About Cap Table Diversity w/ incredible Deepali Nangia
Today highlighting ✨Deepali Nangia✨ who is Partner at Speedinvest focusing on investments into female founders across Europe and Emerging Markets. As a member of Speedinvest's ESG Committee, Deepali also leads the MicroGP initiative which has invested in some 20 first-time fund managers – 50% of which are female and diverse GPs. She started her career as an investment banker on Wall Street before moving into private equity where she led transactions into financial service companies. She subsequently led operational teams at Marsh McLennan & Aon Ltd. before shifting her focus on supporting female founders.
Most recently, Deepali co-founded Alma Angels, a community set up to increase the number of female angel investors in Europe who fund female-founded companies. Before becoming full-time VC partner, Deepali was an active angel investor. In 2021, she won UKBAA’s Angel Investor of the Year award. She has served on the UK Government Task Force for Funding High-Growth Female Entrepreneurs and the UKBAA Angel Investment Taskforce. Originally from Kolkata, Deepali has a keen interest in technologies that are solving society's large problems in sectors such as Fintech, Health, Femtech, and Climate Tech.
Being asked about the current state and future of European venture capital that is what she replied.
What would you tell someone starting to angel invest today, based on your experience?
- join a community to learn from others
- be 100% sure you are ok with losing that money
- pick a sector that you love and become an expert in it
- use your network to help your companies
What's the biggest difference between angel investing and now VC?
- you can spend your own money as you choose - you can invest in things you love, if you like or focus on returns, if you like. With external capital, that optionality does not exist
- the size of outcome/return expectations are significantly higher depending on size of fund
What is your superpower to support entrepreneurs?
Patience - parenting has taught me this.
What have you learned from your Anti-Portfolio?
Go with your gut! Your first instinct is usually always right.
What do you think about productizing angel investing?
I think bits of it can be productised (such as deal flow sharing etc.) but the learning has to be done by doing.
What was your motivation to kick-off Alma Angels - and where are we today in regards to progress to the mission?
I always found the same women on cap tables and they were few and far between. I wanted women to change this. Especially, with this high correlation between women investors and female founders receiving funding. We need more female Partners and tbh more female GPs who have decision making authority at the IC level to make more decisions. We also need LPs pushing diversity on ICs and allocating capital to funds who are truly diverse. I wanted to help create this flywheel.
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