All Things Fundraising

Master sales with four game-changing principles: Focus on what matters, target the right people, craft the perfect pitch, and follow up like a pro. Packed with actionable tips, this guide helps you turn meetings into deals—fast! 💼🔥

In this episode of the Rainmaker Podcast, Gui Costin sits down with Paul Stanton, a partner at Thesis Driven and PTB, a real estate investment banking boutique. The conversation spans Paul's career journey, the power of content marketing in the investment world, and the transformative potential of AI for business builders.

Paul's path into real estate began after college at the University of Richmond, where he started in brokerage at Newmark before moving to the investment and development side. He later pursued a forward-thinking thesis around flexible office space, acquiring boutique Class B office buildings and operating them under co-working brands, a strategy that was derailed by COVID-19. Rather than retreating, Paul pivoted and launched an investment bank focused on operationally complex, niche real estate strategies, including outdoor hospitality, sports infrastructure, and surf infrastructure. This work eventually merged with Thesis Driven, a real estate media company he co-founded with entrepreneur Brad Hargreaves, focused on innovation in the built world through a capital markets lens.

A central theme of the conversation is the untapped opportunity for investment managers to build audiences through content marketing. Paul and Gui agree that the investment management industry represents the largest white space in content marketing today, most firms hide behind corporate brands and compliance concerns rather than humanizing their story. Both point to Jon Gray of Blackstone and Andreessen Horowitz as rare examples of founder-led brands that have embraced media to build trust at scale. Paul notes that the psychology behind this is rooted in parasocial relationships, when someone sees your face and hears your voice consistently, their brain begins to feel like it knows you, which creates a powerful foundation for trust in capital raising.

Paul shares his own experience building a LinkedIn presence over the past year, emphasizing that the mental shift that got him started was reframing content creation from self-promotion to education. By sharing what he was seeing in the capital markets and emerging asset classes, he found an authentic voice that resonated with his audience. Gui echoes this, noting that the most engaging posts are never about funds or accolades, they're about real experiences, lessons learned, and genuine insight.

The episode closes with a discussion on AI and its implications for business. Paul introduces the concept of agentic AI, specifically his experience setting up an AI-powered capital markets analyst named "Sarah" using an open-source local infrastructure tool. Sarah reasons through tasks, builds databases, drafts email campaigns, and conducts research autonomously. Paul describes the experience as the most mind-blowing development he's seen since first using ChatGPT, underscoring the idea that AI agents are beginning to function like real employees.

When asked about his biggest challenge, Paul cites focus, the entrepreneurial temptation to chase every new AI-driven opportunity rather than staying disciplined on core priorities. It's a fitting note to end on: in a world of expanding possibility, clarity of purpose remains the competitive edge.

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

In this Dakota Research Interview, Chris Leroy and Alex deMarco sit down with Phil Durr, Co-founder and Managing Partner of PeakSpan Capital, a growth equity firm with $2.6 billion in AUM focused exclusively on bootstrapped business software companies. Phil shares his journey from ROTC and Morgan Stanley to founding PeakSpan in 2015, and explains how the firm's pragmatic, founder-first approach — targeting owner-operators at roughly $6M in revenue — has produced a capital loss ratio of under 2.5% against an industry average exceeding 50%. The conversation covers PeakSpan's differentiated expert network, their AI-powered internal tools, and Phil's conviction that generative AI represents the biggest tailwind for business software since the internet.

In Episode 41 of the Emerging Manager Growth Show, Gui Costin and the Dakota team break down the consultant channel — what it is, how to navigate it, and why it should complement rather than anchor your distribution strategy. The episode walks through Dakota's three categories of consultants, from emerging manager-dedicated firms to large consultants with formal programs to OCIO groups that invest early in a manager's lifecycle, and outlines the key considerations for engaging each. Gui also shares timely market insights on why Registered Advisors and family offices remain the fastest-growing channels for emerging managers, makes the case for new media as a brand-building engine using the a16z New Media Manifesto as a blueprint, and closes with actionable fundraising best ideas covering city scheduling, cold email construction, and quarterly webinars — along with updates on upcoming emerging manager conferences and Gui's newest book, Be Kind.

We cover RIA acquisitions by the likes of Choreo, Cerity Partners, and First Manhattan. We also share updates on commitments from and. On the search front, we highlight activity from Plymouth County Retirement Association, Dahab Associates, and Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi. We’ll also cover fundraising from Canyon Partners, Inhouse, and Phoenix Group — plus a reminder to register for our next Dakota Cocktails event.

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

We cover newly launched RIAs like Ocean Path Advisors, Madson Wealth Advisors, and Stephen Smith Financial. We also share updates on commitments from Maine Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS), Texas County & District Retirement System (TCDRS), and University of Alabama System Endowment. On the search front, we highlight activity from Lexington Policemen's and Firefighters' Pension Plan, St. Louis Public School Retirement System, and City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions and Retirement. We’ll also cover fundraising from Vista Equity Partners, SatVu, and Anduril Industries — plus a reminder to register for our next Dakota Cocktails event.

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

In this special episode of The Rainmaker Podcast, Gui Costin is interviewed about his book Be Kind. He reflects on early leadership missteps marked by volatility and ego, and the turning point that reshaped his approach to culture and accountability. Gui challenges the belief that high performance requires harshness, arguing instead that kindness and hard standards can coexist. He draws a key distinction between being “nice” and being “kind,” emphasizing direct, respectful feedback over avoidance. The episode reinforces a core leadership principle: words, tone, and daily behavior from the top ultimately define culture and performance.

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

In Episode 26 of the Dakota Insights Podcast, we explore how family offices are evolving into fully institutional capital platforms—and why this shift is reshaping private markets.

Drawing from Dakota’s 2025 Global Family Office Report, we examine how improved liquidity in 2025 accelerated professionalization, earlier diversification, and formalized governance. Family offices are no longer passive pools of capital; they are building structured investment teams, expanding direct deal activity, and leading transactions across sectors.

We also discuss the strategic importance of geography, the growing role of private markets in portfolio construction, and why talent is becoming the key constraint as offices scale.

The message is clear: family capital is becoming more structured, selective, and central to global private markets.

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

Master sales with four game-changing principles: Focus on what matters, target the right people, craft the perfect pitch, and follow up like a pro. Packed with actionable tips, this guide helps you turn meetings into deals—fast! 💼🔥

Tired of chasing outdated leads? Book a demo to see how Dakota Marketplace simplifies your fundraising process with accurate, up-to-date investor data. 

In this Dakota Research Interview, Dr. Andrew Hohns, Founder and CEO of Newmarket Capital and Battery Finance, explains how the firm is redefining private credit by integrating Bitcoin into real estate and asset-backed lending. He discusses how Bitcoin-backed loan structures can help investors protect purchasing power, reduce credit risk, and generate inflation-resilient returns without taking on mark-to-market volatility. Andrew also shares real-world examples of Battery Finance loans, outlines where borrower demand is strongest, and highlights opportunities across multifamily, project finance, and mission-driven investments. For investors seeking innovative credit solutions with downside protection and long-term upside, this conversation offers a compelling look at the future of Bitcoin-integrated private credit.