3. Niki Scevak on Raising a $1BN Venture Fund

Regulations

The regulatory environment significantly impacts venture capital, often restricting access to only sophisticated investors. Steve Glaveski highlights that this excludes everyday retail investors, despite their ability to invest in other high-risk assets like penny stocks and NFTs 1. Niki Scevak argues that wealth does not equate to sophistication, suggesting an educational test over an asset test to define investor sophistication 2.

There are so many rich people that I've met that are not sophisticated investors.

--- Niki Scevak

Niki also points out that many Australians indirectly benefit from venture capital through their superannuation funds, which invest in these assets 2.

   

Evolution

The venture capital landscape has evolved significantly over the past decade. Niki Scevak recalls the challenging early days of raising Blackbird's first fund, which took over two years and numerous meetings 3. He emphasizes the importance of having a vibrant startup ecosystem, citing the success of companies like Atlassian and Canva as industry-defining 4.

Venture capital is a strange asset class where the winner, the single most successful company, defines a whole industry.

--- Niki Scevak

These successes have attracted more institutional capital, both locally and globally, boosting confidence in the Australian startup ecosystem.

   

Capital

Raising capital is a rigorous process that involves overcoming numerous rejections. Steve Glaveski notes that belief in oneself can waver after multiple knockbacks, but persistence is key 5. Niki Scevak shares that out of 522 meetings, only 96 resulted in a yes, emphasizing the importance of finding believers rather than convincing skeptics 6.

The best is a yes. The second best is a no. And the worst is the not yes or no.

--- Niki Scevak

He also stresses the value of adjusting pitches based on feedback and targeting the right audience to increase the chances of success.