September 24, 2019

Investing:101 with NIN.VC

9/24/2019
Venture Capital until now was the domain of the super wealthy and institutions, but NIN Ventures (or NIN.VC) is a unique and first of its kind crowdfunded technology venture capital fund for accredited investors who can invest in the NIN Ventures Technology (QP) Fund with a minimum amount of $100,000 using multiple investment options like self-directed IRAs, Defined benefit plan, or a regular checking / savings account. NIN.VC invests in Series & B rounds of disruptive technology companies.
1. What are the few main criteria to consider when investing in a venture capital fund?
The top three criteria any investor should look for in a venture fund is team, experience, and honesty / transparency. As far as returns are concerned, Technology focused funds generally tend to outperform USVC (United States Venture Capital) Index. Historically, USVC Index tends to outperform both USPE (United States Private Equity) Index and S&P 500. Also, unlike popular belief generally First time funds tend to outperform Non-First-Time funds and All Venture Capital funds.
2. Can you explain in detail how does venture capital returns compare to other asset classes?
Most people are familiar and have a three dimensional portfolio (i.e. stocks, bonds, and mutual funds), but if you look at Harvard and Yale’s portfolio, they a take a long-term approach and invest in alternatives like venture capital. E.g. Yale is currently the best performing endowment fund in the United States and its venture investments returns exceeds all other asset classes. Since 2008 to 2018, Yale has increased its asset allocation in Private Equity / Venture Capital from 20.2% to 33.1%, out of which 19% is venture capital, compared to 13.7% in 2014 and just 10% in 2013. Yale’s target venture capital allocation for 2018 was 18.0%, which exceeded the 5.5% actual allocation of the average educational institution. Yale’s venture capital portfolio is expected to generate real returns of 16.0% with risk of 37.8%. Over the past twenty years, its venture capital program has earned an outstanding 165.9% per annum. 
Yale Asset TypeAllocationReturn
Absolute Return26.10%4.80%
Domestic Equity3.50%6.00%
Fixed Income4.20%0.50%
Foreign Equity
      Emerging Equities8.50%7.50%
      Developed Equities7.00%6.00%
Leveraged Buyouts14.10%10.00%
Natural Resources7.00%6.40%
Real Estate10.30%5.50%
Venture Capital19.00%16.00%
Cash0.50%N/A
*As of June 2018
3. What are some of the hottest tech market segments you are currently looking at or investing?
NIN.VC invests in Series A & B rounds of disruptive technology companies. A disruptive technology is an innovation that changes an existing industry and also helps create a new market and value network, displacing an earlier technology or a way of doing business. Some of the sectors we are currently focused on are 3D printing, the 4th industrial revolution, cloud computing, virtual reality, financial services, education software to name a few. 
4. When should one start investing in a venture capital fund? When should one expect returns?
A typical investor base in a venture fund would be institutions, pension funds, endowments, etc. NIN.VC is a unique and first of its kind crowdfunded technology venture capital fund for accredited investors. While there are restrictions on who can invest in NIN Ventures Technology (QP) Fund, it is never too late to start investing in venture capital. One must be an accredited investor and verify themselves as an accredited investor to invest in the NIN Ventures Technology (QP) Fund. However, note that Venture capital is a long term investment and the life of the fund ranges from ten to sometimes twelve years with returns coming in as and when exits occurs in the form of an IPO or M&A, which could be five or seven years into the life of the fund.
*An accredited investor is an individual with an income of more than $200,000 per year, or a joint income of $300,000 in each of the last two years OR has a net worth exceeding $1m either individually or jointly with his or her spouse, excluding the primary residence. For an Entity, any trust, with total assets in excess of $5 million qualifies.
5. How can one invest in NIN.VC?
NIN.VC is a unique and first of its kind venture capital fund that is offered online. One can visit www.nin.vc and SIGN UP. Sign up is simple, first name, last name, email, password, and acknowledge you are on accredited investor. Once you sign up, you get access to our marketing materials (i.e. PPM, Investor Presentation, and Other suggested readings). You get invited to attend our events and calls. You can also schedule a one on one meeting with us at our office or online via skype. Once you decide to make an investment accept the risk and disclosure statement that will explain what venture capital investment is. The next step is to verify accreditation. Once that is in order, it’s only a matter of filling out subscription document and a W9 Form on www.nin.vc. The last step is payment and it’s as simple as selecting the payment method, and the amount you wish to invest.