Ep #9 | WTF is Venture Capital? Ft. Nikhil, Nithin, Rajan A., Prashanth P. & Karthik R.

In this episode, we bring marquee investors, the OGs of the venture world. Learn what venture capital is, what works and what doesn't, and their learnings from many decades of funding the startup ecosystem in India.

I am sure it will be as insightful as an entire college semester for many. So do feel free to grab your notepad to soak up all the knowledge.

This is, by far, the most in-depth episode we have done and this will give you insights not only into funding but also into the ongoing macro view of the world of business, investments, and finance in general.

#NikhilKamath: Co-founder of Zerodha, True Beacon and Gruhas

Follow Nikhil here:

#NithinKamath: Founder & CEO of Zerodha

Follow Nithin here:

#KarthikReddy: Co-Founder and Partner of Blume Ventures

Follow Karthik here:

#RajanAnandan: Managing Director of PeakXV Partners

Follow Rajan here:

#PrashanthPrakash: Founding Partner of Accel Partners

Follow Prashanth here:

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:09 - Nithin discusses the Rainmatter Fund

03:44 - Karthik’s Accidental VC Story

09:46 - Karthik's Double MBA Adventure

11:31 - Rajan recalls death-defying experience

15:05 - Rajan's Father: The Real-Life Adventurer

16:14 - Are Success & Trauma correlated?

19:04 - How Rajan ventured into VC World

20:41 - The Dynamic life of Prashant

24:03 - Prashanth’s Leap into the VC Career

28:28 - Rajan's Angel Investing Hacks

30:36 - VC Returns Revealed

32:16 - Hunt for Limited Partners (LPs)

33:27 - Indian Startup Scandals & FTX

35:33 - Peek into the LP's Vision

37:48 - The Tax Arbitrage Angle

38:44 - Angel Investing Unraveled

45:27 - Decoding Venture Capital

46:36 - AIF & its categories

52:14 - Dry Powder in Detail

53:04 - Breakdown of LPs

53:58 - Fund Cycle & Incentives

56:08 - Demystifying Private Equity

59:30 - Market size for Consumption discussed

01:03:20 - The Online vs. Offline Conundrum

01:08:04 - Platforms & Marketplaces

01:13:17 - Import Laws, PLI & Patriotism

01:21:00 - Digitsed Indian Supply Chains

01:24:07 - Role of VCs in the Economy

01:26:02 - Indian Tech Supremacy

01:27:38 - Industry Picks, Trends & Next Unicorn

01:35:23 - Picks for Disruptive Sectors

01:45:46 - The X-Factor in Successful Founders

01:52:18 - Is Hard Work Overrated? Let's Debate!

02:00:04 - Clash of Co-Founders

02:01:00 - Red Flags in Founders

02:03:33 - Unraveling the Trends in Startup Funding

02:04:45 - Public vs. Private Markets: High Return Opportunity

02:05:05 - LLP, Partnerships & Pvt. Ltd. Explained

02:06:04 - Tenure & Fees in the VC Universe

02:08:03 - SPACS Explained

02:08:49 - India vs. USA: The Battle of Fund Performance

02:09:20 - Secrets of IPOs & OFS

02:13:46 - Are the VCs sector restricted?

02:14:48 - Variables in the VC World

02:16:47 - Jobs in VC World

02:18:19 - Capitalism, Wealth Inequality & Gen-Z

02:24:00 - Third Edition: Vote for a Charity & create a change!

02:28:58 - Enjoy Some Bloopers

02:29:28 - Outro

#Nikhilkamath #Podcast #WTFiswithNikhilKamath #WTFisVentureCapital #VentureCapital #PrivateEquity #AngelInvesting #Funding #Finance #Investments #StockMarkets #IPO

[maheshsocial]

I would like to see a session on WTF Stock Market.

So many young people have wrong expectations of stock market returns.
Nikhil and Nitin being masters in this game, they should guide with do'es, don'ts and tools.

As usual, I love Nikhil's questions, calmness and curiosity

[vikrantvishal]

2.5 hrs of goldmine of knowledge. This is exactly one of the thing I am paying my internet bill for.
Keep it up Nikhil!!

[DeepSukhwani]

2.5 hours == 2 years of business education + 1.01 crores committed to helpful cause - And all this comes for financially no cost to the viewers, just there dedication and curiosity. Love it!

[kushfabio]

I feel investors should focus on under-the-radar stocks, considering the current rollercoaster nature of the stock market, Because 35% of my $270k portfolio comprises plummeting stocks that were once revered. I don't know where to go here out of devastation.

[nikhilmawale]

One of the most important lesson that i learnt from this Podcast is that Successful People are damn good listeners 💯
When one person is speaking then there's a pin drop silence in the whole room
Just wow 💯

[mirzaahmad]

As someone from Pakistan. Loved this. We’re still too far to catch up with the tech revolution in India and startup scene. But this is such an insight to learn from people who’ve done that in relatively near to similar conditions if not exactly similar conditions. Loved that. To everyone striving to succeed from both parts of the country, my prayers are with you. And Nikhil, keep going man.

[akritichaurasia]

Best podcast channel on Indian Youtube right now. Thank you for starting this.

[rachitgupta]

Karthik's knowledge and clarity is lit

[raunakbafna]

Honestly I'm in awe of Nikhil.
If i would take up a course of a lakh it would be Nikhils.
There's a charm he has and that's impeccable. His voice is promising and I would love if he takes sessions and the world will know what actually money making and finance. Those content creators who teach FINANCE without knowing anything must learn.

[jaigarg]

2.5 hours of pure gold. This podcast is BEAUTIFUL. The panel with such diverse experience is mesmerizing to listen to. Its better than my 2 years of MBA at a tier 2 college.

[thehrplace]

I have no words to describe how powerful the podcast is. Thanks to Nikhil for delivering such premium content. It's very hard to believe that something like this is available on YouTube for free. This is a real gem. Pls keep up the good work, and all the best.

[UsSpiritual]

I really liked Nikhil's style of interviewing. Why? I think for the first time I saw VC being so open when having conversation, hats off to all the three VCs to open up and share their insights...to end my comment in a fun note, the two VCs finally folded their hands...bus bhai nikhil we surrender...😅

[yashkhandelwal]

16 minutes into it and starting to realize how much I love this channel.

[sreenathganapathy]

The base voice of Rajan and the way he's articulating his lines is just man!

[manjurocker]

This podcast is better than any 2 year MBA. Learn from the experts and delve in their experience that is global in nature but have localized that to be successful in Indian companies.

Great pod as always Nikhil! keep going WTF!!

[rajm]

This is the only podcast channel I watch without speeding it up to 1.5x. 👍 It's a plethora of knowledge all in one place. 🧠💡
Thanks Nikhil for sharing!

[dheerajnihalani]

When its Saturday, you feeling lazy to get out of the bed and you get up after seeing this Lol

[Nm]

OMG, I watch lot of podcasts, but this is the one i hooked to... content, knowledge, philosophy, nuances, intricacies, insights and so on... too much into it... the best high quality podcast in India... this video will become true treasure of knowledge... no drama, no exaggeration, no playing to galary, no intention of getting more and more subscribers

[ayeakash]

I just need to comment: Thank you Nikhil for this podcast. No matter what you do, please don't stop making more episodes. I hope you enjoy these and will continue to enjoy making these

[nihalsaket]

This is pure gold. I really like this new trend where phenomenal entrepreneurs are using their personal network to democratize such great insights which historically only a handful of folks have had access to. First, it was Shantanu from BSC, and now Nikhil.