Issue 4: January 2024
In this issue:
5 Questions with FinTech Founders - Instnt
We spoke with Sunil Madhu , serial entrepreneur and founder of the $5 billion identity verification and fraud service Socure , on his latest company, Instnt , a fully managed customer acceptance platform for businesses with fraud loss insurance.
Read on to learn about Sunil's motivation for launching Instnt, and gain insights into the ever-evolving nature of startups, where change remains the only constant.
What inspired you to start Instnt?
As a seasoned entrepreneur in security, risk, and compliance for over 30 years, I founded and grew Socure into what is now a $5 billion identity verification and fraud prevention service provider. Recognizing the persistent issue of businesses bearing fraud-loss liability despite advanced tools, I decided to start Instnt, with which I also wanted to address the challenges of a layered approach to fraud mitigation and compliance, which often excluded a growing younger customer base.
What problem are you solving in the market?
The problem we are solving is helping businesses grow without fraud losses.?Our comprehensive solution spans the entire customer life cycle?from the?initial account opening, verification, and onboarding?to subsequent logins, transaction processing, and the enhanced accessibility of additional products and services strategically upsold to them.
What lessons can you share with other entrepreneurs looking to scale??
In the beginning, when your business is growing rapidly, it always costs twice as much and takes three times as long as you think it will until you reach a steady pace of growth.
What measures do you take to create a culture of growth within your company?
To create a culture of growth, you have to normalize change, so people are not afraid of it. The most constant in start-ups is change. If you create a culture to not fear change, then you allow growth to naturally occur.
Full interview here.
Meet Chris Ferris - Head of Investor Relations and Capital Formation
We're beyond excited to introduce our newest team member, Chris Ferris, who has joined us as the Head of Investor Relations and Capital Formation at Cohen Circle. Chris plays a key role in leading our capital formation efforts and overseeing our investor relations function.
Get to Know Chris
What recent trends?in venture investments have caught your attention, and why are they significant for investors and startups??
We still have?not seen the reset in private valuations that many VC's and allocators have been waiting for; I think there is going to be a lot of opportunity to deploy capital into high quality assets at attractive prices in the next 12-24 months via the secondary market and as companies raise primary capital again.
In the venture space, how can startups build and maintain trust with investors throughout their growth journey?
Transparency is very important. The more transparent companies can be with GP’s, the more transparent GP’s can be with their LP’s. Trust is such an important building block of long-term partnerships.
Full interview here.
Embracing Change: Traditional Finance Meets the Digital Economy Webinar [Replay]
Following the significant January 11th decision by the SEC to permit spot Bitcoin ETFs trading, our panel of esteemed experts—Zoe Cruz, Lex Sokolin, and Andrew Hohns—discussed the implications of this newfound accessibility in crypto investing.
Below are some highlights from the webinar, followed by the replay.
On the SEC decision to allow spot Bitcoin ETFs
This is really just the beginning of a whole new segment of capital markets gaining easy access to Bitcoin and driving additional demand for what is already the scarcest and most truly finite fungible asset in the world. - Andrew Hohns, Newmarket Capital
You want to use those assets and participate in the various software, decentralized finance, NFTs, decentralized physical infrastructure, all the stuff that's been built on that computational financial architecture of blockchains. - Lex Sokolin, Generative Ventures
On investing in the digital asset space
The way I look at it as an asset allocator, in my own family office, you make money by taking risks. That's how I made my career, but you need to get paid for the risk. - Zoe Cruz
This is the place where the growth is going to root. It's the interesting place to build. It's the unexplored frontier and people are moving into it both with their capital and career decisions. - Lex Sokolin
On use cases in crypto
The idea of a community having the ability to make decisions in a decentralized autonomous organization, those are uses that I'm really excited for. - Daniel Cohen, Cohen Circle
Refugees, political dissidents and abused women are holding on to Bitcoin and saving in a way that gives them personal freedom. People are not really counting on Avalanche or Cardano to provide them with that personal freedom when they're crossing the border trying to escape circumstances that are very difficult. - Andrew Hohns
Full transcript and replay here.
Corinne Bortniker Named Rising Star by Venture Capital Journal
We're thrilled to share that Cohen Circle Director Corinne Bortniker has been named to Venture Capital Journal's Rising Stars list.
Corinne joined the Cohen Circle team in 2021 as a Vice President, and was promoted to Director at the start of 2023. Currently, Corinne leads the sourcing efforts for the firm's impact investments and also serves as a Director on the affiliated impact fund, Radiate Capital.
Corinne pioneered Cohen Circle's ESG and due dilligence questionnaire metrics, which are used in assessing social impact investments. She is also actively engaged in fundraising efforts, acting as a liaison between the firm's partners, advisors, and internal teams.
To read more about Corinne's nomination and to see the full list of award recipients, visit here.