Jeff McDermott’s Post

We all have biases that distort our perception, leading to poor decisions and less-than-ideal outcomes. One of the most valuable lessons I was lucky to learn early is that honesty with others fosters honesty with self - and honesty, served with respect, always makes you stronger, and ultimately, more successful. In the coming weeks, my focus is to secure an anchor LP for my new fund, which will invest in products and games that strengthen family bonds and enhance family health - physically, mentally, and emotionally. My ultimate professional ambition is to be a fund manager known for an authentically warm yet magical “Midas touch,” combined with sharp critical thinking. I aim to consistently raise oversubscribed funds and deliver stellar returns for investors. With my first VC fund, SmartGateVC, we got oversubscribed, and our LP IRR (though unrealized yet) ranks us in the top 1% of US VC fund returns. Over the next 4 days, I’ll be having at least 13 calls with successful friends, asking them to challenge me. I invite you to join this journey - learn about my new fund vision and model, be brutally honest, and challenge it. I’m ready and already grateful for the pain, the death, and the ultimate resurrection (or reincarnation) that comes with it. God bless you! :)

Just my personal opinion here... I think a lot of Fund 1 emerging VC's should do studio funds. Why? Because they control the deal flow and the studio controls the portfolio companies versus having to go out and find deal flow with different operators/founders. It's a more controlled environment for the emerging VC's.

VCs need to fund the team or person. Many times it's about the idea or projected revenue! ie: look at how OpenAI has eaten the lunch and dinner of so many AI startups! Imagine if that money went to energy and power systems startups that decarbonize the power system? How else can AI get the power! Get it?!

Did you know that Provo, Utah-based Angel Studios believes it's worth nearly $1.6 billion?!?!?! Yes, that's "Unicorn" status, and Angel Studios has now very publicly disclosed to the world that, in fact, that that is exactly what the firm is worth. Intrigued?!?!?! If so, please turn to Utah Money Watch to read our report (and analysis) titled "Is Angel Studios Really Worth $1.58 Billion? It Thinks So." — which you can read here: https://lnkd.in/grniKi47. TBH (to be honest), we've held back of late in diving into Angel Studios' financial activities over the past two weeks, the euphemistically known "dog days" of summer. But when we began digging into its interrelated machinations and announcements, we started to realize what it was that #AngelStudios was up to. At least we think so. That said, we look forward to your thoughts and feedback on this report, whether via #likes, #comments, #shares, #reposts and/or DMs. As always, the intent is to provide you, my subscribers & readers, insights and information not available from any other source in Utah. All the best, David ("Poppa P") Politis, Founder, Editor, and Publisher Utah Money Watch #utah #money #finance #financing #monetary #financial #IPO #publiccompany #SPAC #SpecialPurposeAcquisitionCompany #merger #SPACmerger #RegA+ #fundraising

Family offices are projected to oversee more wealth than the entire hedge fund industry, yet many still rely on disjointed tools (read: Excel) to track assets, store important investment documents in email inboxes, and face inefficiencies compounded by complex familial layers with various dependents and beneficiaries. Existing solutions that attempt to service this market are often outdated, clunky, and expensive—but MyFO is changing the game. We’re excited to announce our investment in MyFO—a platform set to revolutionize the way family offices manage their wealth. With Simran Kang and Jon Ricci—two founders with deep personal and professional experience in the family office space—leading the charge, we're thrilled to support their vision. Becoming the “control hub” for family offices is the tip of the iceberg, excited for what’s next. Welcome to the Crash, MyFO! Family offices looking to learn more - see link in comments to schedule a demo. Rhino announcement in comments David Hogarth Fraser Hall Nicholas Hyldelund Candace Hobin

This week on "Billionaire Braintrust," Silvia Lupu of Hikaro Capital, joins Steve Woodruff, CFP® to discuss how this independent asset management firm bridges family offices with fund managers, focusing on real estate, private equity, private credit, and venture capital. Catch the full series featuring exclusive interviews with billionaires and the key players in their organizations. #familyoffices #realestate #privateequity #privatecredit #venturecapital

There's one part of this interview that really stood out to me—I listened to a few times! Around the 40 minute mark, Earnest asks about the future of venture capital, referencing friends that left big funds to start small funds. What I love is Lisa's response separating "Venture Beta" from "Venture Alpha". I've been thinking about this a lot over the past few years. It seemed like there was a narrative in the VC community that megafunds were "ruinning venture" by writing checks at the seed stage. We didn't really feel the sting of that at SpringTime, though I did wonder and worry about the prevalence of megafunds, and if they would eventually elbow out microfunds. After ruminating and researching, I settled on "there will always be room for microfunds" based on how other private capital markets evolved, as well as some observations in the market. But I didn't have a succinct way to explain it. Lisa nails it. β vs α She describes Venture Beta as a large, multi-stage, massive AUM fund with lots of resources. This plays a part in a multi-asset allocator (LP) portfolio. Compare that to Venture Alpha: small funds, focused on early stage, actively seeking differentiation. SIDEBAR: In capital markets, Beta is when your portfolio matches the market rate of return. Alpha is when you beat the market. The venture world has industrialized to the point that some allocators are seeking beta with their venture portfolio. They want to have money in venture and they are good with market-rate returns. But in all markets, there is *always* a place for alpha. Which makes me happy to be a partner at an awesome microfund. 😁 That's just on the LP side. There's still a compelling case for founders to work with microfunds... but that's a post for another time.

You’ve probably heard the term “Accredited Investor,” but what does it really mean? An accredited investor is someone who meets specific financial criteria set by the SEC, such as income, net worth, or certain business entities. These qualifications open doors to exclusive investment opportunities—like private real estate deals, hedge funds, venture capital, and more—that aren’t available to the general public. These guidelines are designed to ensure investors have the financial expertise and capacity to manage the risks that come with more complex investments. Want to learn more about accredited investments in real estate? Connect with us at CREI Partners—we’re here to guide you through the process! #CREIPartners #AccreditedInvestor #learntoinvest

To understand the difference between VC Fund and Venture Studio, observe the roles of each👇🏻