Rodrigo Ferreira

Portugal Calling: Venture Capital -- in Portugal!? I just set a meeting in a couple of weeks I didn't imagine I'd ever have. I'm meeting with a GP raising money for a new fund to make angel investments in Portugal. I've been on this bandwagon for awhile. I thought I might try to raise a fund myself, but I just don't have the bandwidth right now. But I'm glad it's happening. There's money here. While there are retirees who are here because, flatly, they knew they'd run out of money if they stayed in the US, there are plenty of others who made their bag and have investable assets. Why invest here? 1. Valuations are attractive - there isn't a lot of risk capital here - and what there is seems to be going to real estate (if you are from Atlanta you know exactly what I mean.) 2. Portugal is producing a strong number of startup entrepreneurs. If you're not from Portugal, you're not familiar with the education system, but there are top-notch universities here. 3. Portugal is one of the youngest countries in Europe, demographically. In fact, one of the top three economic problems the country faces is keeping all the young talent here. They emigrate in large numbers. 4. Portugal attracts a lot of young talent from abroad because of its low cost of living and relatively easy-to-obtain visas. Americans tend to hear about Portugal as a retirement destination, but those of us who know recognize that there's business to be done here. 5. In many ways, Portugal's overall cost of doing business is low - much lower than Silicon Valley, London, Stockholm, or Berlin. 6. The government started smartly supporting startup formation, and this is likely to accelerate with its right-of-center government in place (assuming it can remain in power.). European Union innovation support funds are being under-utilized and are a tremendous opportunity. 7. Entrepreneurs can quit their jobs and not lose healthcare. And you don't have to take my word for it. Microsoft announced the launch of an artificial intelligence innovation hub in Lisbon this year. Alphabet already has had a technology center here for a few years. I'm attending the SIM startup conference in Porto the first week of May and I can't wait to start to see some of the startups firsthand. (Are you going too? Let's meet up!) #portugal #unblakeable My name is Mike (Stage Name - Unblakeable) - Helping you win your best business decisions at your most critical moments.   Liked this post? Want to see more? Ring the bell on my profile. Connect with me (also @unblakeable on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter) Subscribe to my YouTube channel! https://lnkd.in/dPBgT8gx Join the LinkedIn group "Unblakeable's Group That Doesn't Suck"   Welcome!

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It was an absolute pleasure to sit down with Joao Barbosa, co-founder at the world's leading corporate wellness platform Gympass(now rebranded to Wellhub) for the most recent episode of The J Curve. Five big ideas from our convo 👇💡 1️⃣ Startup pivot is not an event, it’s a process Base your decision on data, customer feedback and other validated learnings. Establish clear KPIs that will guide decision-making and define what should success look like. Be prepared to test and iterate and test again. Flexibility, adaptability and sensitivity to feedback is key 2️⃣ Building a MOAT, or competitive advantage is essential for a startup to compete and sustain growth In Wellhub case the moat is network effect. It’s difficult and expensive to build (CAC was huge) but at scale it represents a huge barrier to exit for corporate clients 3️⃣ Put a lot of thought into pricing model, especially if you operate in a B2B segment Early-stage founders frequently under-price their offering. Once you land 1-2-year enterprise contracts, changing the price will be problematic 4️⃣ International expansion has to be carefully planned and executed post-product market fit Ideally once you have already significantly penetrated your domestic market and gained a clear understanding of how / why every dollar you spend internationally will deliver you more money than if you were to spend it domestically 5️⃣ Standardized processes are at the core of building teams at scale When you hire 100 people a month it’s not about keeping the bar high but about creating a clear set of rules to evaluate the performance and hire and fire fast You can listen to my full conversation with Joao by searching The J Curve Podcast on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcast For deeper insights into this conversation + some of my favorite listens and reads of this week check out our newsletter link in comment 🔗

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A rapidly maturing startup ecosystem, heightened due diligence practices, and a steady pipeline of startups gearing up for public markets, India is clearly the promised land for investors and entrepreneurs alike. In a recent interview with Vibhuti Sharma from DealStreetAsia, I delved into how India remains a key focus for RTP Global. We discussed how with our new $1B fund, we are doubling down on the region's potential, backed by our dedicated team in India supporting early-stage entrepreneurs. India is an essential part of RTP Global's long-term vision, and we remain committed to nurturing innovative startups that can scale globally

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When celebrities invest cash into startups they often get lower valuations in exchange for promotion. And I believe that is exactly what happened with Ronaldo’s latest investment in wearable technology company WHOOP. The Portuguese soccer icon just invested and became an official global ambassador for Whoop, the wearable technology company. “Whoop has had a transformative impact on my life both on and off the pitch,” Ronaldo said in a statement. “I wear Whoop while training, sleeping, and recovering. It’s been one of the most important tools helping me elevate my game and monitor my health.” The financial details of the investment have not been disclosed, but according to Whoop, the deal represents one of Ronaldo’s “most significant investments to date.” Although it could definitely be true that Ronaldo invested cash, I don’t believe he paid the full price for it (but this is just an assumption). Often when celebrities invest, they get discounted valuations or do a part equity deal in exchange for promoting the company. Ronaldo for example has 629 million followers on Instagram and is the most followed person on the platform. One post about a company and the website will probably blow up (which is exactly what Ronaldo did this morning btw announcing his partnership with Whoop). Besides getting a financial injection, most often the startups receiving the celebrity investment also gain a lot of social exposure, which they normally have to pay millions of dollars for. So it makes sense to do a part equity deal or offer a lower valuation. What do you think? 

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𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 80/20 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗷𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀? If you've been following me for a while, you know that I take very seriously the pursuit of the best risk vs. return ratio; that is, I seek the highest possible returns while minimizing risks as much as possible. In Naval Ravikant's Almanack, he mentions something that, although obvious—we often overlook the simple and effective—resonated deeply with me: which is that the judgment of what to do is much more important than putting in energy and hard work. For example, someone who sets up a bakery in the wrong location will waste a lot of energy trying to make it work, due to the flawed initial idea. Investing is no different. So, what is the 80/20 rule that, when applied with good judgment, will lead to the best results? I've concluded that it is investing in secular trends. When you invest in a major trend, even if you make mistakes along the way, these mistakes will not be very relevant. If you invest in a sector that is not as promising, any mistake can cost you a lot of profitability. And what are the big secular trends currently? That was the theme I discussed in the last Investor Letter, my weekly Newsletter where I share insightful insights for every investor. Sign up to receive it every Saturday in your inbox: https://lnkd.in/dATHGMV8

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Interesting story of a finacial disruptor. Learn more when my friend Rob Dwyer prints the story

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This part of my conversation with Joao Barbosa, co-founder at the world’s leading wellness platform Gympass (now Wellhub) valued at $2.4 is a testament to the fact that nothing big actually started big 👇 It took Gympass 5 pivots and 2 near death experiences to find the business model that works and is scalable across the globe What I found really interesting is the framework that the team had around pivots - the tripod approach towards creating value. This approach could benefit many founders especially in marketplace kinda businesses Head over to our channels on Spotify, Apple and YouTube to watch / listen to the full conversation link in comment 🔗 The J Curve #thejcurvepodcast #podcastrecommendation #gympass #pivot #entrepreneurship #founder #venturecapital

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Brazil is a crypto hub and if you’re a VC not paying attention to this region your missing out.. After being here only a few days, have met many incredible founders, investors, and startup talent. I wouldn’t be surprised if in the next few years there are most exits and VCs coming out of Brazil. #crypto #web3 #blockchain #latam #emergingmarkets #investors #founders #builders #startups

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💥 PoV: What it feels like when the Blockchain updates and you see Crypto or an NFT in your wallet for the first time (Sound: ON)... 😬 'I knew it was going to work all along, bro, honest!...' ☄️ Full disclosure, this is a video of the meteor that passed over Portugal and Spain this weekend (pretty awesome, right?), but the reaction made me think about when was the last time I felt that 'wow' moment... At least in Web3... 🧳 The User Experience (UX) of Web3 apps and Blockchains is unlikely to be as simple and easy as today's Cloud-based apps all the time, because you will always require the decentralised, permissionless aspects of how the system works and provides security. 📣 In short, there will be wallets, and latency with transactions... And in those first user transactions there will be the same overwhelming sense of ANXIETY that you felt the first time you entered your credit card details on the internet... 🙌🏽 And they you'll get that moment of unbridled ELATION when the technology works the way it was supposed to, and you get your crypto, your NFT, your verification, or whatever it is that you came for in the first place... 💉 You don't get that same elation from AI and the Metaverse, now, do you? Only in Web3 can we take a UX issue, and turn it into dopamine! 👍🏽 But so many project are working on this, and we already have: - Sign-in with Google (Sui, Aptos) - Custodial wallets (NEAR, Immutable) - Browser plugins (pretty much all L1s and L2s) 🎁 And it's going to get better. We just about finalised the 'infrastructure' side of Web3. We're about to see an explosion (hopefully not literally) of improvements to UX, apps and performance in the coming years. Stay positive! What was the last Web3 moment you had that took your breath away? 🚀🌔 #blockchain #technology #management #innovation  

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New Framedrop.ai blog post straight from the oven by Filipe Pessoa. How you can monetize a podcast in 5 steps: 1. 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲: Wait until you have an established audience base.     2. 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: Understand their interests, pain points, and preferences.     3. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀: Sponsorship, affiliate marketing, donations, premium content, merchandise, events, memberships, product sales.     4. Click to read the full article 🎣     5. Click again 😅 It includes 10 tried-and-tested ways 🤓

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Daniel Marques and I caught Kemi Levi being founder in the wild at Saint Francis Tulsa Tough last Friday. The grind doesn't ever stop, does it? I'm guessing some #founders in my network can relate!😂 Check out Pangia! These guys are a revolutionizing Community as a Service by leveraging human data/analytics.🚀 Ever had a wild founder moment? Share your story below! #startups #community #hustle

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A country of opportunities, when it comes to energy, agriculture and mining. Brazil became in recent years a save heaven for supply-chains, cooperations and investments. In 2022, the country was the fifth important destination for foreign direct investments globally. The giant agrisector represents a quarter og Brazil's GDP. It is expected that this sector will contribute 40% to the global food production by 2050. Based on this food production, there are incredible resources for using second generation biomass and renewable carbon, that can be used for energy production, the cement and steel industry or even chemicals. Europe needs this feedstock much more than ever and Brazil is looking for off-takers and also for breakthrough cleantech innovations coming from US, Europe and Israel. With UBK we are working in Brazil since 8 years, supporting a.o. Brazilian companies in exploring the European market and opening shut doors to potential cooperation partners in Europe and Israel. Brazil does not only provide in Europe needed commodities on secure sea routes, but also is going to becomes a high-tech applicant when it comes to energy transition challenges. At present, we are arranging club-deals as co-investor in European and Israli startups and explore the European market for Brazilian biogenic energy providers. #Brazil #energytransition

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TAGUS ROUNDTABLE ANNOUNCES 2024 CONCEPTS The Tagus Roundtable is an invitation-only annual gathering in Lisbon (May 9-10, 2024) that connects developers of promising sustainable finance concepts with relevant fund managers, concessionality providers, and thought leaders from around the world. This year our selection committee reviewed over 39 proposals and is proud to invite the following two project sponsors to Lisbon: The Green Bank Design Platform: “The Bezos Earth Fund’s sustainable finance and diplomacy team — together with partners — is at the early stages of exploring the concept of a Green Bank Design Platform as a component of a broader program of activities and interventions designed to make the international climate finance architecture more effective, responsive and accountable to local needs.” Unilever’s Supplier Climate Programme:  “Already working to engage 300 of its most emissions-intensive suppliers around the world and support them to a position of climate leadership through its Supplier Climate Programme, Unilever is looking to further accelerate suppliers’ decarbonisation through its Climate & Nature Fund, designed to transform the way Unilever products are made and reach end of life. Unilever is currently considering several potential solutions to address the inherent financial and technical challenges of its suppliers in designing and implementing decarbonisation roadmaps. Unilever seeks to find the solutions and structures where its capital can be the most catalytic and can help suppliers achieve most positive impact.” At its core, the Tagus Roundtable is intended to foster supportive networks around selected concepts to accelerate their development and launch. Our secret sauce will be open, frank, collaborative dialogue and time spent together breaking bread and sharing experiences. Drop-ins – If you happen to be in Lisbon during the Tagus Roundtable and would like to meet up with some of our members or tag along with our social activities, please let me know. Many thanks to our sponsors, members and friends: ISEG - Lisbon School of Economics & Management, DAI, Africa Finance Corporation, Bezos Earth Fund, Climate Asset Management, Posaidon Capital, Pollination, Systemic, Unilever

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In a weird way, market adversity and cash constraints faced by the growth-stage founders in Brazil and some other emerging markets are their golden ticket to the billion dollar startup club 🦄 The ‘foie gras effect’ sees startups in the US force-fed capital only to collapse under the weight of hyper growth (HBR). Today we see it happening with AI startups - they scale pre-maturely, burn tons of cash and raise at crazy valuations they won’t be able to justify in the future rounds of financing. We’ve seen this show before with crypto, D2C brands etc. Well that’s almost never (cuz forget 2021 funding craziness) the case in Brazilian tech investing especially at growth stage. While I don’t have data on LatAm, in 2022, in emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region, there was over 5 times as much capital deployed in early stage VC than in Growth Equity. I imagine its pretty comparable. So what does it mean? That means that founders in Brazil & certain emerging markets are more financially savvy, long-term focused and bake resiliency and adaptability into their mode of operations. Businesses they build tend to be problem-driven, faster to profitability and more complex than your average B2B SaaS. That also means that global Series B+++ investors should pay more attention to Brazil, LatAm and certain other emerging markets. Loggi CEO Thibaud Lecuyer who joined me on this week’s episode of The J Curve talked a lot about the opportunities that Brazilian market has to offer. Short snippet of that conversation 👇 To watch / listen to the full episode head over to our channels on Apple, Spotify and YouTube 🎙️

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Only 34% of adults are financially literate. 60% of Portuguese adults lack the minimum financial knowledge Need to say more? We need to think about our kids' future in today's volatile environment. Invest in education and help them develop core skills. This is one of the reasons why I joined Global Shapers Lisbon Hub to develop "Mary and the Secret of Savings," a children's storybook that has been translated into 20 languages and adapted by +50 Global Shapers Community hubs. Today, I'm happy to see the results of our efforts doing wonders worldwide. Beyond +3000 physical books distributed in Lisbon. Hundred ebooks downloaded. And our story on the World Economic Forum today. 🫶

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Great insights on the current state and emerging trends in the VC industry by our friends from Armilar in Portugal. Key Highlights - Seed-stage is very active, especially in the AI space - Early-stage (Series A/B) is experiencing a significant decline in activity - Late-stage is struggling with liquidity, delaying IPOs - Secondary market is on the rise, providing an alternative source of liquidity for the late stage companies The link is in the comments below.

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"9 out of 10 boards are terrible... because you didn’t set it up right" says Paulo Paulo Passoni. So what should founder do to have useful boards? Here are 6 insights from on how to structure and leverage a board for maximum benefit from the conversation with Paulo at the Fundraising School. 1. Set up the right Board from the beginning 💼 Founders must be proactive in forming and managing their boards, ensuring the right people are in place from the beginning. "Ask the investor, can I get some contact information of founders where you served on the board?" This helps you gauge their effectiveness and compatibility and push back if needed. 2. Preparation is Key 🗝 Founders should prepare board members by walking them through the board deck one-on-one before the meeting. This preparation allows the actual board meeting to focus on strategic debates rather than mundane updates. "No board meeting should last more than 2 hours... you have to prepare everyone for those 2 hours” advises Paulo. 3. Optimize Board Size 🔢 The primary role of a board should be to "debate the key strategic issues of your company," rather than just reporting results. This includes making decisions on product strategy, market approaches, and other critical areas. Smaller boards function better. "The more people you allow into the board discussion, the lower the quality," Paulo advises. He suggests limiting the number of participants to avoid politics and ensure quality discussions. 4. Importance of Trust 👊 Building trust between founders and board members is essential to foster personal relationships, which in turn facilitate honest and productive discussions. "Trust is the hardest thing to build between founders and investors... it's personal, not business. 5. Diversity of Experience 🎶 A diverse board, including former founders, legal experts, and public company executives, can provide a broad range of insights and experiences. Paulo highlights that “independent board members can speak more freely and can be trusted more frequently" 6. Dynamic and Evolving Boards 🔧 The composition of the board should evolve as the company grows. Founders should not hesitate to reshuffle the board to bring in new skills and experiences needed for different stages of the company's development. "Take the round as an opportunity to have the conversation about reshuffling the board” suggests Paulo. ⚡ By being intentional about board composition and dynamics, founders can create a board that truly adds value. 🔗 To join our final sessions of the Fundraising School register at www.fundraisingschool.com https://lnkd.in/eZ2reP9H #fundraisingschool #startups #entrepreneurship #VC #fundraising ◽️Andres Bilbao Valor Capital Group

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‌I recently returned from spending a week in São Paulo, where I had the pleasure of visiting friends and loved ones. In addition to reconnecting, I engaged in productive discussions with founders, fellow venture capitalists, and other asset allocators. ✈ 👨‍💻 👊 The trip was filled with great meetings, offering valuable insights and market perspectives on early-stage venture capital and the fintech ecosystem in Brazil. 🎯 🌎 💡 #VCs #earlystage #investments #networking

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While #TaylorSwift was "shaking it off" at her two-day concert in Lisbon, we were busy shaking up the future of finance of private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC)! 🎤💼 I had the incredible opportunity to attend the #CFOForum2024 of Invest Europe in Lisbon representing Rubio Impact Ventures, where I gained valuable insights and met some fantastic individuals. Here are my top takeaways: Valuation in New Markets: 📈 - M&A activity is back, and the secondary market is increasingly active. 🔄 - Consistency in valuation methodology is crucial. 📉 - PE/VC markets are less volatile compared to public markets, which sometimes draws media criticism. 🤐 - Interestingly, regulators in continental Europe remain silent on valuation queries and regulations, although attention is building. Key LPA Terms and LP/GP Dynamics: ⏳ - Fundraising periods are extending, now often up to 18 months. 🗓 - The use of effective dates for fund term starts is on the rise. 💪 - Portfolio involvement and support from GPs are becoming more critical. 📊 - Investment periods mostly remain 5 years, especially for VC funds with <€500M AUM. Generative AI: - Generative AI is increasingly on the minds and agendas of finance teams in VC/PE. 🤖 - Data challenges are slowing down the integration of Gen AI into processes and workflows. 🖲 Startup Finance Functions, how can a VC support: - The needs of the finance function vary based on the maturity and sector of the company. Build trust along the way. - Becoming a “sparring partner” and communicating the current and future needs of the finance function can help startups prepare and take action. - It starts with hiring an experienced CFO who can hire, coach, lead, and grow the finance team. It was a pleasure meeting and exchanging ideas with fellow finance professionals such as Leonie Mekel Michael Topalian Dwight Cupit Anna Daviau Toutain Carl-Henrik Einar Patrick Robinson Lee Tagg Arthur Hay Peter Roos Martin Bresson Bonnie Kraus Enguerran de Crémiers Deji Oduwole Keith Hinchcliffe and others. Their perspectives have enriched my understanding and approach. Looking forward to the next one! #CFOForum2024 #PrivateEquity #VentureCapital #InvestmentStrategies #GenerativeAI #Fundraising #impactinvesting #InvestEurope

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