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Episode Summary:

In this thought-provoking episode of First Cheque experienced investors Cheryl Mack and Maxine Minter delve into the meticulous world of follow-on investment strategies. The episode serves as a beacon for those who wish to refine their approaches in early-stage investing, especially as they grapple with the decision of whether to follow on or not in subsequent investment rounds. The conversation explores the intricate balance between optimizing returns and supporting growing companies at various funding stages.

Cheryl represents the school of thought advocating for doubling down on winners, focusing on reserving funds for follow-on investments based on the company's performance. Maxine, on the other hand, takes a contrarian view, emphasizing the importance of an initial strong pre-seed commitment without reserving for follow-on. Together, they unpack the underpinnings of each method, providing listeners with an insightful analysis centred on investment strategy, fund management, and the implications of the power-law in startup investing.

Key Takeaways:

• A follow-on investment strategy involves investing additional funds in a company during later financing rounds, usually at a different share price.
• Traditional wisdom encourages investors to reserve funds to double down on winning companies, but Maxine challenges this idea, promoting initial, larger investments at the pre-seed stage.
• Discussion on the importance of pro rata rights and the potential signaling risks associated with not following on in subsequent rounds.
• Cheryl shares her angel investment approach, which emphasizes growth metrics evaluation, fund allocation decisions against other opportunities, and backing companies that have shown significant progress.
• The conversation highlights the need for personalized investment strategies that reflect individual goals and resources, as well as the potential influence of received wisdom on investment decisions.

Notable Quotes:

• "The conventional wisdom... you want to reserve follow on money in order to double down on your winners." - Cheryl Mack
• "If you want to maximize IRR, then it's deploying all of your capital in that first check." - Maxine Minter
• "The power law operates in our industry... it's not necessarily a one for one trade off... you need to make resource allocation trade offs." - Maxine Minter
• "I really have to believe that I'm still going to get outsized value from this valuation further on." - Cheryl Mack
• "The only thing that stops you from getting squeezed out over time is adding enormous value and having a great relationship with the founders." - Maxine Minter

Thanks to our sponsors for helping to make this episode of First Cheque possible:

Scendar: Scendar is the OG startup accounting firm in Australia. Free 1-hour consultation about your Business' growth plans and finance needs. https://dayone.fm/scendar

Turo: Turo is the world's largest carsharing marketplace and it's the perfect app for travel. Download the Turo app and book cars from $38/day Download the Turo app and book cars from $38/day. https://dayone.fm/turo

Mentioned in this episode:

Deel x PX_Script 1

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Summary

Paul McCarty is CEO and founder of SecureStack, a DevSecOps visibility & automation company, and GitLab's Red Team leader. Paul's been involved in software security in Australia for decades. In his conversation with Cole Cornford, Paul discusses how Australia's software security industry has changed since the early 2000's, whether security professionals aught to know how to code, and plenty more. 

Timestamps

2:50 - Paul's career background

7:00 - Spicy take: people on LinkedIn are too blindly positive

10:00 - Understanding what went wrong when there's a breach

13:00 - Cole doesn't think "zero trust" is feasible

14:10 - Cole: maturity of cybersecurity in Aus is weak generally

16:00 - Cole hires for dev experience, not sec ops, because dev is harder to teach

18:30 - Aus market different to US, which has lots of software companies

21:50 - Paul: we've devalued the importance of operations

22:20 - The "holy trinity" of offensive security

26:30 - What percentage of ASX companies have a bug bounty program?

28:50 - Cole's free pizza exploit

31:00 - Got to be in security for the long haul

31:40 - The book that changed Paul's life

Mentioned in this episode:

Call for Feedback

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Episode Summary:

In this episode of the Fintechfun podcast series, Chris Titley hosts Jordan Lawrence, co-founder of Volt, to discuss the revolutionary platform that is poised to streamline real-time account-to-account payments across the globe. Jordan shares the origins of Volt, its mission, and the impact it has in various international markets.

Volt’s inception coincided with the advent of open banking in Europe, tackling the challenge of integrating diverse payment methods under one umbrella. Jordan Lawrence exemplifies this by detailing Volt's progress in Brazil with the payment method PiCs, which has significantly sped up transaction times for merchants. Moreover, Lawrence provides insight into the nuances of payment adoption in Australia, highlighting the hurdles and potential for merchant-driven push towards real-time payments.

Key themes in this conversation revolve around the influence of worldwide monetary systems, the emergence of innovative payment solutions, and Volt's ambitious plans for expansion. Lawrence expertly weaves through the intricacies of financial transactions, merchant benefits, consumer transparency, and Volt's visions for the future—including the potential issuance of local bank accounts across 50 countries.

Key Takeaways:

• Volt has pioneered the integration of real-time, account-to-account payment methods internationally, beginning in Europe and expanding to Brazil and beyond.
• Merchants significantly benefit from immediate transaction completion and reduced fees compared to traditional card schemes.
• Consumer adoption in Australia remains slow, yet increasing due to merchant incentives and changing behaviours, particularly among younger demographics.
• Volt's expansion is set to reach around 50 countries, potentially offering the issuance of local bank accounts to facilitate international payments for merchants.
• Jordan provides personal insights on his global living experiences and shared travel tips, including the importance of booking seats in advance and managing jet lag.

Notable Quotes:

• “Our first foray outside of Europe was Brazil. We have an office in Sao Paulo. We process pics down there. PiCs is the equivalent of your guys kind of Pay ID and it's gone really, really well.”
• “So merchants in Australia who've got international ambitions can plug into us, use the MPP products, but also we can act as merchant record in the other countries and actually process these account to account payments for them there as well.”
• “Repeat customers at the checkout using vault is around 36%. So that means 36% of people who use vault once will use it again, which is, I think, a really good sign.”
• “I think for the merchants side, they love it. From the consumer side, there's a way to go on the UX from the banking side of things.”
• “By then we'll be in around 50 countries... The ability for Volt to be able to issue accounts locally to merchants and psps, collect the funds locally and start remitting the money around the world as well.”

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Win $2,000 in credits with the Day One Network — take our 2-minute audience survey before 30 June: dayone.fm/survey

Episode Summary:

In the latest instalment of our podcast series, Cheryl Mack and Maxine Minter delve into the intricate world of early-stage investing, shedding light on the varied approaches to gaining investment conviction. This episode serves as a guide for both novice and experienced investors who aim to refine their decision-making strategies when backing new ventures.

As Cheryl and Maxine unravel the decision-making fabric of early-stage investing, listeners are taken on a journey through the critical thought processes that investors employ. From angel investing intuition to fund management rigour, the diverse strategies and considerations are laid bare. Key topics such as founder assessment, market sizing, and investment criteria are explored in detail, offering a valuable distilled wisdom that promises to enhance the listener's own perspective on startup investment.

Key Takeaways:

• Every investor has a unique process for achieving conviction in startup investments, which can evolve over time through experience and iterative learning.
• The consideration of factors like founder qualities, market potential, and existing competition varies between individual investors and forms the basis of their investment decisions.
• Portfolio construction and risk assessment play significant roles in an investor's decision to back a company, mainly when operating within a fund structure.
• Intuition and instinct also influence investment choices, sometimes siding with conviction even when faced with incomplete or ambiguous information.
• The balance between personal investment ethos and the structured approach required by funds highlights the complexity and art form of early-stage investing.

Notable Quotes:

• "It's a process...an invitation to iterate your way to a successful process and continue to measure yourself." - Maxine Minter
• "The nature of especially early stage investing is that it's risky." - Maxine Minter
• "For me, it's founder... I need to feel like this is the right founder for the...market problem space." - Cheryl Mack
• "It's really rare, if ever, that you get to a...definitely yes...always no questions." - Maxine Minter
• "The spectrum of yes to hell yes...there are so many different ways of doing it and so many different timescales to be considering on." - Maxine Minter

Thanks to our sponsors for helping to make this episode of First Cheque possible:

Scendar: Scendar is the OG startup accounting firm in Australia. Free 1-hour consultation about your Business' growth plans and finance needs. https://dayone.fm/scendar

Turo: Turo is the world's largest carsharing marketplace and it's the perfect app for travel. Download the Turo app and book cars from $38/day Download the Turo app and book cars from $38/day. https://dayone.fm/turo

Mentioned in this episode:

Deel x PX_Script 1

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Jay Hira is a cybersecurity director with 18 years of experience working in a variety of roles both in Australia and internationally. Today he is Director of Cyber Security: Financial Services at KPMG Australia, and Founder and Executive Director of MakeCyberSimple. In this conversation Jay and Cole Cornford avoid getting too deep into technical details, and instead discuss a zoomed out perspective on cybersecurity strategy for large organisations, how the current macroeconomic climate affects approaches to cybersecurity, tips for clear communication between technical and non-technical stakeholders, and plenty more.

Timestamps

1:40 - Advantages of generalisation vs specialisation

4:00 - Tips for communicating effectively to leaders

6:00 - Clarity comes from simplicity

9:30 - Importance of reporting structure in a large org

14:20 - Core foundations of a cyber strategy

20:00 - How current economic climate is affecting cybersecurity budgets

24:30 - How do you maintain intrinsic motivation?

27:00 - Work life balance

30:30 - Rapid fire questions

Mentioned in this episode:

Call for Feedback

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Win $2,000 in credits with the Day One Network — take our 2-minute audience survey before 30 June: dayone.fm/survey

Episode Summary:

In this insight-packed episode, Cheryl Mack and Maxine Minter sit down with Michael Batko, the driving force behind Startmate, to explore the intricacies of early stage investing and the power of community in the startup realm. Batko shares his journey, starting from his first investment to steering one of the most active seed stage investing funds in the industry. This episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at how Batko and his world-class team utilize a community-driven approach to identify, select, and uplift transformative business ideas across Australia and New Zealand.

Diving into the Startmate selection process, Batko reveals the operational complexities of coordinating a vast network of mentors and how their personal investment in the fund aligns interests and boosts engagement. The conversation also uncovers the evolution of Startmate's investment thesis, its expansion into diverse industries, and Batko's approach to encouraging non-consensus thinking to unlock extraordinary potential. The episode delves into the significance of carry in VC funds, the strategic role of a continuity fund, and the decision-making framework for follow-on investments, all while reflecting on Batko's philosophy of betting on the hungry rather than the proven.

Michael Batko began his career in corporate finance and consulting before contributing to the growth of two major Australian marketplaces, MadPaws and also played a pivotal role in Expert360's $14 million Series B funding round. After joining as Head of Operations, Batko quickly became CEO of Startmate which is now ANZ’s largest community driven seed fund raising ~$3 million from 100+ investors every 6 months.

Key Takeaways:

• Startmate's success is rooted in a mentor-driven model, where community engagement and personal investment are key to its decision-making process.
• Batko emphasizes the importance of looking beyond what's probable and considering what's possible when evaluating investment opportunities.
• The alignment of mentor incentives with fund performance, through carry, is highlighted as a significant motivational factor.
• A robust debate around investment thesis expansion led to backing diverse ventures, including non-software startups like non-alcoholic beer brand Heaps Normal.
• The establishment of a continuity fund at Startmate allows for continuous support of alumni companies, signaling strong belief in their ongoing success.

Notable Quotes:

• "I remember this entire thread coming up and everybody discussing whether or not we should invest in that non-alcoholic beer company. And it was at that time when I jumped in as start mate CEO and actually had to be like, 'Hey, we can't just rest on our laurels and do things the way we've always done them.'"
• "We've expanded the investment thesis a lot around, essentially always doubling down on people and what they care about."
• "One of my favorite questions is, and I always keep coming back to it whenever I critically assess a company for myself, is rather than what is probable... what is possible?"
• "One thing I love about being a microfund is that we only invest $120,000 into companies, but at that stage, it actually makes such a massive difference."

Resources:

• Startmate website for more insights into their accelerator programs. Startmate
• Michael Batko's professional background and contributions, visit LinkedIn
• Discussion of eucalyptus's ESOP primer and equity importance. Eucalyptus

Encouraging all curious investors and founders to tune in and glean actionable insights from Michael Batko's valuable experiences in this episode, as well as to keep an ear out for more enriching discussions in the upcoming sessions.

Mentioned in this episode:

Deel x PX_Script 1

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Tara Whitehead is Security Engagement Manager at MYOB. Prior to becoming a cybersecurity specialist, Tara had an eclectic career, including working in advertising and international relations. In this episode Tara chats with Cole about how her non-technical background has in many ways been an asset working in security, leading change management in large enterprises, the importance of great communication skills, and plenty more.

Secured by Galah Cyber with Cole Cornford website

Timecodes

7:15 - Tara's first days in AppSec

10:00 - How to influence people

12:30 - Why we should dial back on the doomsday conversation

14:10 - Find your change champions

21:30 - Is a non-technical background help or hindrance?

23:30 - Communication and influencing key skills

26:00 - Communicating with execs

28:20 - Rapid fire questions

Mentioned in this episode:

Call for Feedback

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Episode Summary:

In this insightful conversation, co-hosts Cheryl Mack and Maxine Minter unpack the often misunderstood world of 'fund of funds'—investment vehicles that pool capital to invest in a variety of venture funds rather than in startups directly. Tailored for early-stage investors and industry observers, this talk reveals the nuances of fund structures and investment strategies designed to mitigate risk and maximize returns.

Diving into a no-nonsense explanation, Maxine elucidates the two foundational structures of venture funds—management companies and the standalone investing funds—and how funds of funds play into this ecosystem by investing in multiple funds. This episode shines a spotlight on the intricacies of fund growth, managerial sophistication, and the dynamic relationship between funds, funds of funds, and their limited partners (LPs). Cheryl probes into the motivations behind why LPs choose to invest in fund of funds, including access to top-tier funds and diversification that extends across emerging ventures.

Key Takeaways:

• A 'fund of funds' is an investment strategy where the fund invests in other venture capital funds rather than directly in companies.
• Most venture funds fail to return capital; however, emerging managers often are part of the top-performing funds, despite potential difficulty in scaling from one fund to the next.
• Institutions like pension and super funds, which frequently invest in funds of funds, face unique challenges such as VP clauses and monthly asset pricing pressures.
• Funds of funds can offer investors a lower-risk profile and a more diversified exposure to the venture capital market.
• There is a potential growth opportunity for fund-of-funds in Australia, which is currently a nascent market in this space.

Notable Quotes:

• "If you invest alongside, say, CoVentures, and CoVentures has a fund of fund that's invested in them, what does that mean for the potential success of the company later on down the road?" - Cheryl Mack
• "Venture funds being an indexation of the underlying assets... Our success is driven by, you know, an outlier in our portfolio." - Maxine Minter
• "Emerging managers consistently are in the top ten performing funds of every single vintage." - Maxine Minter
• "The venture funds themselves, their returns perform on a power law curve. So there's only a handful of funds, venture funds, that will deliver outlier returns to their investors." - Maxine Minter

Sponsors:

Thanks to our sponsors for helping to make this episode of First Cheque possible.

Scendar: Scendar is the OG startup accounting firm in Australia. Free 1-hour consultation about your Business' growth plans and finance needs. https://dayone.fm/scendar

Turo: Turo is the world's largest carsharing marketplace and it's the perfect app for travel.

Download the Turo app and book cars from $38/day. https://dayone.fm/turo

Mentioned in this episode:

Deel x PX_Script 1

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Episode summary

Daniel Grzelak is currently the Chief Innovation Officer at Plerion, and has had a storied career at a variety of technology firms around Australia. In this conversation Daniel brings his experience and insight to the topic of common myths and misconceptions within the cybersecurity industry, and with Cole Cornford tackles questions like:

Does a cybersecurity professional need to know how to code?

Is there a workforce shortage in the industry?

Should pen testers write remediation advice?

Timestamps

1:50 - Does a cybersecurity professional need to know how to code?

5:40 - Is there a workforce shortage in cybersecurity?

9:30 - Questions to ask when interviewing potential cybersecurity hires

12:30 - Are people in cybersecurity bad at promoting their own skills?

17:00 - Should pen testers write remediation advice?

20:20 - Daniel's career advice: start writing

Mentioned in this episode:

Call for Feedback

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

• Stereo Mix podcast series is re-initiated in 2024 with Chris Titley hosting Pat Dalton, COO and founder of iGoDirect Group.
• iGoDirect Group specializes in data-driven marketing and propensity modeling, identifying valuable insights within large datasets for marketing purposes.
• The company originated from a need for specialized data-driven marketing in the early '90s, leading to the development of new strategies and data models for marketing campaigns.
• In 2004, iGoDirect innovated by introducing branded prepaid Visa cards in direct mail packs to the Australian market, enhancing marketing response rates.
• iGoDirect was named for its direct approach to working with brands and agencies, aiming for more effective marketing outcomes.
• Over 20 years, i iGoDirect has evolved to serve ASX-listed companies, focusing on customer acquisition, nurturing, and re-engagement using prepaid gift cards and incentives.
• The company has seen increased engagement with loyalty programs, especially during the COVID-19 lockdowns and the subsequent cost-of-living crisis.
• iGoDirect has been granted a Visa Principle Partnership license, allowing them to issue their own Visa products in Australia and New Zealand.
• They have also obtained an Australian Financial Services license, enabling them to innovate further in the gift card and loyalty program space.
• iGoDirect is introducing a web-to-wallet gift card service, removing the need for app downloads and streamlining the customer experience.
• The company is exploring new use cases for their services, including instant gift card distribution for promotions and enhancing brand loyalty.
• Pat Dalton advises entrepreneurs to back themselves, especially during challenging times, as perseverance leads to innovation and solutions.
• iGoDirect 's future focuses on card linking and leveraging scheme cards for loyalty programs, aiming to reduce friction in customer engagement.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/