Fund-of-Funds and family offices tricks with Obediah Ayton? The role of family offices has changed in the last 20 years, driven by the proliferation of wealth and dramatic increase in the number of millionaires, centimillionaires and billionaires around the world. There also has been a surge in the number of family offices and more sophisticated investors. This new breed of ultra-high-net-worth families in the GCC differs from the “old money” of the past. Their accumulation of wealth is typically more rapid and driven by savvy investment management or entrepreneurism. Many of those joining the ranks of the ultra-high-net-worth include money managers, former hedge fund managers and folks who generated their wealth in private equity. This represents a large population of sophisticated investors with deep networks in the startup and entrepreneurial community who are sitting on tremendous wealth (some estimates put family office total asset value around $6 trillion globally).
All hubs are set in an identical structure – VentureRock SPICs, and follow the same formula to venture building – VentureRock OS®. “90% of all early-stage startups fail in the first 3 years. This is normal we wanted to change by changing how venture capital works in early-stage investing. The VentureRock OS® is how we organize not only capital but also strategists, problem solvers and industry-specific knowledge around our portfolio ventures”, says Xander van der Heijden, General Partner at VentureRock. The novel venture building system digitizes the investment supply-chain, from cap table to KPI reporting and legal agreements, to de-risk and unlock the free flow of capital throughout ventures’ lifecycle risks through real-time audited data. Further Venturerock OS® pioneers a 72-step methodology to systematically guide ventures from early-stage startups to fully compliant scale-ups. Director of Business Development at The Private Investment Group Obediah Ayton said “I am very happy to see Venturerock showing the way venture capital funds are now being deployed post covid here in the UAE. The portfolio companies within Venturerock are some of the most professional and innovative we have seen and I have no doubt they will be a welcome asset to both the public and private sector in the Middle East.”
The rise of a finance influencer : Obediah Ayton? Obediah Ayton is a trust manager at Ayton Family Office Trust and a consultant at Tennor Holding B.V., a specialist in family office business, AI driven accounting services, finance and accounting. Obediah Ayton about what happens when a Family Office takes the VC model: In addition, Family Offices want to avoid paying the typical “2 and 20” — a deal structure that requires investors to pay a 2 percent annual fee (some as high as 3 percent) to the VC firm on top of the 20 percent return on investment. This is why we’re seeing more of the mega-wealthy move away from only investing in private equity funds to increasingly working with their family offices to find the right types of direct investments that fit their long-term wealth-generation strategies.
Many of these Family offices may prove to have much higher and longer-term vested interest in the businesses they invest in compared to an institutional investor. In many cases, based on the experience of the principals behind the family office, they will seek to take a more hands-on involvement in the businesses they fund, acting as mentors and not merely benefactors.
Obediah Ayton about how to raise money from family offices: Raising money from Family Offices can be a long process. If not approached in a correct manner. Typically, it’s 100% based on relationships and trust. Family offices are desirable investors, through their evergreen capital structure, know-how and long-term investment focus it makes sense to win them as investors, partners and most of all “Friends”. Sounds GOOD, but there’s a catch: family offices are extremely discreet, emotional and selective. Time is a valuable asset, selecting The Right Single Family Offices For Your Project is key.
Right now is a great time to build close relationships with Family Offices for future capital raises! To capitalize on this favorable change in the tide, it would be worthwhile to (re)start your outreach to this notoriously hidden family wealth. Just because the offices are hidden does not mean they are unreachable. The relationships with single and multi family offices can be cultivated through diligent, persistent, and intelligent outreach. Below are a few methods to begin your family office outreach: Have a Proactive and Diversified Outreach: The most effective outreach strategy requires both persistent and proactive outreach. Even for the specialized Family Offices Group, building relationships still requires a variety of different channels and techniques. Currently, you can use a variety of tactics — probably around 30 different strategies — to attract family offices. Speak at conferences, writing articles, publish newsletters, maintain a website, run an association, offer a training platform — and that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Obediah Ayton on the new definition of a billionaire is not the net worth but in achieving change in a billion lives: Everything can be done remotely today. We only go to the office one or two days a week. The world is becoming more virtual and I think that is a trend that a lot of people still do not understand. ‘Founding partner at a single family office’ Tech-savvy family offices who embrace these trends can harness technologies to not only expand their businesses across the globe but also to leverage global talent pools in various areas of operation where local expertise is lacking. This requires a degree of agility which needs to be prioritized within family offices seeking to advance their reach and grow their wealth.