Angel Insights | Your guide to angel investing

While the last decade of FinTech made accessing credit as easy as a single swipe, the technology behind repaying that debt remained stuck in the dark ages of rigid direct debits and impersonal collections. With UK unsecured consumer debt hitting a staggering £237 billion—averaging £4,400 per adult—the "repayment gap" represents one of the largest untapped opportunities in financial services.In this episode, Tom Britton sits down with Hannah Baynham, CEO and Co-founder of HaBO Money. A veteran of the early "Starling Bank" revolution, Hannah is now applying that same obsessive focus on UX and digital innovation to the debt sector.We dive into why "bad debt" is often a failure of design rather than affordability, and how HaBO’s "save-as-you-repay" model aligns perfectly with the FCA’s rigorous new Consumer Duty standards.Key insights from this episode:The Design Failure: Why 60% of people seeking debt support are actually employed and have positive budgets, but lack the digital tools to manage fluctuating income.The Business Case for Empathy: How HaBO creates a win-win by charging lenders for successful repayments while building borrower resilience.Regulatory Tailwinds: Why the shift toward Consumer Duty is making HaBO’s infrastructure a "must-have" for modern lenders.The Million-Person Mission: Hannah’s five-year vision to move a million people from debt into sustainable savings.Featured Quote:"All of this effort has gone into making the access to credit so easy, digital, and on your phone, but the repayment experience has been totally neglected. It's still the same as it was 10 years ago. We are changing that." — Hannah BaynhamAbout the Guest:Hannah Baynham is the CEO of haboo money. Her career spans the forefront of the UK FinTech revolution at Starling Bank to management consulting for global financial institutions. She is now focused on building the infrastructure for a more resilient financial future.Connect with Angel Insights:Learn more about the SyndicateRoom portfolio: syndicateroom.comFollow Tom Britton on LinkedIn: Tom BrittonExplore HaBO Money: haboomoney.com

In this episode, SyndicateRoom Co-founder Tom Britton sits down with Colin Van Ostern, the incoming Head of UK and EMEA for Alumni Ventures, to discuss the fundamental shift toward a multi-polar venture capital landscape.While much of the media narrative has focused on a "funding winter," the ground-level reality tells a different story. As one of the world’s most active venture firms with over 1,400 portfolio companies, Alumni Ventures is doubling down on the UK as a global "centre of gravity" for innovation.Listen as we cover:The Multi-Polar Shift: Why the next generation of category-defining companies is increasingly emerging outside of Silicon Valley.Jobs-to-Be-Done in VC: Applying disruptive innovation theory to the venture model itself.The 2026 Outlook: Why liquidity is returning to the market through strategic M&A and a revitalised IPO pipeline.Network-Powered Investing: How a community of 600,000 supporters creates a superior "bridge" for sophisticated investors.Helpful Links:Build a Diversified Portfolio: Learn how our data-driven engine co-invests with the UK's top-performing angels at syndicateroom.com/access-eisInvestor Guides: Read our latest analysis on the "Power Law" and startup returns at syndicateroom.com/learnDon't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.

“We are looking for one thing: people who want to start a business in climate, and want to start it now.”In this episode of Angel Insights, host Tom Britton sits down with Michael Langguth, Founding Partner of Carbon 13, the venture builder for the climate emergency.While much of the climate conversation focuses on consumer habits, Michael and his team are focused on the "hard stuff": the industrial transformation required to mitigate 400 million tonnes of CO2e of global emissions.Michael shares his journey from a £20m exit in mobile commerce to building a venture engine in Cambridge and Berlin that has already launched over 300 companies. We dive into why the average age of a Carbon 13 founder is 37, the death of the "green premium", and how the UK’s tax ecosystem provides a global edge for deep-tech innovation.In this episode, we discuss:The "green discount": Why the most investable climate plays today are cheaper and more efficient than fossil-fuel incumbents.The venture builder model: How Carbon 13 vets 2,000 applicants a year to find the postdocs and serial entrepreneurs capable of engineering a gigaton-scale future.Strategic geography: How Carbon 13 bridges the gap between the UK’s early-stage capital and Germany’s industrial Mittelstand.The role of tax incentives: Why schemes like the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) make the UK the world’s best laboratory for high-risk, high-impact deep tech.Find out more:Explore the Carbon 13 investment opportunity on SyndicateRoom.Follow Michael Langguth on LinkedIn for insights into the European climate-tech ecosystem.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.For more insights into the world of angel investing, subscribe to Angel Insights on Spotify and visit www.syndicateroom.com.

Join Tom Britton and Jessi Baker, MBE (Founder & Chair of Provenance), as they break down the brutal choices founders must make to build a resilient, market-leading B2B SaaS company.In this episode, Jessi discusses:Strategic Flexibility: Why she made the critical decision to cut profitable consulting services to focus solely on scalable SaaS and the lessons learned from being an early blockchain pioneer on Ethereum.The VC Shift: Her perspective on why the current investment climate prioritizes profitability and proven revenue models over the "growth at all costs" mentality.The AI Moat: How Provenance is using AI to eradicate greenwashing and establish itself as the canonical, trustworthy data source for sustainability claims, a crucial layer for the future of LLMs.The Power of Diversity: The importance of building a diverse cap table and her experience with the Angel Academy network.This episode is essential listening for high net worth and sophisticated investors looking for insight into strategic scaling and market-defying pivots.Interested in backing the next generation of UK innovators? Learn more about Angel Investing and the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Heating and cooling drive 40% of all energy-related CO2 emissions, yet 60% of that energy is wasted by bad insulation. Is there a better way?We got the chance to speak with Theresa Hoffmann, founder of Nanoplume, a UK startup that has developed a revolutionary bio-aerogel 3x more insulating and 60% thinner than traditional materials. The technology is so non-toxic that she famously eats it during presentations.Listen to learn how this deep-tech solution, based on NASA tech but 75% cheaper than existing aerogels, is targeting the $34 billion cold chain market before disrupting building insulation, and why it represents a massive opportunity for early-stage investors.Learn more about ⁠SEIS tax reliefs⁠.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Temperate: The startups building tech that beams heat into space and aims to disrupt the trillion-dollar cooling marketAir conditioning consumes 10% of the world's electricity, a figure set to double by 2050. Is there a better way?I got the chance to speak with Charlie, founder of Temperate, a UK startup that has developed a revolutionary cooling technology up to 20 times more efficient than standard AC. Their system uses no refrigerants and works by converting heat into light and beaming it directly into space.Listen to learn how this deep-tech solution, built with materials from a supermarket, is targeting the multi-trillion-dollar data centre and HVAC markets, and why it represents a massive opportunity for early-stage investors.Learn more about SEIS tax reliefs.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Join us for a fascinating conversation with Pam Garside, a leading angel investor in the health tech sector and the first female chair of Cambridge Angels. Pam shares her unique journey from managing NHS organisations to becoming a trusted advisor and investor, offering a rare glimpse into how a true healthcare insider evaluates early-stage startups.In this episode, Pam reveals her "prescription" for spotting winning founders, discusses the challenges of due diligence when there’s little data, and shares candid lessons from her portfolio, including both remarkable successes and tough failures. We also explore her insights on the future of the NHS, the importance of diversity in the angel community, and what keeps her motivated to keep investing.Don't miss Pam’s expert advice and her clear-eyed perspective on the art of angel investing.Like, subscribe, and find more angel insights on SyndicateRoom.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Angela Cretu spent 25 years at Avon, rising from area manager to Global CEO, where she led one of the most remarkable corporate turnarounds in recent history. Taking over in January 2020 when the company was predicted to go bankrupt, she navigated COVID-19 as a new CEO and transformed one of the world's most recognised beauty brands.After stepping down in 2024, Angela made a fascinating career transition into angel investing, focusing on supporting female founders. In this episode, we explore:How crisis leadership experience translates to evaluating founder resilienceWhat 25 years of managing network effects teach about startup claimsThe psychology of transitioning from running a 5-million-person sales network to backing 3-person startupsWhy her corporate background gives her unique insights that other angels missHer investment philosophy and approach to supporting female foundersAngela shares candid insights about the mental shifts required when moving from CEO to angel investor, reveals red flags she spots that others miss, and explains how her expertise in network-based business models helps her evaluate early-stage companies.Whether you're interested in angel investing, corporate turnarounds, or career transitions, this conversation offers valuable insights from someone who's successfully navigated both sides of the investment table.Connect with Angela Cretu on LinkedIn. Learn more about angel investing: www.syndicateroom.comDon't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

In this episode, we explore Jodie O'Keeffe's fascinating journey from IT contractor in 1990s Australia to becoming one of Angel Academe's most insightful investors. Starting with a chance magazine discovery in a Melbourne supermarket, Jodie shares how her unconventional career path through technology, journalism, and philanthropy unexpectedly converged into angel investing expertise. We dive into her methodical approach to learning the ropes and how she successfully transitioned from Australia's Scale Investors to London's Angel Academe network.The conversation reveals stark funding disparities: women hold 52% of wealth yet make up less than 10% of angel investors, whilst female founders receive just 2% of funding. Jodie explains Angel Academe's collective intelligence approach, where diverse expertise from IP lawyers to exited entrepreneurs creates powerful support systems. She shares her signature question for female founders—"How big do you think it can be?"—contrasting this with the risk-focused questions they typically face.Throughout the episode, Jodie emphasises finding your tribe and offers practical advice for aspiring angel investors: start by observing, leverage network expertise, and understand that angel investing is about building meaningful connections whilst driving systemic change in the startup ecosystem.As always, to learn more please visit www.syndicateroom.com

Standing at a copy machine at HSBC late one night, reviewing 50 statements of work that needed urgent attention, Kayleigh Kuptz had her lightbulb moment. "Technology should do this," she thought, "this should not be done by me." Four years later, that frustration has become Deployed—a B2B SaaS platform that's saving enterprise clients millions while transforming how corporations engage with service providers forever.Deployed is one the the increasingly successful portfolio companies of Angel Academe.If you'd like to find out more about investing alongside Angel Academe please visit SyndicateRoom.Investing in startups is risky.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

The last flight out of London carried just two passengers on that fateful March day in 2020. As Boris Johnson announced the UK's first lockdown, Mike Gammell and his co-founder Duncan were airborne, heading to Scotland with nothing but faith in their vision for alcohol-free beer. Four years later, Days Brewing has become the fastest-growing brand in the UK's no and low alcohol space, proving that sometimes the biggest risks yield the greatest rewards.On this episode we're delighted to be joined by Days co-founder, Mike Gammell. Mike takes us through the Days journey, from the idea to present, and all of the milestones along the way.Days is an Access EIS Fund portfolio company and we are delighted to be a part of their success.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

How a biochemist turned management consultant became one of the UK's most experienced angel investors — and what new angels can learn from his journey.When Simon Blakey made his first angel investment in 2000, the startup ecosystem looked radically different. There was no AngelList, no Seed Legals, and certainly no standardised term sheets. Finding deals meant subscribing to the "Venture Capital Report" — a physical, green-bound publication that featured just two or three opportunities with basic due diligence notes.Fast-forward 25 years, and Blakey has completed over 100 funding rounds across 50-60 investments, ranging from robotics companies eventually acquired by GE Aviation to ticketing platforms processing over a billion in GMV. As Chair of the Investment Committee at Playfair Capital and a board member of Cambridge Angels, he's witnessed the entire evolution of early-stage investing.His journey offers invaluable lessons for today's angel investors, particularly those making the transition from successful entrepreneurship to investing.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

On today's episode, we are joined by Aled Phillips, Co-Managing Director at Niche Private Clients, who helps us take an in-depth look at the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), their similarities, differences, and when they might be right for your investment strategy.It's a fascinating discussion that we hope you enjoy. Please do leave a comment or question and we'll do our best to reply.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

In a world searching for sustainable alternatives to fossil fuel-derived products, Deep Blue Biotech – a graduate of climate-tech-focused fund Carbon13’s 2023  Venture Builder programme – is making waves with an innovative approach to chemical production.Using cyanobacteria – one of the most efficient photosynthetic organisms on the planet – they're developing technology that not only creates valuable chemicals for the personal care industry but removes CO2 from the atmosphere through the process.Tim Corcoran and Manuel Rios from Deep Blue Biotech sat down with us recently to talk through their groundbreaking work in synthetic biology, their business model, and their vision for a more sustainable future.Join me, your host, Tom Britton, Partner at SyndicateRoom as we dive into another episode of Antel Insights and explore this incredible startup and the work they are doing.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

In the latest episode of Angel Insights, we sat down with Rob Wallis, co-founder of Moth Drinks, a SyndicateRoom portfolio company revolutionizing the ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail market. From humble beginnings in a home kitchen to expanding across the Atlantic, Moth has established itself as a premium brand in a rapidly growing category. Here's how they did it.For more information on the Access EIS fund please visit www.syndicateroom.comDon't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

While carbon dioxide (CO2) often dominates climate discussions, methane plays a disproportionately large role in global warming."Methane is a bit like the ugly duckling compared to CO2. It's between 28 and 84 times more potent, which means when it's in the atmosphere, it absorbs much more heat."We had the privilege of speaking with Louise Parlons Bentata, the CEO and co-founder of Bluemethane. The conversation revealed the surprising scale of the methane problem and how Bluemethane is pioneering innovative solutions to tackle it, turning it from a warming agent into a clean energy.Find out more about the Carbon13 SEIS fund which backed Bluemethane and many companies like it.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Cocoon was formed through the ⁠Carbon13⁠⁠ venture building programme with the desire to tackle the emissions produced by the world's second most consumed good, concrete.Eliot Brooks, CEO and Co-founder, joins us to share more about Cocoon's journey and how its product uses a byproduct of steel production to reduce emissions in concrete manufacturing.If you enjoyed the episode please like and subscribe and head to ⁠www.syndicateroom.com⁠ for more information.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Join us as we speak all things Hydrogen fuel and climate-tech related with James Milner, CEO of Access portfolio company Wild Hydrogen. Learn how the hydrogen fuels industry has evolved, where it's headed, and why it's such an exciting time to be in the space.Find out more about what we do at www.syndicateroom.comFind out more about Wild Hydrogen.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

David Hickson, part of the founding team at Founders Factory, joins us to give a bit of background on Founders Factory and why they are starting a new Pre-seed B2B SaaS programme and fund when so many others thought B2B SaaS was saturated. To find out more about the fund SyndicateRoom and Founders Factory are building, please visit www.syndicateroom.com/founders-factory-seis.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Hannah Leach, Partner at Houghton Street Ventures & Co-founder at VentureESG, joins us on this exciting episode of Angel Insights where we delve into ESG and what it really boils down to when it comes to startups and Venture Capital.In this episode we look beyond the products and services being built to the supply chains, hiring processes, and a whole lot more.As always, if you'd like to learn more about our fund you can read here about Access EIS and if you'd like more on the tax reliefs offered you can read hear about the Enterprise Investment Scheme. Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

We had the opportunity to sit down and chat with the incredible Dr. Brian Moretta of Hardman & Co.Brian is a quant by nature, a former fund manager by past, and a fund analyst and reviewer at present. Not to mention, in his spare time, Brian is a professor at the prestigious Heriot-Watt University.Brian spends his days picking apart funds (EIS and VCTs) and creating the reports used by wealth advisors and IFAs so it was a privilege to get his take on how to approach reviewing a fund.Whether you are a first-time EIS fund investor or a seasoned pro, Brian has some great insights to share with you.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

What does one do with a PhD in visual processing? Naturally, one would join the entrepreneur first accelerator, launch a machine learning-based visual processing business, sell it to twitter, then work one's way up the Twitter hierarchy before retiring around 30. Then one would turn one's hand to angel investing.Don't believe me? Listen in to today's guest Zehan Wang as he recounts his tales and all of the lessons he learned along the way which he now applies to his angel investing.New to angel investing? Check out our guide and learn how to invest in startups.Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. ⁠Take 2 mins to learn more⁠.

Addie Pinkster is the Founder and Chief Executive of Adelpha, a female-led corporate financial advisor and leading investment network, that specialises in high-quality, fast-growth, UK-focused companies. Prior to that, she spent 15 years in investment banking, most recently as Head of Hedge Fund Strategy at Citi. She is also a NED, and a growth & tech investor. I got to speak to Addie about her experiences in finance, what matters to her when it comes to choosing companies for investment, and what investors should consider before deciding to invest. It's a great episode and we're delighted to have co-invested with Addie and her team with our Access EIS fund. Capital At Risk Learn more about EIS

Andy Ayim MBE joins us on Angel Insights to discuss all things angel investing and how he finds time to balance family, work, and purpose. From product manager to entrepreneur, to angel investor,  and opening his own angel investing school, Andy is on a mission to make the angel investing pool as diverse as the entrepreneurs starting companies. Andy's journey is filled with drive, self-discovery and a number of insights he shares with us in the episode. Always learning, authentic, humble, and a force of nature for good, if you'd like to learn more about Andy do follow him on Twitter, you will not be disappointed by the knowledge he imparts. More from SyndicateRoom The Access EIS fund Information on EIS Investing in startups

Srin Madipalli seems to have tried a bit of everything before turning his attention to building a startup. Fortunately all of the insights he'd picked up as a geneticist, lawyer, MBA and self-taught coder came in handy and he ultimately founded Accomable which he then sold to Airbnb. Since his departure from Airbnb he's focused his time on angel investing and mentoring startups. Today he shares some of the lessons he's learned along the way.

Nick Jenkins, the founder of Moonpig.com and a former member of BBC's Dragon's Den, joins us on Angel Insights to share what he's learned and how he invests.

Matt Lerner is an angel investor, founder of Startup Core Strengths, and tech industry legend. In this episode we delve into what he's learned from helping to build some of the biggest names in the game (Paypal being one), mentoring countless companies scale during his time at 500 startups, and investing in many others.

Mac Conwell took the unconventional path from entrepreneur to VC, literally accepting a junior position at below his previous salary just to break into venture capital. Now, as Managing Partner of Rare Breed Ventures, he's proving that diverse perspectives don't just find different opportunities—they find better ones.In this episode, Mac shares:How he convinced a VC firm to create a position for him despite having no traditional pathwayThe moment he realized diverse teams spot opportunities he'd never see (including a Gen Z dating app that became a major win)Why his fund specifically backs underrepresented founders solving problems outside mainstream VC experienceThe real challenges of fundraising as a diverse GP in a homogeneous industryHis philosophy: "When people hear pattern matching, they think about the way people look. For me, pattern matching is about the way entrepreneurs think"Mac's journey from struggling to get meetings to building a successful fund reveals why the future of venture capital depends on expanding beyond traditional networks and perspectives. Essential listening for anyone interested in the intersection of diversity, deal flow, and investment returns."There is no world in which I would ever find, discover, think about, or want to play with a Gen Z dating app. But I had members on my team who were telling me like, Mac, have you heard of this really cool app? I've been spending hours on it."Angel Insights: Your guide to angel investing and the entrepreneurs shaping tomorrow's economy.To learn more about EIS funds, visit SyndicateRoom

Sarah Turner, co-founder of the incredible Angel Academe, joins us today to discuss the changes she has seen in the angel investing ecosystem over the last decade and shares thoughts on what more needs to be done to bring more women into angel investing.

Dr. Silvia Mah, PhD, MBA, is a founding partner of Ad Astra Ventures, Stella Angels, Stella Labs and Women's Venture Summit, and is a prolific angel investor.

Peter Cowley started life as an engineer but quickly developed a passion for entrepreneurship which has stuck with him his entire career. He fell into angel investing before he really knew what it was all about and soon became a true student of the game.

Denzel Walters, co-founder for Community Growth Ventures, sat down to chat with us about his professional experience, his approach to angel investing, and the gap in the market in backing diverse founders that led to the founding of Community Growth Ventures.

Today we had the privilege of chatting with Caroline Halliday, from the Green Angel Syndicate. Caroline has a wealth of experience working with environmentally-minded businesses and investing in cleantech startups. Listen in to learn how she approaches a cleantech investment opportunity.

Super Angel Kirsten Connell talks to us about her career, both before angel investing and since, and the lessons she's learned along the way that have led to her becoming one of the top business angels in the UK with a particular focus on cybertech.

We had the opportunity to chat with Super Angel Simon Thorpe about his career, before angel investing and since, and the lessons he's learned along the way that have led to him becoming one of the top business angels in the UK.

In addition to having an enviable angel portfolio, super angel Chris Mairs CBE has held various executive roles at Metaswitch Networks, including a long stint as CTO. He's been the Chairman of Magic Pony Technology, Curon Medical, Phoelex, Board Member at Raspberry Pi, Venture Partner at Entrepreneur First and is a Fellow at the Royal Academy of Engineering. We had the chance to sit down with Chris and discuss his incredible experience in both his professional life and angel investing. In Today’s Episode You Will Learn: 1) The angel investing trends we should look for in 2021 2) Is there appetite for UK startup from external investors? 3) The difference between working with UK/US tech companies 4) The biggest lessons learnt from having a large portfolio As always, you can learn more about SyndicateRoom here: www.syndicateroom.com

Beyond being an incredible angel investor, Ros has built an enviable career in telecoms and IT, having been COO at Relish Networks, the Managing Director for broadband at three, and Chair of the UK5G advisory board. We had the chance to sit down with Ros and discuss her incredible experience in both her professional life and angel investing. In Today’s Episode You Will Learn: 1) How to transition into angel investing 2) Should you always invest in what you know? 3) The red flags to look out for when considering an investment 4) How is Covid-19 affecting the investing space? As always, you can learn more about SyndicateRoom here: www.syndicateroom.com

Gale Bowman is the founding director of IrishAngels, has grown the group to 150 investors and managed 15 investments totaling over $5.5 million in seed and Series A capital. Her previous work experience includes market research consulting at Nielsen and corporate strategy at Orbitz. She has consulted many startups on customer research, marketing, and funding strategy. Bowman sits on the Board of the C200 Scholars Network and is a member of the Irish Entrepreneurs Network. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Gale make her way into the angel ecosystem? What are the fundamental differences between an institutionalised angel fund and a more casual network of angel investors? What are the most common and biggest mistakes Gale sees when it comes to founders approaching the fundraising process? What advice does Gale give most often to new angels to the ecosystem? How do Gale’s return expectations differ from the likes of larger more instituional funds? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Jonathan Hakakian is the Managing Director and Co-Founder of the SoundBoard Angel Fund with Richard Magid. Jonathan raised capital for the fund, directed the diligence process into a growing portfolio of 20 companies, and coached many of the portfolio's entrepreneurs on their journeys. His professional background also includes tech, sales, construction, and management. Most recently he graduated from the Kauffman Fellows Program (Class 19) where he focused his studies on being an innovative venture investor. Locally, Jonathan is a board member of New Jersey Entrepreneurial Network, an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) at Stevens Institute of Technology Venture Center, and an advisory board member of MCW (a non-profit focused on empowering current and future leaders to better their local communities). In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Jonathan make his way into the angel ecosystem? What is Jonathan’s approach to valuation and ownership at such an early stage? What level of ownership is required to generate the desired Alpha? What is Jonathan’s return expectations? How does this differ from sector to sector? How does this differ from the $Bn return expectations of large VCs? How does Jonathan approach team formation? What does he look for in early stage founders and their team? What Jonathan looks for in his co-investors? What gives him confidence? What makes him nervous? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Deb Kemper is the Managing Director of the Boston chapter of Golden Seeds. Her involvement includes deal flow, membership, education, and operations. She is an active early-stage investor, mentor to entrepreneurs, and board member. Prior to Golden Seeds, Deb spent many years in management consulting at McKinsey & Company where she served clients in the healthcare, energy, and electronics sectors. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Deb make her way into the angel ecosystem? What has caused the huge rise of Boston’s startup ecosystem? What are the required components for successful ecosystems to thrive? How important is intellectual property for Deb when considering a prospective investment? What advice does Deb give most often to new angels to the ecosystem? Does Deb agree that all angels have a duty to follow on in investment rounds if they have backed early rounds? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Nick Lyth is a founder at the Green Angels Syndicate, the only angel investment syndicate specialising in investments to benefit the green economy. As for Nick, prior to Green Angels, Nick has spent over ten years building up a new applied research institute in the eco and environmental arena, with the international status to attract innovation to its door. He has also contributed to forums advising Scottish Government the Northern Irish Government and the European Parliament in Brussels. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Nick make his way into the angel ecosystem? Why have we seen such a lack of investment in the energy space from the perspective of angels and VCs? What are the inherent investment barriers that need to be overcome? How has the onboarding process been for Nick in entering the angel environment? What was the biggest shock to Nick in the investment world? How does Nick ensure that his voice is heard as an angel? What makes a good board member and non-exec director? What advice would Nick give to other angels starting out in the ecosystem? What should they look to learn and what should they try and avoid? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Thatcher Bell is a venture partner @ Gotham Ventures and Thatcher has spent more than a dozen years in the startup community as a venture capitalist and operator. Prior to joining Gotham Ventures, Thatcher was a Senior Analyst at North Hill Ventures, the venture capital affiliate of Capital One Financial. Before joining North Hill, Thatcher held business and corporate development roles at OpenPages (acquired by IBM) and SharkTank. If you love the show with Thatcher today and want to hear more, head over to syndicateroom.com where you can find more articles, podcasts and resources. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Thatcher make his way into the angel ecosystem? What were Thatcher’s biggest takeaways from his operational experience? How does that lend to his investment role? Do all investors need to have operational experience? What is required to make the transition from operator to angel? How does Thatcher look to split his time between portfolio companies? Where does he spend the majority of his time? When an investment is not working, how does Thatcher convey that to the entrepreneur? What does the feedback process look like? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Meghan Cross is the Managing Director @ Red Bear Angels which she joined with nearly a decade of operating experience launching and growing media & software companies in New York and Silicon Valley. As an early Director at StyleCaster Inc., Meghan led the digital media conglomerate’s marketing team through the business’ exit to She Knows Media. Before that, Meghan was in PR, helping to build Skype and Foursquare into household names. She also draws venture experience from working with Bowery Capital, Foundation Capital, Metamorphic Ventures, and StarVest Partners. Megan is also the founder of Cross Venture Services LLC, a launch advisor to such commerce platforms as Sailo (TechStars ’15), Shareswell, and Thursday Boot Co. Learning process In Today’s Show We Discuss: What angels really look for in VC partners? How Megan approached the learning process of becoming an angel investor? What were Meghan’s biggest takeaways in working with Foursquare and Skype as they entered hypergrowth mode? How does Meghan view investor value add? Is all money green? What would Meghan like to see more of in the early stage angel ecosystem in NYC? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Elizabeth Galbut is a Founding Partner @ Sogal Ventures, the first female led cross border venture capital firm and Prior to finishing business school, she founded A-Level Capital, the first student-led venture capital firm powered by Johns Hopkins students. Before graduate school, Elizabeth was a strategy & operations consultant at Deloitte Consulting focusing on large healthcare clients. Outside of her client-facing work, she contributed to business development efforts that led to over $200M of new work. If you love the show today then you can head over to syndicateroom.com and see all the previous episodes as well as accompanying angel articles and resources but for now I am delighted to hand over to Elizabeth Galbut, Founding Partner @ Sogal Ventures. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How Elizabeth made her way into the investing world? How Elizabeth looks to establish pattern recognition as a recent entrant to the VC community? What does Elizabeth look for in her co-investors? What does Elizabeth’s diligence process look life for prospective investments? How do this differ from deal to deal? What was the hardest element in establishing SoGal Ventures? What would Elizabeth most like to change about the early stage investing world? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Jon Lerner is a Managing Director @ Smedvig Capital where he actively looks for the best tech enabled business in the UK and currently sits on the board of Mediamorph and Captify. Prior to Smedvig, Jon was a Senior Consultant at Bain in London and Toronto. If you love the show today then you can head over to syndicateroom.com and see all the previous episodes as well as accompanying angel articles and resources but for now I am delighted to hand over to Jon Lerner, Managing Director @ Smedvig Capital. In Today’s Show We Discuss: What angels really look for in VC partners? What are the most common elements of contention and disagreement between angels and later stage VCs? How does Jonathan look to harness the early angel ecosystem to provide him with a strong incoming quality of dealflow? How does Jon approach valuation and ownership? Does he adopt the Sheryl Sandberg approach of it does not matter where you sit as long as you have a seat on the rocketship? What would Jon like to see more of in the early stage angel ecosystem in London? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Simon Bichara is an active angel and advisor with investments in the likes of Jinn, Ignite, Fit Gurus and many more incredible companies. He is also the founder of Hired By Me, the tool that helps contractors get hired faster. Prior to being immersed in the world of startups and investing Simon spent several years at Barclays before seeing the late and moving to the tech space. Now if you enjoy the show and would like to see more information then you can head over to www.syndicateroom.com where you can find the investor academy with more articles podcasts and information. In Today’s Show We Discuss: How did Simon’s financial background lend to his role now as an angel? What elements of a founding team gives Simon confidence? How does Simon view of the maturation of the early stage investing environment? Is all money good money? In what cases is dumb money a problem? How does Simon analyse the current levels of valuation? How does Simon determine valuation at the earliest of stages with no measurable data? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Francesca O'Brien is Head Associate at SyndicateRoom where she is responsible for management of dealflow and liaison with entrepreneurs. In today’s episode we take a deep dive into the DD process and reveal how exactly Fran sources companies, how those companies are viewed once in the investment pipeline and what an investment community want to see in an investment opportunity. You can also find further resources on the show and investing articles on the site at syndicateroom.com. Today We Discuss: What is Fran’s preference on founders? Single or co-founder? How big does a market have to be for it to be an investable proposition? Does this vary if you are an angel as opposed to a VC? Is too much dumb money a bad thing for the ecosystem? How can founders optimise for this and avoid potential pitfalls? What do investors in the platform most like to see in an investment proposition? What would Fran most like to see change in the early stage funding environment in the UK? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Now for today’s show we thought we would go for something slightly different, as it is August and the investor holiday season is upon us. We thought we would compile some of our favourite quick fire rounds containing the resources that the best investors utilise, giving you the ultimate resource collection so you can head off on your holidays prepared. Discussed In The Show Today: 1.) What is Tim Mills (British Business Bank) morning daily read? 2.) Who does John Spindler (London Co-Investment Fund and Capital Enterprise) say are must follows on Twitter and why? 3.) What does Collette Ballou (Ballou PR) feel are the main benefits of reading fiction? What are here favourites? 4.) What is Tom Britton (Syndicate Room) must read? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Now for today’s show we thought we would go for something slightly different, I have had many emails from people asking about how to get into the world of investing in startups and we thought today we would take some our favourite entrance stories and show you a collection of how they did it. The ultimate guide to how to make your way into the world of early stage startup investing. Discussed In The Show Today: 1.) How Tim Mills came into the industry from the world of banking and came to be at The British Business Bank? 2.) What was John Spindler’s start in the angel investing industry and what is his route to where he is today with the London Co-Investment Fund and Capital Enterprise? 3.) How did Dominic Wilson make the transition from the world of property to the world of property tech investing, now being Managing Director @ Pi Labs. 4.) Every startup founder needs a mentor, so when did Jonathan Pfahl appreciate the importance of mentors and being the founding of Rockstar Mentoring? 5.) Like mentoring, all startups need fantastic PR. So how did Colette Ballou, make her way into the world of angel investing from founding one of Europe’s leading startup PR agencies in Ballou PR? 6.) David Rose is a serial entrepreneur, prolific angel investor, Ted Speaker and multiple author, but how did he first become an angel investor? 7.) An appropriate finish, what is the founding story of Syndicate Room from Tom Britton and what was it about the space that made Tom so excited? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com

Collette Ballou is the Founder and President of Ballou PR, one of the leading European public relations that works with high-growth technology and technology-enabled companies, as well as technology investors. Colette has worked with the likes of Facebook, Whatsapp, TransferWise, Eventbrite, Evernote just to name a few. Alongside this incredible operational journey, Collette is also an active angel investor and has mentored with the likes of 500 Startups and Seedcamp. In Today’s Episode with Colette we discuss: 1.) How did Collette make her way into the world of angel investing? 2.) In the proliferation of content for marketing, is a contrarian approach the right way to go for cutting through the noise? 3.) What does Colette make of the increasing personalisation of VCs and angels? 4.) How can investors balance their own personal brand with the brand of their fund? 5.) What does Colette make of the rise of Twitter? To what extent should it be used as a marketing tool? How does Colette react to tweet storms? Learn more about SyndicateRoom: www.syndicateroom.com and see Colette's twitter here: www.twitter.com/coletteballou