5-Minute Interview with Alberto Chalon, Giano Capital
Dr. Dorothy Kelso
Managing Director, SuperReturn | Board Chair | Emerging Manager Champion
In this series of 5-minute interviews, I shine the spotlight on up-and-coming fund managers in private markets across the globe. All geographies. All strategies. All sectors.
Here's my conversation with Alberto Chalon, Founding Partner at Giano Capital.
Quick facts about Giano Capital:
Q: What is Giano Capital’s investment strategy?
A: Our fund is targeting European high growth companies that generate at least €30m in revenues in the digital and technology space, mainly through secondary transactions.
Q: What’s driving the growth of secondaries in Europe?
A: This new market environment of increasing interest rates and a global economic slowdown creates liquidity issues for founders, employee shareholders and early-stage investors. This liquidity backlog has led to a growing gap for almost all VC funds between the accounting value of the holdings as expressed in the total value of paid in capital and the actual cash returns in form of the distributed capital back to LPs which have been immaterial for all investment periods since 2017.
This liquidity need creates a great opportunity for secondary transactions. While the United States is a market that has seen many such transactions in this secondary space, the European market is still lagging. And as such, there is a huge opportunity available for us.
Q: How do you source these deals?
A: My fellow General Partner Andreas Wiele and I have longstanding experience of working and investing in Europe and are personally invested in several early-stage VC funds and fund-of-funds. This extensive network gives us access to deals – be it through our access to early-stage funds, business angels, financial advisors or employees.
Q: Why the focus on late-stage tech and secondaries, and what hands-on expertise do you have?
A: The focus on late-stage secondaries comes from our analysis of the current market conditions. This space has the opportunity to generate a strong risk/reward. We believe operational skills in the later stages of venture investments are far more important than sector specialization which matters more for early-stage funds. Our hands-on experience in building and growing companies gives us a competitive edge, especially the areas of financials, legal and growth marketing which we see as key in assessing potential digital investments.
Recommended by LinkedIn
Q: How are you building your team?
A: I originally came up with the idea of Giano Capital in 2019. After Andreas left Axel Springer in 2020, he joined us as an Advisor, and then after leaving KKR in 2021, he became a General Partner with Giano Capital. We are supported by two investment managers, Maurice Harari and Niraj Pabari, both with strong backgrounds at top financial institutions. The team will be strengthened by the recruitment of a principal after the first close, followed by the hire of a head of finance, as well as analysts and an investor relations manager.
Q: How do you see your business scaling?
A: Our goal is to build a large business and increase our AUM over time. We are targeting to raise €100m by Q12024 and adding another €150m through co-investments opportunities.
Q: What are the key ingredients of your success?
A: We have a unique approach, which is a combination of entrepreneurs, investors and managers.
This gives full visibility on opportunities and risks. When it comes to risks, the team is also able to identify solutions that can be effective and supportive for our portfolio companies.
Q: What valuable lesson have you learnt that helps drive your approach?
A: Business is driven by people who need to have good balance between hard and soft skills with great communication capabilities. The best leaders are capable of focusing on priorities, listening and finally executing quickly and efficiently.
Q: What advice would you like to share with our readers?
A: Be resilient in reaching for your goals but be open to changing your trajectory if you are unhappy with the results.