June 17, 2020
(VC) Ciaran O’Leary, co-founder and general partner of BlueYard Capital on: Approach to Investing; What Europe Still Lacks; What VCs and Startups Need To Do Differently Post-covid
My guest today is Ciaran O’Leary, co-founder and general partner of BlueYard Capital, an early-stage VC focused on transformational technology with a big focus on fostering innovation across Europe. In this episode, Ciaran talks to me about the importance
Show Notes
- [1:46] - Why BlueYard and the vision for the fund
- [3:33] - How the thesis received by the LPs and people you were trying to raise funds from?
- [5:10] - Is there a breakdown of where the current funds come from and does it impact your investments?
- [6:22] - Your investments by region
- [9:44] - What stage do you invest in and why are there no multi-stage VCs today?
- [12:06] - What kind of VC are you and how many investments do you make?
- [13:53] - How do you develop depth and expertise in niche areas you invest in?
- [16:40] - What kind of companies and entrepreneurs are you finding across Europe and Why?
- [18:58] - Why has entrepreneurship in Europe gone native and what is still missing?
- [25:00] - How has the crisis impacted your business? What are you doing differently now?
- [30:35] - Are US VC doing something different?
- [32:51] - In the short term will money from the US and Asia continue to flow into Europe or will European VCs have to come together more?
- [34:35] - Effect of Brexit
- [35:56] - As an entrepreneur looking for funding, does your pitch need to be different in today’s environment? What should entrepreneurs know?
- [37:46] - What should entrepreneurs look for in a VC?
- [40:56] - What are the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make when looking to raise money?
- [43:26] - Talk about 3 of the portfolio companies - protocol labs, Pitch.io, Bitbio
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