EVCA Newsletter | February Edition - Tons of VC Jobs, Events, and Features
While I always strive my best to add a little bit of cheer to your morning routine, I can’t help but address the metaphorical elephants in the room: crypto is crashing; stock markets are teetering; inflation is creeping higher; and certain economists are warning of a potential economic implosion with the Fed raising interest rates in March. It’s hard not to watch and worry over the potential impact of the tumult in the public markets on the venture capital industry. Indeed, in response to the broader market conditions, some VCs already have begun renegotiating deals at lower valuations and, in select instances, withdrawing term sheets altogether.
To what extent will the correction in the public markets spill over into venture capital? The truth is nobody knows. We could be potentially approaching an economic nadir of epic proportions or simply experiencing a recalibration of the market in accordance with the customary laws of physics. For now, until we reach that moment of clarity, welcome back to the February edition of the EVCA newsletter!
EVCA Spotlight: He Was a Former Managing Partner at the Dorm Room Fund and Investor at Floodgate. Meet Shawn Xu, Partner at On Deck
We had the chance to interview Shawn Xu, who is a Partner at On Deck, where he helps run the group’s $150M venture fund and accelerator. Shawn shares with us his origins story—from working as an operator, leading the Dorm Room Fund as Managing Partner, working as an investor at Floodgate, and now as Partner at On Deck. Through his story, Shawn his origins story and thoughts about life and career.
Featured Investors
This month we highlight Christina Fa of NewView Capital (NVC) and James Hueston of NTTVC as our featured investors of the EVCA community.
Christina Fa is a Principal at NewView Capital (NVC), a growth-stage investment firm with over $2.2 billion under management. Christina joined NVC in early 2020, focusing on investments in fintech, enterprise SaaS, and digital health. In her time at the firm, she has sourced and led investments in MessageBird and Eucalyptus, and has been involved with investments in 23andMe, Bloomreach, Heap, Human Interest, Masterclass, ScienceLogic, and Scopely, among others. Prior to joining NVC, Christina was an investor at Atomico in London, where she led the investment in Peakon which sold to Workday for $700 million. Previously, Christina worked in the Corporate Finance team at Google in Mountain View, where she was responsible for financial planning and capital allocation across Google’s product teams. She started her career at UBS in Sydney and New York, advising companies on capital raisings and mergers and acquisitions. Christina grew up in New Zealand and Australia, and graduated from the University of Melbourne as a Copland Scholar and National Scholar.
James Hueston is an analyst at NTTVC, an independent venture capital firm that was formed in partnership with NTT. With its $500M inaugural fund, the firm invests broadly in technology startups of all stages and sectors, with an emphasis on the future of enterprise, digital health, and innovations powered by AI, machine learning, and data. James focuses on research, deal sourcing, and diligence to support the firm’s investments. James holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a focus on Econometrics from Vassar College, with minors in Physics and Mathematics. James was previously an Advisory Board Member at Cinemark where he worked with the CEO and Board of Directors. James played varsity lacrosse at Vassar and can usually be found on a golf course or hockey rink in San Francisco when not at the office.
EVCA Leadership Spotlight: Board Member, Kathryn Weinmann of Norwest Venture Partners
This EVCA Leadership Spotlight Series is intended to help the broader community get to know what's going on behind the scenes at the EVCA, as well as highlight the valuable contributions of the roughly 50 individuals across the venture capital industry who make the EVCA possible.
Kathryn Weinmann is a VP at Norwest Venture Partners, where she is a multi-stage investor across consumer tech and B2B SaaS. Some of her notable investments include UPSIDE Foods (fka Memphis Meats), Praxis Labs, and Wyze. Prior to joining Norwest, Kathryn supported Business Operations at NerdWallet with a focus on small business lending. She is passionate about financial inclusion, serving for over 5 years as co-chair of the Technology Advisory Council at Mission Asset Fund, a non-profit fintech organization in the Bay Area.
What We’re Reading
Here we share our favorite content produced from EVCA members across the world:
Quild - Kenn So of Shasta Ventures, writes a daily newsletter that highlights one early-stage startup with statistically significant signals of becoming a unicorn
How Startup Narratives Form: Frontier Tech Case Studies - Nicole Ruiz of Compound, explores some frontier tech narrative successes and failures
The Unexpected Benefits of Joining an Emerging Venture Capital Fund - Natan Reddy of Ironspring Ventures, explains how joining an Emerging Venture Capital Fund can play a critical role toward becoming a well-rounded investor
Venture Capital is Dead - JP Popham of Capacity, provides his thoughts on what kind of alternative investments are replacing traditional venture capital investing
The Rise of Open Source Challengers - Rajko Radovanović of New Enterprise Associates (NEA), takes a look at how OSS takes over the application layer + the potential end of closed source software categories
The Deep Tech Decade - Cantos Ventures provides their eight predictions for what the next year may bring to frontier tech
No One Talks About Selling - David Zhou of Cup of Zhou, asks one early-stage and one growth-stage investor about selling a position and whether DPI matters for investors
2021: Higher Ed in Review - Charles Madon of Educapital, breaks down some of the emerging themes within the higher education space of EdTech
Events
The Future of Innovation: Ten Lessons from the Venture Ecosystem | February 3 | Hosted by IEEE Technology & Engineering Management Society
Privacy, Agency, Trust and AI in Government Information Infrastructures | February 4 | Hosted by Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI)
Bitcoin Mining And Sustainability | February 8 | Hosted by Finimize
Impact Debates: The Future of Trucking; Combustion vs. Battery vs. Hydrogen | February 9 | Hosted by Mobility Impact Partners
CV VC TOP 50 - DeFi for retail & institutions - What is next in 2022? | February 10 | Hosted by CV Labs
Transforming Transportation 2022: Climate-Centered Mobility for a Sustainable Recovery | February 16 | Hosted by World Bank Group & World Resources Institute
Clean Hydrogen - Blue vs Green Hydrogen and its role in our energy future | February 16 | Hosted by Electrify Now
CVC 2.0: New Models for Investing & Engagement | February 16 | Hosted by NVCA
2022 Market Trends & Macroeconomic Outlook | February 17 | Hosted by First Republic Bank and NVCA
The Route 66 Innovation Series: Climate Solutions | February 23 | Hosted by Innovate Pasadena
Fireside Chat: GP Perspectives on Supply Chain Innovation | March 3 | Hosted by EVCA | Register on the EVCA Slack Channel Under #Events to Join!
Jobs
Head of Financial Analysis Role in San Francisco, CA at Thomvest Ventures. If interested, email your resume to Lauren at lauren@thomvest.com
Summer Intern Role in Portola Valley, CA or New York, NY at G2 Venture Partners
Investment Analyst Role in San Francisco, CA at Energy Impact Partners
Associate Role in San Francisco, CA or New York, NY at Fin Venture Capital
Associate Role in Bay Area, CA at Charles River Ventures (CRV). If interested, email Caitlin at caitlin@crv.com
Analyst and Associate Roles in San Francisco, CA at Maschmeyer Group Ventures (MGV). If interested, email Kevin at kevin@mgv.vc
Analyst and Associate Roles in San Mateo, CA at Sierra Ventures. If interested, DM Adam Dawkins on Slack
Investment Associate Role in Washington, DC and San Francisco, CA at Revolution Ventures
Associate / Senior Associate Role in New York, NY or California at Standard Investments. If interested, DM Nick Wheeler on Slack
Associate / Vice President Role in Remote at Blue Venture Fund
Associate / Sr. Associate Role in New York or California at Standard Investments
Fintech Associate Role in San Francisco, CA at Thomvest Ventures
Analyst and Associate Role in Toronto, CA at Round13 Capital
Associate Role in San Diego, CA; San Francisco, CA; New York, NY; or remote at Correlation Ventures. If interested, email your resume and letter of introduction to recruiting@correlationvc.com
Analyst / Associate Role in San Francisco, CA or New York, NY at Nyca Partners
Investment Professional Role in Bay Area, CA at Radical Ventures
Vice President and Analyst Role in Chicago, IL at Jump Capital
Pre MBA Associate Role in New York, NY at Catalyst Investors
Connect with us: EVCA, Sam, Adam, and Isaac
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