How capital truly flows for investors and founders bridging emerging markets including Europe, MEA and APAC. <br/><br/><a href="https://emergingforward.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">emergingforward.substack.com</a>
Podcast Overview
How capital truly flows for investors and founders bridging emerging markets including Europe, MEA and APAC. <br/><br/><a href="https://emergingforward.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">emergingforward.substack.com</a>
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
1/26/2026
1 verified contact email on file for Emerging Forward Podcast
Pitch yourself as a guest, propose sponsorships, or reach out directly to the host.
Recent Episodes
July 28, 2026
What Science-First GPs Really Underwrite with Marie Lepske
<p><strong>Episode : </strong>What Science-First GPs Really Underwrite with Marie Lepske ;</p><p>LP communication, technical diligence, fund design, and the sectors the market misprices</p><p><strong>Timestamps :</strong></p><p>00:00 – Intro + Marie’s background</p><p>01:28 – Fund thesis + sourcing engine</p><p>05:02 – Technical diligence + deep-tech underwriting</p><p>11:40 - Fund construction + IC discipline</p><p>22:08 – LP communication + cross-border capital map</p><p>31:20 - Mispriced sectors + LP diligence questions + close</p><p><strong>About Marie :</strong></p><p>Marie Lepske is a General Partner at Constructor Capital. Over her career, Marie has led over $50M in early-stage investments into 20+ deep-tech startups founded by scientists from Oxford, Harvard, and MIT, including leading companies in quantum computing and advanced technologies. With a background in applied mathematics and physics, and experience ranging from startup co-founder to chief of staff of a global technology group, she brings a rare perspective at the intersection of science, venture capital, and company building. Marie specializes in turning academic research into globally scalable businesses.<strong>Links:</strong></p><p>Marie Lepske - <a target="_blank" href="https://cy.linkedin.com/in/marie-lepske">https://cy.linkedin.com/in/marie-lepske</a></p><p>Constructor Capital - <a target="_blank" href="https://constructor.capital/">https://constructor.capital/</a></p><p>Emerging Forward Substack: <a target="_blank" href="https://emergingforward.substack.comemergingforward.substack">https://emergingforward.substack.com</a></p><p>Emerging Forward Spotify: <a target="_blank" href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6d7XPiIx4mekiPrgT03w5vopen.spotify">https://open.spotify.com/show/6d7XPiIx4mekiPrgT03w5v</a></p><p>Emerging Forward Apple Podcasts: <a target="_blank" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/emerging-forward-podcast/id1893666713podcasts.apple">https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/emerging-forward-podcast/id1893666713</a></p><p></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://emergingforward.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">emergingforward.substack.com</a>
June 16, 2026
Building Pre-Seed Infrastructure in CEE
<p><strong>Episode 11 – Building Pre-Seed Infrastructure in CEE (with Petr Šíma, DEPO Ventures) Prague, Czechia</strong></p><p><strong>00:00 – Intro & setup</strong></p><p>Welcome to Emerging Forward and introduction to Episode 11.</p><p>Who is Petr Šíma and what DEPO Ventures does at pre‑seed across CEE and Baltics.</p><p><strong>01:00 – Europe’s fragmented early‑stage market</strong></p><p>Why Europe has “many problems,” but early‑stage financing is the one Petr is trying to fix.</p><p>Local angels, local funds, and the structural fragmentation across regions.</p><p><strong>01:35 – Building a pan‑CEE pre‑seed platform</strong></p><p>60 investments in six years; moving from angel funds to a VC fund while staying at the first round.</p><p>Why there are still very few groups investing across the region at this stage.</p><p><strong>02:15 – “Helping founders by helping investors”</strong></p><p>The problem of occasional angels, family offices and “equational investors.”</p><p>Why investing is a professional job, and how bad early‑stage investing harms founders.</p><p><strong>04:00 – Educating angels and emerging investors</strong></p><p>Petr’s work in teaching angels and investors to join the right groups, networks and co‑investors.</p><p>Why talking to startups as a fund manager is often clearer than as a loose group of angels.</p><p><strong>10:00 – Fund + angel network mechanics (DEPO model)</strong></p><p>How DEPO combines an institutional fund with an angel network.</p><p>Decision‑making, co‑investment rules and why co‑investors’ specific knowledge matters.</p><p><strong>26:50 – Co‑investors and going beyond your home market</strong></p><p>Why “early‑stage investments are always cooperative.”</p><p>Using co‑investors to invest in countries where DEPO is not fully present, and what each party brings beyond money.</p><p><strong>28:00 – US PowerPoint vs European deep tech</strong></p><p>Petr’s comparison of the typical US deal (“everything looks amazing… just PowerPoint”) vs. deep‑tech in Europe (“terrible presentation, amazing substance”).</p><p>Why pre‑seed investors in European deep tech can’t be superficial and must be willing to go deep.</p><p><strong>28:45 – Where the next generation of investors will come from</strong></p><p>Operators and exited founders as Europe’s future “real business angels.”</p><p>Nordics/Baltics vs traditional economies like Germany and Czechia; who believes in startups as an asset class.</p><p><strong>29:30 – LP risk appetite and resilient Europe</strong></p><p>Traditional European LPs’ risk aversion vs American LPs’ appetite for European resilience plays.</p><p>Why it’s “crazy” to see a huge European resilience opportunity where ~70% of LPs are American.</p><p><strong>30:30 – Light closing: food & global tastes</strong></p><p>A quick detour into Italian and Thai food as Petr’s comfort go‑tos.</p><p><strong>31:10 – Closing thoughts: a once‑in‑a‑generation opportunity</strong></p><p>Petr’s message that European resilience is a huge, time‑bound opportunity.</p><p>Final encouragement to listeners to engage with this moment.</p><p><strong>About Petr Sima:</strong>Partner of DEPO Ventures, pre‑seed fund investing in European tech startups building resilient Europe. Board member of European Business Angel Network.</p><p><strong>Links:</strong></p><p>DEPO Ventures website - <a target="_blank" href="https://depoventures.cz/">https://depoventures.cz/</a></p><p>Petr’s LinkedIn profile - <a target="_blank" href="https://cz.linkedin.com/in/petr-sima-a294681">https://cz.linkedin.com/in/petr-sima-a294681</a></p><p>EBAN (European Business Angels Network) - <a target="_blank" href="https://www.eban.org/">https://www.eban.org/</a></p><p>Episode 10 (last week’s exits‑focused episode) - <a target="_blank" href="https://emergingforward.substack.com/p/cee-liquidity-lab-viktor-manev-ipo-beginning">https://emergingforward.substack.com/p/cee-liquidity-lab-viktor-manev-ipo-beginning</a></p><p></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://emergingforward.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">emergingforward.substack.com</a>
June 10, 2026
CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits
<p>CEE as a Liquidity Lab: Why the IPO Isn’t the Exit</p><p><strong>Short episode intro:</strong></p><p>After a short break, Emerging Forward returns with Episode 10, a deep dive into what real liquidity looks like in ecosystems that never had enough growth capital in the first place.</p><p>I’m joined by <strong>Viktor Manev</strong>, Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at <strong>IMPETUS Capital</strong>, to explore CEE as a “liquidity lab”: using small, disciplined IPOs as funding rounds rather than ceremonial exits, building quality of revenue and earnings before chasing mark‑ups, and asking harder questions about continuation funds, secondaries and real portfolio value.</p><p><strong>What we cover</strong></p><p>Why <strong>Series B barely exists</strong> in much of CEE – and what founders actually do when they hit the growth cliff.</p><p>The idea of an <strong>IPO as a beginning, not an end</strong> – and how that changes founder, LP and exchange behaviour.</p><p>CEE small IPOs as a <strong>missing rung in the funding ladder</strong>, underwritten by local wealth, AMs, and pensions rather than mega‑banks.</p><p>Viktor’s “<strong>quality of revenue → earnings → valuation → liquidity</strong>” ladder – and why clever liquidity engineering can’t fix weak fundamentals.</p><p>The <strong>“conductor” role</strong> IMPETUS plays in small IPOs: coordinating banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers so the whole “symphony” works.</p><p>How <strong>continuation funds and secondaries</strong> solve liquidity for GPs/LPs but may not answer the question “is there real value in this portfolio?”.</p><p>What LPs and emerging managers are still <strong>missing about exits and time horizons</strong> in CEE and similar markets.</p><p>A fun closing detour into Viktor’s <strong>agnostic travel‑food philosophy</strong> – always eat where the locals eat, whether it’s gondoliers in Venice or a canteen in Amman.</p><p><strong>Timestamps</strong></p><p><strong>00:00</strong> – Intro and who Viktor is. IPOs as a beginning, not an end.</p><p><strong>05:00</strong> – How “IPO = exit” became dogma – and why IMPETUS is going back to an older model where public markets fund growth.</p><p><strong>10:30</strong> – Big vs small IPOs: 4% of deals get 100x the media coverage; the hidden world of sub‑€25m listings.</p><p><strong>13:00</strong> – Acting as a “conductor” for €10–20m IPOs: aligning banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers to create real liquidity.</p><p><strong>16:00</strong> – The niche: profitable, 40–50% growth companies that are “too boring” for VC but perfect for public funding.</p><p><strong>22:00</strong> – Shelly Group: from “nobody will buy us for €10m” to €1.2B SDAX company and what that journey actually looked like.</p><p><strong>32:00</strong> – Continuation funds, secondaries and the hard question: is there real realizable value behind the marks?</p><p><strong>40:30</strong> – What LPs and emerging managers still miss about liquidity in CEE and similar markets – and why many managers will fail.</p><p><strong>41:30</strong> – Viktor’s agnostic approach to food when he travels – and why he always asks what the locals actually eat.</p><p><strong>About Viktor Manev</strong></p><p>Viktor Manev is Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at IMPETUS Capital, a private equity firm focused on early‑growth and scale‑up companies in Central and Eastern Europe. He previously served as chief financier of Bulgaria’s Center for Mass Privatization, overseeing the institutional financing of more than 1,000 enterprises and participating in the privatization of roughly 18% of state‑owned assets. Since 1994, Viktor has been involved in structuring corporate‑finance and M&A deals with an aggregate value of over €900m, and has been engaged in the listing process of more than 1,100 companies as a public official, adviser and institutional investor. He holds a BS in Finance from West Virginia Wesleyan College and completed comparative studies at the University of Oxford, and sits on several boards as a non‑executive director.</p><p><strong>Links & references :</strong></p><p>📝 Viktor’s thoughts – <a target="_blank" href="https://0100conferences.substack.com/p/the-ipo-as-a-beginning-not-an-end">“The IPO as a Beginning, Not an End: Rethinking Capital Formation in Central & Eastern Europe”</a><a target="_blank" href="https://0100conferences.substack.com/p/the-ipo-as-a-beginning-not-an-end"> (0100 Conferences).</a></p><p>🌐 IMPETUS Capital – firm website: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.impetus.capital/">https://www.impetus.capital/</a></p><p>🔗 Viktor’s LinkedIn: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/viktormanev">https://www.linkedin.com/in/viktormanev</a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://emergingforward.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">emergingforward.substack.com</a>
13 total episodes available
Deep-dive analytics for Emerging Forward Podcast
Frequently asked questions
Have a different question and can't find the answer you're looking for? Reach out to our support team by sending us an email and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.
- What is Emerging Forward Podcast?
- How often does this podcast release new episodes?
This podcast updates daily.
- Where can I listen to this podcast?
This podcast is available on 4 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.
- Does this podcast accept guests?
Yes, this podcast regularly features guests.
Legal Disclaimer
Pod Engine is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected with any of the podcasts displayed on this platform. We operate independently as a podcast discovery and analytics service.
All podcast artwork, thumbnails, and content displayed on this page are the property of their respective owners and are protected by applicable copyright laws. This includes, but is not limited to, podcast cover art, episode artwork, show descriptions, episode titles, transcripts, audio snippets, and any other content originating from the podcast creators or their licensors.
We display this content under fair use principles and/or implied license for the purpose of podcast discovery, information, and commentary. We make no claim of ownership over any podcast content, artwork, or related materials shown on this platform. All trademarks, service marks, and trade names are the property of their respective owners.
While we strive to ensure all content usage is properly authorized, if you are a rights holder and believe your content is being used inappropriately or without proper authorization, please contact us immediately at hey@podengine.ai for prompt review and appropriate action, which may include content removal or proper attribution.
By accessing and using this platform, you acknowledge and agree to respect all applicable copyright laws and intellectual property rights of content owners. Any unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or commercial use of the content displayed on this platform is strictly prohibited.