Alex Edelson of Slipstream Investors on Portfolio Construction

About Alex Edelson:Alex is the Founder and General Partner of Slipstream Investors. Before starting Slipstream, he worked at QED Investors, a top fintech-focused venture capital firm with $3+ billion in assets under management. Alex joined as Nigel Morris's Chief of Staff and became the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel. He previously worked at a fintech startup and spent seven years practicing law. Alex holds a J.D. and B.A. from the University of Michigan.

In this episode we discuss:

(00:00:59) News roundup with John Ruffolo(00:23:56) Alex Edelson’s journey into Venture Capital(00:25:48) Working as a Chief of Staff at QED Investors(00:26:57) Being mentored by Frank Rotman and the QED Team(00:33:54) The importance of providing context to a no over pure speed(00:34:50) Why he decided to start investing on his own(00:39:41) Early LPs that backed his vision(00:40:52) How his investing thesis evolved after the initial conversations with his LPs(00:42:18) The importance of seeing a lot of deals before investing(00:43:26) Setting clear expectations with companies at what stage you are at in your cycle(00:44:45) What Alex looks for to consider a deal a win(00:48:31) How Alex mitigates risk with diversification and other strategies(00:50:24) Why every round of financing is an opportunity to buy or sell(00:52:19) The benefits of having early liquidity(00:54:07) Redflags that can scare LPs from emerging managers(00:59:36) How the current market is affecting his strategy(01:00:44) Trends he is seeing in the market(01:02:21) Best career advice he’s received

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