He Invested $90m Into 200 Startups

GM! It's Tuesday, January 31st - Today, we're covering Asia's richest man losing $36 billion, Ford cutting the prices of its EV, a J&J lawsuit, and 2-year-old Power Finance acquired for $275m.

But first, did you know anyone can lead deals like a Venture Capitalist?

- Callum

FEATURE

Investing $90m Into 200 Startups

Over the last 4 years, Morgan has built an investor email list of 5,300+ people that have invested over $90m into 200+ companies. All of this with a full-time job leading business development at a startup called Restream.

How Did He Do It?

Many people work for interesting businesses that have the potential to become the next unicorn startup, but most don't use these tactics. Here's what Morgan did differently:

• Ask To Invest: In 2015, Morgan joined Unity as a Product Manager. After realizing he was on a rocket ship, he asked the CEO if he could invest. In 2020, the company IPO'd, reaching a $43B+ valuation. Similarly, in 2017 Morgan joined Restream and invested in the business. Soon after, it raised a $50m Series A.

• Invest Other People's Money: Use creative financing vehicles to let others invest in the companies you find. Morgan didn't invest alone. He reached out to friends, family, and investors and offered them the opportunity to invest alongside him.

This kickstarted a flywheel of Morgan sourcing 3-4 high-growth companies each month and sending them to his list of 5,300+ investors.

Why Should You Care?

One of the best paths to creating wealth is by owning equity in technology companies. Most people think you need a lot of money to do that...you don't.

If you are good at finding high-potential companies, you can act as a Deal Lead and create a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) in which other people can invest. In return for finding the company, you can take 20% of any profits (called "Carry").

Considering the asymmetric nature of startup investments, where each deal has the potential to 100 or 1,000x in value, the upside can be life-changing.

Here's The Playbook

You do not have to be an accredited investor to act as a deal lead and capture the upside of startup investing. Here's the groundwork to get started:

1. Find amazing companies and ask for the opportunity to invest. It could be a startup you join, your friend's company, or a CEO you met at an event. Great companies don't need your money, so think strategically about why they should take money from you (network, specialized talent, etc.).

2. Build a list of investors to invest in the companies you discover. Using a platform like Angel List can help drive investors to your syndicate, but if you aren't accredited, you can do it the old-fashioned way.

• To find investors, filter for "angel investor" on Linkedin. Reach out to them and say, "Hi - I am reaching out to invite you to my investment syndicate. We invest in . May I add you to our investor distribution list? We do deals per month. If so, what is the best email for you?"

• This is exactly how I met Morgan.

3. Create a syndicate using software like Sydecar to manage all the back office stuff (e.g., legal, taxes, banking, data rooms, distributions, etc.). You do not have to be an accredited investor to lead deals (see here).

HEADLINES

Asia's Richest Man Loses $36B In One Month.

> Asia's richest man loses $36B in one month as shares of Adani Group continue to fall as the company attempted to rebut short seller firm Hidenburg's report, which accused the conglomerate of stock manipulation and an "accounting fraud scheme."

> Ford to cut the price of Mustang Mach-E, following Tesla's recent price drop.

> J&J's court appeal was rejected after trying to use chapter 11 bankruptcy to freeze 40,000 lawsuits linking its talc products to cancer.

> Tourism is roaring back in China, but the $6 trillion consumer market is digging itself out of a deep slump.

> Power Finance was acquired for $275m by Marqeta. The acquisition of the 2-year-old fintech infrastructure company marks the first acquisition by Marqeta in 13 years (congrats Randy!)

> Raylo raises $136m to build out its gadget lease-and-reuse 'fintech' platform.

> Bruno Mars ditched his manager and is saving tens of millions by switching to salaries positions as some of the country's biggest artists pay $10m-$50m to their management team.

ON TREND

MrBeast Cured The Blind & Started A Debate.

You should know:

At 24, with 130m subscribers on YouTube, Jimmy “MrBeast” Donaldson is one of the most successful creators out there, but his latest video sparked a debate.

• In his most recent video, he partnered with SEE International to provide Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery (MSICS) to 1,000 patients.

• Some argue that these videos have a dark undertone as they're created primarily for profit and clout, as opposed to true empathy.

• See the video here.