Most investors treat private equity and the listed market as different asset classes , which is why those who invest in the listed space will not fund unlisted companies .
Actually, this is an artificial distinction , because businesses operate on a continuum , and today’s privately funded startup is going to become tomorrow’s publicly listed company !
This is why we actively invest in both these asset classes , and we learn a lot from each of them.
They have a common denominator , in that success is driven primarily by the entrepreneur !
While access to promoters is very hard to get for listed companies, it’s much easier to engage deeply with startup founders . By looking at listed companies through the lens of an Angel investor , we can focus on what their promoter brings to the table.
Also, start up founders give us a lot of contrarian insights into their domain, and we can leverage these to select the best companies in the listed space in that sector !
It’s the money I earn from the listed markets that I deploy in startups !
And as investors in the public markets, we know what the founder needs to do in order to help his startups to grow until he is ready for an IPO at some point in the future. What we are trying to do is to identify and groom the next Bhaskar Bhatt , so we can invest in the next Titan when it’s still a baby !