Private equity rethought: What successful investors do differently
From entrepreneur to investor: How data and courage shape investment strategies
In this episode of "Hope is not a strategy", Christian Underwood talks to Nico Zeifang, co-founder of Team Internet and partner at Penguin Capital. The conversation revolves around the transition from entrepreneur to investor, building investment structures in the lower mid-market and the question of how to reconcile data and gut feeling.
From start-up to investment company
Nico Zeifang looks back on an entrepreneurial career that began in the Web 1.0 era. Initial experiments with domains developed into a successful business model, which was later sold. This exit marked the turning point towards the investment world. Today, he and his team invest specifically in medium-sized companies that are often too small for large investors but offer enormous potential for growth and transformation.
Data-driven investments - and their limits
The use of data is at the heart of its work. Over the years, Penguin Capital has built up its own system that processes millions of data points and uses machine learning to support investment decisions. But despite all the technology, Nico Zeifang emphasizes that the human dimension remains crucial in private equity too: Diversification, the quality of management teams and the right feel for market opportunities ultimately determine success.
Entrepreneurial courage as a success factor
Another key issue is the courage to act consistently at crucial moments. Companies regularly face opportunities that can fundamentally change their course - through technological upheaval, new markets or the loss of competitors. Nico Zeifang advocates recognizing these moments and seizing them decisively, even if they are associated with risks. His advice: listen to your gut feeling and double down at the right moment.
This episode illustrates how closely data, strategy and entrepreneurial courage are linked - and why successful investments always need more than just Excel models.
👉 Listen now and find out how entrepreneurship becomes an investment strategy!
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