VC associate collusion harms unprepared founders
The guest argued that venture capital associates frequently share deal information and metrics across firms via informal networks, which can prematurely spoil a startup's fundraising market.
The argument
The speaker noted that associates exchange 'currency' in cross-firm WhatsApp groups, meaning a single mediocre meeting can quickly lead to a negative consensus. Founders are advised not to 'test the market' with casual pitches or share metrics too early.
The thesis, stress-tested
✓ What validates it
- —
▸ Risks discussed
- ▸Founders may struggle to generate competitive tension if early metrics leak
- ▸Loss of control over the company's narrative
Hear it yourself
"I think selling SaaS to tech companies is gonna be a tough business because we can build stuff ourselves. Revenge and patriotism is a great investment thesis. There's a lot of collusion in VC. Like, I have a feeling that most VCs actually collude more with competitors than with their own partners. This is 20 VC with me, Harry Stebbings. Now, I've done 3,000 shows. The best guests have two things. They have high IQ and they do not give a shit. Our guest today is a long time friend of mine, Ryan Peterson, founder of Flexboard. He's been on many shows before. I don't think he's ever had a conversation as open and honest as this."