Arvind Purushotham (Citi Ventures) at Startup Grind 2016

TL;DR

City Ventures, the innovation arm of Citi, invests strategically in post-product startups, focusing on financial services.

Transcript

thanks for the warm welcome I'll just speak for about 10 minutes or 15 minutes and give you an introduction to city ventures what we do the kinds of investments we make and how we work with entrepreneurs and then then we could obviously transition over to the Q&A session and would be very happy to take questions before we get started how many entre... Read More

Key Insights

• 🏣 City Ventures invests in post-product startups in sectors like Next-Gen Financial Services and Commerce.
• 🤝 The firm differentiates itself through real pilot projects and commercial deals within Citi.
• 🌉 City Ventures bridges the gap between startups and large financial organizations through internal advocacy and support.
• 📈 The firm focuses on both financial returns and qualitative impact metrics to demonstrate investment success.
• 🐕‍🦺 City Ventures leverages its partnership network to drive innovation and strategic growth in the financial services sector.
• 🍉 The investment strategy of City Ventures aligns strategic goals with financial returns for long-term success.
• ❓ The firm values commercial partnerships, domain expertise, and market influence to support startup growth.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the main focus of City Ventures' investment strategy in terms of startup stage?

City Ventures targets post-product startups that are ready for investment and commercial partnerships, avoiding very early-stage or seed investments.

Q: How does City Ventures differentiate itself from traditional VCs in terms of value creation?

City Ventures' value creation lies in facilitating real pilot projects and commercial deals within Citi, leveraging its domain knowledge and marketing muscle for startup growth.

Q: How does City Ventures bridge the gap between startups and the hierarchical structure of large financial organizations like Citi?

City Ventures acts as a startup champion within Citi, socializing the startup's solutions across different levels and driving faster adoption through internal support.

Q: What are the key metrics and goals City Ventures focuses on beyond financial returns to demonstrate success?

City Ventures considers not only numerical returns but also qualitative aspects like cost savings, revenue increases, and strategic impact when measuring the success of its investments.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Arvind Purshotham, Managing Director of City Ventures, explains the firm's investment strategy and partnership approach.

• City Ventures supports startups in two main areas: venture investing and innovation networks.

• The firm invests in post-product startups in sectors like Next-Gen Financial Services, Commerce, Security, Data Analytics, and Marketing Technology.