIC, DPI and TVPI are all used by VCs. Personally, I use all these metrics to establish the profitability of a fund.

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