How VC delivers the right impact for startup growth, even in tough times

I heard something recently that inspired me to write this open note to Founders:

Let me start by admitting first-hand that Venture Capital can seem like an abstract concept. To discover its real value, it's worthwhile to ask other founders about their experience. And that's what caught my attention earlier this month, when listening to FintechOS co-Founder Sergiu Negut in an insightful How To Web session about the past two years of rapid startup growth for Fintech OS, an Earlybird portfolio company from the VC's Digital East Team.

Here's what Sergiu had to say, (which I've edited only slightly for clarity):

"If I may add something: the good thing about getting investments from people like Dan Lupu and funds like Earlybird Venture Capital is the fact that we were able to consult, so we had access to this kind of reasoning in board meetings that were at the heat of the peak of the crisis and were not more than 10 days, or two weeks apart, one meeting from from the next, to reassess the situation, to understand where we are, to understand:

What are the options, what is happening in the world? What is happening with us, what is happening with the investment, what is happening to the customers, and how we should better react. And I think this is...playing it rational and being prepared for the worst while shooting for the best. I think it is what kept us going. And they gave us the possibility to continue and have aggressive growth during complicated times."

"I think it is what kept us going. And they gave us the possibility to continue and have aggressive growth during complicated times."- Sergiu Negut, from Fintech OS, on Earlybird VC support

This is the kind of real impact I like to see that a VC can have, especially in globally tough times. And this impact can only stem from intrinsic belief in the founders, smart money, shared reasoning, accessibility, reassessment, and rationality.

Many thanks to Andrew MacDowall for moderating this informative session. You'll find many more insights from their discussion on commercial traction, endorsement, strategic investment, and growth, in the full podcast & transcription here.

If you are a startup in Europe using tech at scale to solve a real-word problem, then by all means reach out to via the contact page on Earlybird's website. Talk soon!