International VCs Gather at SVB Global Connect
No industry and no region are immune from disruption. The technology revolution continues to fuel innovation everywhere, adding resiliency to the venture investing ecosystem.
That was the clear take-away from Silicon Valley Bank’s fourth annual Global Connect sponsored by Global Gateway, which drew more than 200 investors from a dozen countries.
The goal of Global Connect is to share the latest trends and best practices with investors in emerging international markets. It’s been a strong couple of years for VC investment in many places, but consider that in 2018, investment doubled to $2B in Latin America and increased 150 percent, to $12B, in Southeast Asia.
Even in the face of global volatility, we anticipate steep growth in VC investments to continue, especially in new emerging markets such as Latin America, Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
SVB CEO Greg Becker opened the event with a discussion of current market conditions. He told us that from his long view of the industry, today’s global innovation ecosystem is more sustainable and resilient today to withstand market cycles.
Steve Lucas, CEO of Marketo, described his company’s successful journey; a year ago Adobe acquired Marketo for $4.75B. He discussed how customer engagement at all levels can drive company value, but that this starts with engaging your employees first. His own motto is to make every experience epic — epic customer experiences will translate to great business results.
Aaron Gershenberg, Managing Partner at SVB Capital, described how the US venture ecosystem is seeing exceptional liquidity, as the summer wave of IPOs takes hold. His panel included Claire Lee, SVB Head of Early Stage Client Acquisition, Matt Hodan, Principal at Lexington Partners, Erik Sebusch, Mercer Alternatives Global Strategy Leader and Carolyn Mazonson, SVB Capital Investor. They took a long-term view of how to build a strong investor team.
How to succeed in this new era of non-traditional investors was a hot topic. Key to competitiveness (and to successful fundraising) is standing out from the crowd of highly-capitalized investors chasing fewer deals. Differentiate your firm with a unique value proposition, the panel advised. It may be a focus around timing, sector, stage, geography or diversity of investors and/or founders.
Jim Marshall, SVB’s Head of Emerging Manager Practice engaged Jeff Clavier, founder and Managing Partner of Uncorked Capital, in conversation about lessons from Clavier’s storied success as a seed investor. He told us that entrepreneurs seek and need meaningful feedback from investors, and there is great value in syndicating with other investors with complimentary skill sets to your own. And, he noted, to understand what numbers a startup must hit for follow-on investment, and to ultimately generate venture returns for the fund.
Jacqueline vonReichbauer, SVB’s Head of Family Office Practice, moderated a panel discussion with Karine Sarkissian, Founding Partner of Tamar Capital, Eva Shan, CIO of Alpha Square Group, and Luke Sikora, Growth Equity, Vulcan Capital. Family offices are increasingly professionalizing operations and investment strategies, and they are growing more active in both direct company and fund investments.
As investor competition builds, Upfront Capital’s Mark Suster described why it’s important to create a brand as a fund manager — not solely rely on the brand of the VC fund. In addition to having a unique selling proposition, he said it’s critical to “play offense” vs. defense in every aspect of being a VC.
Nobody knows offense like Softbank. John China, Head of SVB Capital, interviewed Deep Nishar, Softbank’s Senior Managing Partner. Softbank’s impact on global funding, of course, goes without saying. Nishar noted that digital transformation requires a lot of time and capital, and that at Softbank, they seek to select winners and “giving them wings”.
We see how fast the venture ecosystem is developing and succeeding all over the globe. The most prominent VCs are doubling down on their global ambitions, and why not? They are following the biggest market growth opportunities as domestic markets become more mature. The next big idea could come from anywhere.
Our Global Gateway team has experience in business development in new and emerging technology markets, including in Latin America, India, Australia/New Zealand and the Middle East. We are privileged to work with leading entrepreneurs and investors as clients and partners around the world. Global Connect 2019 underscored our enthusiasm for the potential of helping support technology advancements and innovative businesses in these international markets. We look forward to Global Connect 2020!
Authors Note: These views are my own and do not represent those of my employer.
