The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

By Nick MoranBusiness Technology Investing

The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified episodes

September 18, 2025Investor Stories 428. Trust and Integrity with LPs, What Churn Reveals About Founders, and Building True Differentiation (Ralston, Abel, Shen)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Rusty Ralston of Swell VC

Godard Abel of G2

Han Shen of iFly.vc

We asked guests to share the best question they've ever been asked by an allocator.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
6 min
September 15, 2025Investor Stories 427. Balancing Growth with Profitability, Why the Customer's Pain Matters Most, and Lessons from Film Financing to Supply Chain (Jiang, Ruscio, Niehenke)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Kevin Jiang of Mangusta Capital

Joseph Ruscio of Heavybit

Alexander Niehenke of Scale Venture Partners

We asked guests to describe the biggest change to their investment philosophy over the course of their career

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
11 min
September 11, 2025Investor Stories 426. Investor Regrets and Hard Calls: From Tax Credit Dependence to Saying No to Zoom (Hsieh, Delk, Hilaly)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Vince Hsieh

Ryan Delk

Aaref Hilaly

Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
6 min
September 08, 2025491. How AI Reshapes LP Allocation Strategy, The Convergence of Venture and Buyout, and Permanent Shifts to Liquidity (Lara Banks)
Lara Banks of Makena Capital Management joins Nick to discuss How AI Reshapes LP Allocation Strategy, The Convergence of Venture and Buyout, and Permanent Shifts to Liquidity. In this episode we cover:

Underwriting New Funds and Long-Term Partnerships

Criteria for Investment and Deal Breakers

Persistence in Venture and Brand Building

CO-Investments and Prepared Minds

Alignment and Strategy Drift

AI Market and Investment Opportunities

Secondaries as a Permanent Shift in Liquidity

Value Concentration and Allocation Strategies

Guest Links:

Lara's LinkedIn

Makena's LinkedIn

Makena's Website

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
36 min
September 04, 2025Investor Stories 425. Don't Rush the Process: Building Insights, Networks, and Patience Early in Your VC Career (Shen, Shapiro, Jiang)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Han Shen

Craig Shapiro

Kevin Jiang

We asked guests for the most important piece of advice that they'd share with folks early in their venture career.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
9 min
September 01, 2025Investor Stories 424. The Unique Traits of Visionary Founders Backed by Gigascale, Heavybit & York IE (Schroepfer, Ruscio, York)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Mike Schroepfer

Joseph Ruscio

Kyle York

We asked guests to discuss the most visionary founder that they've worked with and what makes them so special.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
7 min
August 28, 2025Investor Stories 423. From Checklists to Leadership: Lessons from iFLY, DFJ Growth & Pismo Leaders (Shen, Schuler, Binatti)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Han Shen

Barry Schuler

Daniela Binatti

We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
9 min
August 25, 2025490. Why Foundry Isn't Raising a New Fund, Lessons from Hibernation, and the Benefits and Drawbacks of a Give First Philosophy (Brad Feld)
Brad Feld of Foundry and Techstars joins Nick to discuss Why Foundry Isn't Raising a New Fund, Lessons from Hibernation, and the Benefits and Drawbacks of a Give First Philosophy. In this episode we cover:

TechStars' Evolution and Challenges

Building Vibrant Startup Communities

The Philosophy of Give First

Mentorship and Effective Communication

Balancing Give First with Personal Time

Balancing Default Modes: Yes and No

Managing Overload and Commitments

Guest Links:

Brad's LinkedIn

Brad's X

Foundry's LinkedIn

Foundry's Website

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
1 hr 11 min
August 21, 2025Investor Stories 422: Best LP Question (Stevens, Patel, Shapiro)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Kevin Stevens

Manish Patel

Craig Shapiro

We asked guests to share the best question they've ever been asked by an allocator.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
7 min
August 18, 2025Investor Stories 421: Rewriting the Playbook (Walsh, Schroepfer, Saxena)
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Shamin Walsh

Mike Schroepfer

Shashank Saxena

We asked guests to describe the biggest change to their investment philosophy over the course of their career

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social.

You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.
6 min

About The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

From the publisher's feed

The podcast dedicated to demystifying Venture Capital. Nick Moran and Nate Pierotti interview VC's & Startup Founders and on how they build great technology startups.