October 2020

By ANDREW BOTT

Event Assistants:
CHURCHILL ONUMONU & ANDREW PEARCE
Discover an Inside View on Start-up
Investment
Start-up investment or raising finance is often an opaque hidden mystery to
most seeking it. Our elite panels of investment industry insiders will shine a
spotlight on this process. This rare inside view will educate, entertain and give
you solid advice from those who know.
GET FUNDED
October 26th, 2020
6:00pm - 9:00pm British Summer Time
(11am PST, 2pm EST)
6pm-6:45pm
“Health, Wellness, Nutrition Investment”
This panel will focus on the growing industry of Wellness,
Health and Nutrition investment. These investors will discuss
what they look for when seeking start-ups in this space, and
how these companies are different from Healthtech or other
Food & Beverage companies. Attend to learn about how these
investors approach their unique industry.
“VC Guide to Pitch Decks”
This panel will discuss common mistakes around Pitch Decks
in relation to Venture Capital, and some of the ways Start-ups
can improve their decks, avoid common pitfalls, and approach
their deck prep in the right way.
“B2B SaaS: Traits that Matter”
Current trends in B2B SaaS investment, and how investors think
about investing in B2B SaaS start-ups. Future thoughts on the
direction of B2B SaaS, what companies can do to properly prep
their B2B SaaS company for investment. How do start-ups
position their company to be attractive to this type of
investments, and what tips and tricks can the panellists offer?
6:45pm-7:30pm
“Space & Aerospace Venture Capital”
How Aerospace investors think, and what they look for that’s
different from other stages. What is different from other
industries in Aerospace venture? How can start-ups in this
industry prepare and compete in this space? How are timelines
different in this industry and how does this change the
Aerospace ecosystem?
“VC Advice: Common Start-up Mistakes”
Q&A with experienced investors about common mistakes start-
ups make when fundraising, approaching investors, or
before/after the funding process. How to fix problems before
they happen, and the do’s and don'ts for building your start-up
and preparing for investment. Find out during this panel how to
break through the noise and reach investors while avoiding
common red flags for VCs.
7:30pm-8:15pm
“Sustainability Investment”
Experiences of investors who focus on the environment and
sustainability. How is this type of investment different than
others? What are mistakes these start-ups make when seeking
investment? How can the panellists help start-ups in this
industry? Attend this panel to meet top investors in sustainability
venture.
“Fintech: Trends and What’s Next in VC?”
A panel of VCs and investors who have significant experience
in Fintech investments. How is this industry different from the
rest? What do they look for when seeking investments (or
avoiding them)? What are the challenges and strategies
recommended to start-ups in the Fintech world?
8:15pm-9pm
Video Networking
Our software allows attendees to be matched automatically every
5 minutes in 1:1 video chats! Network, make connections, and
find opportunities through some great conversations.
PITCH NIGHT
October 27th 2020
6:00pm - 8:30pm British Summer Time
(11am PST, 2pm EST)
6pm-7:30pm
Start-up Pitches and Feedback from Judges
Start-ups pitch to judges for Investment and are given feedback
from our judges who are all currently investors. Investors from
around the world attend and watch the pitches, and start-
ups/investors have the chance to network and build their deal
flow.
7:30pm-7:45pm
The 4 C’s of a Great Pitch Deck
Emilia Gyoerk gives a presentation on Pitch Decks!
7:30pm-8.30pm
Video Networking
Our software allows attendees to be matched automatically every
5 minutes in 1:1 video chats! Network, make connections, and
find opportunities through some great conversations.
 Pitch Night Startups
OCT 27TH | 6 PM - 7:30 PM BST
AYUDA HEALTH
Industry: Healthcare, Healthtech
Country: Canada
Company LinkedIn: link
Amount raising: £500,000
BKYND
Industry: Volunteering,
Marketplace
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn: link
Amount raising: £500,000
CAREMMUNITY
Industry: Agetech, Healthcare
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £150,000
CASHSMITHS
Industry: Financial Services
UK, Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £500,000
HOLLABOX
Industry: B2B & B2C SaaS
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £250,000 -
450,000
JETNOW.COM
Industry: Travel, Fintech
UK, LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £500,000
LESSGO ROTARO
Industry: Social Networking Industry: Fashion, Tech
Country: UK Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £220,000 Amount raising: £500,000
MINDROCKET SHAKTIBARRE
Industry: Data, HR Tech, Industry: Fitness, Tech
Wellbeing Country: US
Country: UK Company LinkedIn link
Company LinkedIn link Amount raising: $190,000
Amount raising: £250,000
THINK CYBER
NUMEROUS SECURITY
Industry: Data, Marketplace
Industry: Cyber
Country: UK
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link
Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: Just closed
Amount raising: £250,000 now,
seed round, looking for
£1.5M by end of 2021
connections for next round
WHITELANCE
PAYDOCK
Industry: SaaS
Industry: FinTech
Country: UK
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link
Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: <£2M
Amount raising: £400,000
VUEBOX
RELOYALTY
Industry: Media
Industry: Fintech, Marketplace
Country: UK
Country: UK
Company LinkedIn link
Company LinkedIn link
Amount raising: £500,000
Amount raising: £450,000
(closing now) or up to £2M in
Q1 2021
 “Health, Wellness, Nutrition Investment”
OCT 26TH | 6 PM – 6:45 PM BST
Serena Sabala
CO-FOUNDER, WHOLE S HIFT WELLNESS
Book Recommendation: The Surrender Experiment by M. A. Singer

Serena is a Certified Plant Based Nutrition Consultant, Yoga Teacher and Fitness Trainer who
has studied the subject of nutrition for over ten years and has a unique, wholistic approach to
health and wellness.

Mads Misiak Friis

PARTNER, KRING
PODCAST H OST, GROWTH ISLAND
Book Recommendation: Get Backed by Evan Baehr and Evan Loomis

Starting and investing in health and energy companies through the Venture Builder KRING. 10
investments in health start-ups through Startupbootcamp Digital Health in Berlin, Screened
1000+ start-ups for different start-up programs

Joško Bobanović
PARTNER , S OFINNOVA PARTNERS
TV Recommendation: The Last Dance (Netflix)

Joško Bobanović joined Sofinnova Partners in 2010 as Partner dedicated to activities in

industrial biotech. He focuses on early stage deals in Europe and North America with
applications in chemicals, agriculture, food, feed and synthetic biology. Prior to joining Sofinnova
he spent eight years in venture capital with iNovia Capital in Montreal, Canada. Joško holds a
BSc. in physics from University of Zagreb, a PhD in physical oceanography from Dalhousie
University and an MBA in finance and marketing from McGill University.

Bill Liao
TRUSTEE & CHAIR, S OCIAL TECH TRUST
FOUNDER , R EBELBIO AND WEFOREST
Book Recommendation: Never Split the Difference by Christopher Voss and Tahl Raz

Bill’s investments at SOSV include Perfect Day, Synthase, CyGenica, Hyasynth, AlgiKnit,
Carverr, MavenHut, Silicon Republic, Restored Hearing and Storyful (acquired by NEWS
Corporation). Bill is also the lead investment partner on SOSV II (Ireland fund) and is responsible
for sourcing and managing investments for that fund with the Irish government.
 “VC Guide to Pitch Decks”
OCT 26TH | 6 PM - 6:45 PM BST
Andrew Bott
FOUNDER, M EETFOUNDERS.CO
Book Recommendation: The Lean Start-up by Eric Reis

Andrew Bott is the Founder of MeetFounders.co - His core mission is building relationships with
investors like you, helping industry experts to share their knowledge, and assisting great start-
ups seeking investment.

Yana Abramova
VC INVESTOR , PRETIOSUM V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: Secrets of Sand Hill Road by Scott Kupor

Yana is a Managing Partner at Pretiosum Ventures, a UK based venture capital firm with a focus
on seed and Series A companies in AI, Fintech, and the Future of Work/Life sectors .Prior to
Pretiosum Ventures, she spent several years working in a $1,5bn investment fund as well as
advising start-ups on UK expansion. Yana holds an MSc in Management from Cambridge
University and is an ambassador for Tech Nation UK and an exceptional Tech Talent Visa holder.

Hector Mason
INVESTOR , EPISODE 1 V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

While at university, Hector discovered a way to beat the bookies, which ultimately funded his
first start-up, Taskee, an on-demand jobs marketplace. In 2017, Hector founded a tech
consultancy which he later sold. After a stint in innovation consultancy, he is now investing in
early-stage start-ups for Episode 1 Ventures, a London-based seed-stage VC fund, whose
previous investments include Carwow, Attest, CloudNC, Zoopla and Shazam.

Katie Kim
INVESTOR, FORWARD PARTNERS
Book Recommendation: Venture Deals by Brad Feld

Katie is an Investor with Forward Partners, where she invests in pre-seed and seed stage
companies within the sectors of applied AI, marketplaces and e-commerce. Prior to Forward,
she was an Investor with Vanedge Capital, a Series A fund based in Vancouver Canada, where
she invested in machine learning, SaaS and digital media start-ups.

Toyosi Ogendengbe
V ENTURE INVESTOR , CREATOR FUND
Book Recommendation: VC Game by Jefferey Bussgang

Toyosi is an early-stage investor, entrepreneur, and venture builder with 10+ years of
professional experience. He primarily focuses on early-stage investments in Europe, with a
interest in cloud software and marketplaces. He currently works at Bessemer Venture Partners,
a US-based VC firm. Toyosi holds an MBA from Oxford University and a Bachelor's in
Engineering from the University of Bristol.
 “B2B SaaS: Traits that Matter”
OCT 26TH | 6 PM - 6:45 PM BST
Abhi Anuket
FOUNDER, M AGNIVIA
V ENTURES & PARTNER , S TARBURST A EROSPACE
Book Recommendation: The Hard Thing about Hard Things by Ben Horrowitz

Abhi Anuket is an entrepreneur, corporate strategy consultant and venture capitalist based in
US with cross border interests. He has a cumulative 20 years of academic and operating
experience in finance and technology.Through his engagements at Magnivia Ventures, Abhi
evaluates approximately 250-500 high quality deals annually at various stages in enterprise
SaaS spanning health tech, fintech, insurtech, AI and Deeptech.

Susie Meier
INVESTOR , NOTION CAPITAL
Book Recommendation: Measure What Matters by John Doerr

Notion is a Venture firm investing in enterprise technology and B2B SaaS companies at Series
A and Series B stage across Europe. Notion was founded in 2009 in London with the ambition
to be the ‘go to’ B2B SaaS investor in Europe. Ten years later, the VC is announcing the first
close of its new fund Notion Capital IV LP, which it expects to exceed $150 million at final close.

Pavel Skalin
DIRECTOR , A NGELS DEN FUNDING
Book Recommendation: Secrets of Sand Hill Road by Scott Kupor

Pavel is an Angel Investor with a focus on B2B SaaS and Marketplaces. He works as a
director of Angels Den Funding, where he is charge of the platform, deal flow and portfolio
management.

Chennakeshav Adya
FOUNDING M ANAGING PARTNER , A DAN CORPORATE FINANCE
Book Recommendation: The 100-year old life by Prof. Lynda Gratton and Prof. Andrew
Scott from London Business School

Chennakeshav (Keshav) Adya has 20+ years of international corporate and entrepreneurial
experience in building firms across sectors from a concept and leading global teams of 200+
spanning corporate finance advisory, international growth, M&A, technology delivery and fund-
raising for top-flight firms such as Morgan Stanley, Lloyds Banking Group, HSBC, Marks and
Spencer, Sainsbury’s, IMS Health, TCS, and Hitachi Rail in 25+ countries globally.
 “Space & Aerospace Venture Capital”
OCT 26TH | 6:45 PM – 7:30 PM BST
Will Benton
V ENTURE & ECOSYSTEM DIRECTOR , ATI BOEING A CCELERATOR
H EAD OF NETWORK, LANDSCAPE
Book Recommendation: Shoe Dog by Nike's Phil Knight

Wil Benton is the Venture & Ecosystem Director at the ATI Boeing Accelerator, a seed to series
A-stage programme that supports start-ups creating innovation for the civilian aerospace sector.
Wil has also started, scaled and sold his own start-up, invested in 15+ start-ups as an angel,
and has recently invested in his first VC fund.

Claudia Mendzil
PROGRAMME DIRECTOR , S ERAPHIM S PACE CAMP
Book Recommendation: Black Box Thinking by Matthew Syed

Claudia is the Programme Director of Seraphim Space Camp - the UK’s first accelerator
programme dedicated to the rapidly growing SpaceTech start-up sector. They select seed-stage
companies with developed, proven solutions and help them to become investment ready as well
as to build relationships with Seraphim’s network of sector-leading corporate partners.

Thomas Lazaridis
PARTNER , S PACE V ENTURES INVESTORS
Thomas has been part of the investment team since 2015, shaping SVI investments and defining
its pre-seed / seed strategy. His core interests lay in the Earth Observations value chain, space
situational awareness and satellite refuelling.

Abhi Anuket
FOUNDER, M AGNIVIA
V ENTURES & PARTNER , S TARBURST A EROSPACE
Book Recommendation: Zero to One by Peter Thiel

Abhi Anuket is an entrepreneur, corporate strategy consultant and venture capitalist based in
US with cross border interests. He has a cumulative 20 years of academic and operating
experience in finance and technology. Abhi has previously worked at Reuters, ICAP and
Barclays and serves on boards of Academic Institutions and Accelerators. While at Starburst he
is involved in evaluating deals from the Aerospace and Defense start-up ecosystem.
 “VC Advice: Common Startup Mistakes”
OCT 26TH | 6:45 PM – 7:30 PM BST

Andrew Bott
FOUNDER, M EETFOUNDERS.CO
Book Recommendation: The Lean Startup by Eric Reis

Andrew Bott is the Founder of MeetFounders.co - His core mission is building relationships with
investors like you, helping industry experts to share their knowledge, and assisting great start-
ups seeking investment.

Zoe Peden
INVESTMENT M ANAGER UK, A NANDA IMPACT V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: The 100-year life - living and working in an age of longevity by
Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott

Zoe is an experienced tech entrepreneur and VC investor for Ananda Impact Ventures with over
20 years operating and board experience in technology companies. She co-founded one of the
UK’s top grossing education apps, MyChoicePad and now spends her time looking for Europe’s
most impactful tech entrepreneurs to invest in.

Matteo Rizzi
CO-FOUNDER, FTS GROUP
V ENTURE PARTNER , SG V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: Talents & Rebels: Dealing with corporate misfits by Matteo Rizzi

Around 15 VC investments direct plus advising many more, Including Toro, Moven, Mobeewave
(acquired by Apple) Start-up Bootcamp. Investor since 2013, after creating Innotribe and the
Global Start-up sChallenge (Transferwise first winner, then Revolut etc ). Matteo has been
Investing in Africa since 2015.

Hampus Monthan Nordenskjöld

FOUNDING PARTNER, TRUS IGHT V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Founding GP at TrueSight Ventures in London/Stockholm, 40+ companies in portfolio.

 “Sustainability Investment”
OCT 26TH | 7:30 PM - 8:15 PM BST
Maeve Crowley
S USTAINABLE FINANCE, CYAN FINANCE
Book Recommendation: Boo Hoo: A Dot.Com Story from Concept to Catastrophe by Ernst
Malmsten

Maeve focuses on delivering Cyan Finance’s advisory capabilities and deployment of balance
sheet capital, leveraging her previous experience as both a lender and an advisor. Prior to joining
Cyan, Maeve worked at DC Advisory as part of their Capital Advisory & Restructuring team.
Maeve executed numerous transactions across capital raising and M&A, providing advice to
distressed companies at risk of, or subject to, restructuring and insolvency proceedings.

Hans Van Houwelingen

FOUNDER & M ANAGING PARTNER , U RBAN IMPACT V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: Impact: Where Passion and Purpose Makes a Difference by Stacey
O’Byrne

Hans is Founder & Managing Partner of Urban Impact Ventures. Before that he was CEO of
ACTIAM, a global leader in Sustainable and Impact investing with €65 billion AuM. He fulfilled
various international executive and non-executive leadership roles in the investment
management, insurance and technology industries; besides being passionately involved with
multiple entrepreneurs as mentor, advisor and investor.

Andy Lürling
FOUNDING PARTNER , LUMO LABS
Book Recommendation: Superforecasting: the art & science of prediction by Philip Tetlock
and Dan Gardner

Andy Lürling is founding partner at LUMO Labs, an impact-driven seed capital fund with a 2-
year venture builder program for founding teams of ventures focused on AI/Data, Blockchain,
Robotics/Drones, IoT, VR/AR. Andy, a serial entrepreneur, started LUMO Labs in 2016, and
due the good progress of its portfolio companies, in March 2020 EUR 20 mio. LUMO Fund II
was announced.

Miriam Davidovic
PARTNER, R OSHEM V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: The Mission Driven Venture by Marc J. Lane

Miriam Davidovic is a Co-Founder and Partner at Roshem Ventures in Israel, an impact investment
management firm with a portfolio spanning across the regenerative economy - from innovation
and infrastructure, to organic agriculture projects and impact technology platforms. She has 6
years of experience in impact investing, starting from a traditional venture capital background in
Canada, and she is also currently an educator at the Roshem Foundation's Institute where she
teaches Impact Finance to CEOs. entrepreneurs and investors across a wide range of industries
 “Fintech: Trends and What’s Next in VC?”
OCT 26TH | 7:30PM – 8:15 PM BST
Akash Bajwa
INVESTMENT A NALYST, A UGMENTUM
Book Recommendation: Disrupted by Dan Lyons

Investment Analyst at Augmentum. Previously an Investment Analyst at the Cass

Entrepreneurship Fund, a £10m fund investing in early-stage B2B tech. Previously worked at
Barclays Ventures, focusing on opportunities in the personal financial management market.

Martin Bodocky
G ENERAL PARTNER , NATION 1 VC
Book Recommendation: Principles by Ray Dalio

I started investing into public tech companies 7 years ago and got a chance to join Venture
capital business. My portfolio consists the 3D scanning company Precismo, price optimization
for e-commerce Disivo, multimodal pranning analytics for cities Mileus as well as forward
payment app for employees Advanto, I love my other investments into Buildiro intelligent ordering
for trade salesmen, telehealth platform for diabetes type 2 and manufacturing optimisation
platform in 33A+ solutions.

Arunkumar Krishnakumar
PARTNER , GREEN S HORES CAPITAL
Book Recommendation: Reboot by Jerry Colonna

I am a VC in London with 20 investments, a couple of exits and served on a few boards. I

published my first book on Business Applications of Quantum computing and Blockchain earlier
this year. I am also a social media influencer in Fintech and Sustainable investing. I have just
completed 100 episodes on my podcast 'One Vision' and 150 articles on Daily Fintech between
2017 and 2019.

Helga Valfells
FOUNDING PARTNER, CROWBERRY CAPITAL
Book Recommendation: Hard Thing about Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

Helga has spent the last 10 years in Venture Capital. She co-founded Crowberry Capital in
2017. Crowberry is a VC fund that invests at seed and early stage. Currently Crowberry has a
portfolio of 14 companies founded across the Nordics.
 “Judges for Live Pitch Event”
OCT 27TH | 6 PM – 7:30 PM BST
Tambo Silavwe
H EAD COACH, INSIGHT COACHING
Book Recommendation: Shoe Dog, A Memoir by the creator of Nike by Phil Knight

Head Coach at Insight Coaching, Tambo has helped entrepreneurs countless times at pitch
events and speaking engagements. His blended approach of behavioural science and theatre
makes for an impactful and natural delivery style.

Martin Bodocky
G ENERAL PARTNER , NATION 1 VC
Book Recommendation: : Principles by Ray Dalio

I started investing into public tech companies 7 years ago and got a chance to join Venture
capital business 3 years ago before I have run two tech start-ups from finish to failure. My
portfolio consists the 3D scanning company Precismo, price optimization for e-commerce Disivo,
multimodal pranning analytics for cities Mileus as well as forward payment app for employees
Advanto, I love my other investments into Buildiro intelligent ordering for trade salesmen,
telehealth platform for diabetes type 2 and manufacturing optimisation platform in 33A+
solutions.

Simon Schneider
FOUNDING PARTNER , NEOTEQ V ENTURES
Book Recommendation: Born to Run by Christopher McDougall

Simon is a founding Partner of neoteq ventures. He has been a VC investor for over 15 years
and has been working in Germany, as well as in international markets. He believes that
successful ventures are built on close collaboration and teamwork - that is at the core of his
investment

Timur Daudpota
EIR, 500 S TARTUPS
Book Recommendation: Angel by Jason Calacanis

Timur is EIR at 500 Start-ups and Angel Investor, He has worked +160 start-ups by now and
helped create and run start-up ecosystems in San Francisco, Korea, Vietnam, Kazakhstan,
Russia, and Georgia. He is also a Mentor with Hult Prize and Netpreneur Prize Initiatives at
Alibaba Group. Before joining 500 Start-ups, Timur was a startup founder and 500 alumni, he
has worked with some of the biggest brands, like Coca-Cola, Burger King, Disney, and Invisalign
to run their Influencer Marketing Campaigns.
 “Judges for Live Pitch Event”
OCT 27TH | 6 PM – 7:30 PM BST
Dylan Itzikowitz
INVESTOR , FOUNDERS FACTORY
Book Recommendation: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Dylan works on the investments team at Founders Factory, a corporate backed venture studio
and early stage investment program. He leads the investments for both their travel and media
tech sectors, in partnership with easyJet & The Guardian respectively. Prior to joining Founders
Factory, he worked supporting startups at The Bakery Worldwide and VentureLAB at the IBM
office in Canada. He is also the founder of a Canadian social enterprise, The Forward Movement,
for which he was awarded the Lieutenant Governors for Leadership in Accessibility.

Toyosi Ogedengbe
V ENTURE INVESTOR , CREATOR FUND
Book Recommendation: VC Game by Jefferey Bussgang

Toyosi is an early-stage investor, entrepreneur, and venture builder with 10+ years of
professional experience. He primarily focuses on early-stage investments in Europe, with a
interest in cloud software and marketplaces. He currently works at Bessemer Venture Partners,
a US-based VC firm. Toyosi holds an MBA from Oxford University and a Bachelor's in
Engineering from the University of Bristol.

Flavia Richardson
VP OF EARLY S TAGE PRACTICE, S ILICON V ALLEY BANK
Book Recommendation: Venture Capital Deal Terms by Harm de Vries

Flavia Richardson has handled investment portfolios worth up to £30m for over 140 portfolio
companies. She has worked with clients from across the world with portfolio amounts ranging
from small technology investments to multimillion-pound portfolios. Her speciality is working with
technology investors, where her excellent communication skills come into play.

Lyubov Guk
PARTNER, BLUE LAKE VC FUND/A CCELERATOR
Book Recommendation: Venture Deals by Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson

Partner at London-based Blue Lake VC Fund/Accelerator, investing in early-stage start-ups from

the United Kingdom and Eastern Europe. Helping start-ups to create winning go-to-market
strategies leveraging seven years of practical work with the corporate sector in the United
Kingdom, Europe and Ukraine.
The 4 C’s of a Great Pitch Deck
OCT 27TH | 7:30 PM – 7:45 PM BST
Emilia Gyoerk
INVESTMENT MANAGER , FUTURE FLOW GROUP
Book Recommendation: Secrets of Sand Hill Road by Scott Kupor

Emilia is an investor and founder advisor. Building on seven years in financial services at
the European Central Bank and Moody’s Investors Service, she is now the investment
manager at Future Flow Group, which invests in early stage tech-driven startups. She has
invested in and mentored startups across finance, advertising, VR, digital consumer
products, and SaaS solutions.