Investor Office Hours w/ Cerity Partners Ventures & FullCircle VC

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Darrel Frater ✝️
@DarrelFraterOct 24, 2025

The Spaces convened investor office hours simulcast on X and Chatter Social, hosted by VC Daryl Frame with co-host Leah. After brief setup, investor Rahul Daryanani (Erie Strategic Ventures, formerly within Touchdown Ventures now aligned with a large RIA/wealth manager) outlined a corporate venture model: running dedicated funds for Fortune-scale companies (e.g., Kellogg’s, T-Mobile, Scotts Miracle-Gro, Erie Insurance) to blend strategic fit with financial return. He emphasized that corporates prioritize future-proofing and market access over maximizing VC-style returns, and that their capital can compress enterprise sales cycles and unlock design partnerships without requiring commercial deals to coincide with investments. Rahul’s guidance covered what “good” looks like at late seed–Series B: capital efficiency, validated product-market fit, differentiated product stories, and real enterprise customers with renewals, noting AI-enabled enterprise SaaS growth has accelerated. Founders then pitched (video-first on Chatter): SwipeScout (video resumes), Century (crypto wallet threat detection), Plant Money (salary disbursement control in Nigeria), Get Mentors (AI mentorship), Veric AI (legal mediation), and Project VERA (skills marketplace), with tailored feedback. In session two, Virginia of Full Circle Fund (solo GP, true pre-seed) shared a worker-centric thesis and practical fundraising advice: ruthlessly prequalify investors, focus early on distribution/ICP and pricing/unit economics, and treat outreach as human, thoughtful sales. She fielded pitches (My Hives safety map, Navrick enterprise certificates, HungryFood, Insight UAI, Pact escrow) with added guidance on traction, geo constraints, Q4 timing, and non-dilutive options, before closing contacts and Daryl’s scheduling updates.

Investor Office Hours (Simulcast on X and Chatter Social)

Session overview

  • Host: Daryl Frame (pre-seed/seed VC, ex-founder). Runs weekly office hours to connect founders with investors and demystify fundraising. Emphasizes business as a vehicle to help people; financial success as a byproduct.
  • Platforms: Simulcast on X (audio) and Chatter Social (video). Daryl highlighted the value of video for deeper connection. Technical kinks at start; Chatter Social’s Leah assisted with staging.
  • Community shout-out: Adam (founder of the Startup Founders Community on X, >160k entrepreneurs) co-hosted the space.
  • Format: Investor spotlights + rapid founder introductions (video prioritized on Chatter) with targeted Q&A.
  • Scheduling note: No office hours the next two weeks; back Nov 7. Daryl based in Tulsa, recently had a newborn.

Participants (key names and roles)

  • Daryl Frame (Host/VC; 4+ years investing, pre-seed/seed; ex-founder)
  • Leah (Chatter Social; backstage/staging support)
  • Rahul Daryani (Lead, financial services; runs a fintech/insurtech fund in partnership with Erie Insurance under his firm’s corporate venture programs)
  • Virginia (Full Circle; solo GP, pre-seed investor focused on human purpose/potential)
  • Founders who pitched/engaged: Tarik (SwipeScout), James (Sentry), Martin (Plant Money), Jesse (Get Mentors), Jim (Veric AI), Nova (Project VERA), Sean Connolly (Navrick), South Madu (food logistics Nigeria), Andrew (SightU AI), Richard (Pact), Eric (SMB growth platform), Dawda (SafeCash), Frida Eford (Value AI)

Investor Spotlight 1: Rahul Daryani — Corporate Venture “as-a-Service” and Erie Strategic Ventures

Background and model

  • Track: Private credit → PE → Hong Kong fintech VC (led insurtech/payments) → startup operator (B2B payments) → current firm (corporate venture programs), where he leads Financial Services and runs a fintech/insurtech fund with Erie Insurance (Erie Strategic Ventures).
  • Firm model: Runs 20+ dedicated funds for large corporates (e.g., Kellogg’s, T-Mobile, Scotts Miracle-Gro, Bentley, Erie Insurance). They effectively spin up and manage CVCs for Fortune 500s and similar.
  • Governance and sourcing:
    • Typically source ~1,000 companies across areas corporates care about; speak with 300–400; invest in ~2–3 per year (<<1% conversion).
    • Corporate retains veto on investments.
    • Commercial and investment decisions are decoupled: they can invest without a commercial deal and vice versa.
    • High-value side benefit: For the 99% not invested, they still drive value by funneling 30–35 strong vendor/partner candidates back to the corporate each year.

What corporates want vs. VC economics

  • Motivation: Corporates optimize for strategic access to innovation, “look around corners,” and future-proofing—not purely maximizing financial return.
  • Startup pitch value: Capital + privileged access to corporate resources (R&D, distribution, exec customer feedback, design partnerships, referenceable customers, faster sales cycles). Example: Erie Strategic Ventures’ portfolio often has or develops commercial relationships with Erie.
  • Category pulse: Early investments in AI helped internal teams get up to speed pre-GenAI wave, accelerating corporate learning/adoption when tools like ChatGPT emerged.

What Rahul looks for (by stage) and current bar

  • Pre-seed/Seed: The bet is primarily on founders—grit, resilience, authenticity, market insight; openness to feedback; strong narrative and product intuition.
  • Series A/B: Stronger emphasis on fundamentals—efficient capital use, product-market fit, retention/renewals, ARR quality. Market mood shifted away from “growth at all costs” to quality and efficiency.
  • Enterprise AI/SaaS: Barriers to rapid ARR growth have fallen; he’s seeing zero-to-$3–5M ARR within ~18 months in some enterprise AI categories. Differentiation and defensibility (product story) matter amid saturation.
  • Erie Strategic Ventures stage focus: Late seed to Series B; usually post-product, B2B; some ARR evident.

How to nail a 60–90 second intro (Rahul’s guidance)

  • Founder: Brief context on what makes you a compelling builder for this problem.
  • Product: What it does and for whom; progress (pre-product, pilots, live customers).
  • Ask: What you’re seeking right now (capital, intros, design partners, specific expertise).

Founder Q&A with Rahul (highlights)

  • Tarik (SwipeScout—“TikTok meets LinkedIn” 15–45s video resumes with AI matching; launching in weeks): Daryl endorsed category potential; no direct ask to Rahul.
  • James (Sentry—AI wallet compromise detection/lockdown; pre-seed, Web3): Not in mandate (public insurer; Web3 out-of-scope; stage too early). Suggested: Vestigo Ventures, Clocktower, and to look at Validation Cloud (as a relevant web3 infra company/connection).
  • Martin (Plant Money—salary “drip”/budgeting in Nigeria): Rahul shared market patterns: earned wage access can have negative consumer effects; US trend is high-yield checking/savings via payroll integration (ADP/TriNet-style partners). Other analogs: Greenlight (youth financial literacy), Retirable (retiree income smoothing) targeting different lifecycle stages.
  • Jesse (Get Mentors—AI-powered mentorship platform; live on App Store; pre-seed): On “what it takes” for first-time founders—varies by investor; build network; remember it’s a two-way street. Reference-check investors; pick value-add partners willing to roll sleeves up amid ambiguity.
  • Jim (Veric AI—AI mediation platform for legal/insurance): Yes, AI will reshape legal/insurtech (assistive, not replacing humans). Examples like Harvey AI in legal show traction. If selling to carriers, optimize for carrier value—neutral “Switzerland” marketplace plays tend to struggle with carrier adoption.
  • Nova (Project VERA—local skills marketplace; B2B with municipalities/RE tech): Favor B2B motion for CAC efficiency; consider parallel grassroots B2C for brand familiarity; explore employee-benefit channel via payroll/benefit admins (balancing employer concerns re: off-hours gigs).

Investor Spotlight 2: Virginia — Full Circle (Solo GP, Pre-Seed)

Thesis, stage, and check size

  • Firm: Full Circle, launched mid-2021; solo GP based in New York (originally from France).
  • Thesis: Intersection of human purpose and human potential—put people into jobs they didn’t know existed and keep them in the workforce by supporting needs (caregiving, health, etc.). Coverage from post-secondary through retirement.
  • Stage/checks: True pre-seed (frequently pre-revenue; expects at least some product now given how fast prototyping is), average check ~$250k, streamlined process.

What stands out today (especially with AI)

  • Distribution/ICP: Nail target customer, how you’ll reach them, and establish design partners early. Product defensibility still matters, but early distribution clarity wins.
  • Pricing and business model: Usage-based AI can explode COGS in pilots; founders must model unit economics and adopt digestible pricing early to avoid churn.

How to fundraise smarter (and faster)

  • Pre-qualify investors: Treat fundraising as a sales process. Avoid spray-and-pray. Verify stage fit (“When was your last pre-seed check?”), sector fit, geography, and conflicts (do they back a competitor?).
  • Understand partnership dynamics: Multi-GP firms can be slower and require internal translation to IC; some junior investors have real decision power. Solo GPs are faster/clearer but resource-constrained—you get the GP directly post-check, not just a platform team.
  • Relationship-building: It’s a mutual diligence. Aim to meet in person when possible; build trust for a 10-year journey. Don’t expect (or want) a same-day “yes.”
  • Etiquette: Don’t request NDAs. Be gracious with feedback—even on a pass. The ecosystem is small; reputations travel.

Cold outreach that works

  • Avoid generic “Dear Sir”/templated blasts. Reference her thesis and a relevant portfolio company; explain why your approach complements it; attach a deck and a crisp ask. She shared a cold inbound example that led to an investment via her website form because the founder demonstrated thoughtful context.

What to include in a 60–120s intro (Virginia’s framework)

  • Problem: For whom, how acute, and context.
  • Solution: What you’ve built (or are building) and how it addresses the problem.
  • Founder–market fit: Why your team is the right one to win.
  • Why now: Tech/regulatory/market shifts enabling this.

Founder Q&A with Virginia (highlights)

  • Anique (My Hives—community safety map; B2C; MOU with Ghanaian embassy): Chicken-and-egg on traction vs. funding. Suggestion: pursue non-dilutive capital (foundations, accelerators with social mandates) before equity; partnerships are promising but time-intensive.
  • Sean Connolly (Navrick—AI agent platform for certificate lifecycle management; enterprise security): Traction bar varies by investor and changes over time. At pre-revenue B2B, she values prototypes, specific use cases, design partners, pilots, and active users within teams. Ask investors explicitly: what traction and ARR range do they typically engage at?
  • South Madu (Nigeria food ordering—affordable, fair portion sizes; WhatsApp MVP; building app): Cross-geo funding is often constrained; many U.S. VCs have hard mandates and limited value-add abroad. Prioritize local investors who can be hands-on in-market.
  • Andrew (SightU AI—first-person video analytics for productivity/safety; $300k ARR expansion; deploying to EV OEM; LOI in oil & gas): If a lead appears inbound, still consider running a process (unless highly strategic with trusted terms) to get market feedback and benchmark value.
  • Richard (Pact—escrow/trust-as-a-service for everyday transactions; launch planned in December): Q4 fundraising is hard—calendar risk (U.S. Thanksgiving to year-end). Unless you can close before late November, consider waiting until January or until you show initial post-launch momentum.
  • Eric (SMB growth platform—pivot from GenAI call agents to “Shopify for SMB growth”; a few paying users; self-funded): Raise only with a clear use of funds (e.g., a critical full-time hire you can’t cover/fractionalize); otherwise, self-funding to milestones can be prudent.

Additional founder spotlights and resources

  • Dawda (SafeCash—affordable, accessible payments for the unbanked using stablecoins; live on iOS/Android; 14k users; ~$210k processed; raised pre-seed; now raising seed; Ghanaian founder now in SF):
    • Practical resource: Stellar Development Foundation grants—open, monthly cycles; up to ~$250k for teams building on Stellar; application-driven (no need to “know someone”). Advice: study SDF’s priorities, craft a clear abstract, and apply. Also leverage Microsoft for Startups credits to reduce infrastructure burn.
  • Frida Eford (Value AI—AI-based detection of mango defects for farmers/consumers; ~9k labeled images across key diseases; hackathon winner; BBC feature; demo app in testing):
    • Daryl’s advice: Prioritize product quality and user value (farmers and consumers). Monetize where appropriate and instrument impact. Once product value is clear, both investors and impact funders/grants will be easier to attract. Sequence: product → customers/impact → capital.

Practical takeaways and playbooks

  • Crafting your elevator intro

    • Founder-market fit: Who you are and why you’re uniquely suited to solve this.
    • Product and stage: What it does, for whom, and where you are (pre-product, pilots, paying customers, ARR).
    • Traction signals: Design partners, pilot results, retention/renewals, early ARR.
    • Ask: Capital amount, target intros (customers, partners), or specific expertise.

  • Fundraising strategy (both investors reinforced)

    • Pre-qualify ruthlessly: Stage, sector, geography, check size, and competitive conflicts.
    • Treat it like sales: A/B test your outreach; tailor messages; track a pipeline; expect a multi-step process (first meeting’s goal is the second meeting).
    • Run a process when possible: Even with an inbound “lead,” build light competition to discover terms/valuation and stress-test fit.
    • Timing matters: Avoid U.S. holiday dead zones for new processes; align raises with product inflection points.
    • Investor diligence goes both ways: Reference-check VCs; confirm they’re hands-on and aligned with your needs.

  • Selling to enterprises/corporates

    • Design partners: Secure early lighthouse customers for feedback and credibility.
    • Carrier/bank-centric value: In insurtech/finserv, solutions that create clear value for the carrier (not neutral marketplaces) see better adoption.
    • Distribution levers: Consider payroll/benefit administrators (ADP/TriNet) and corporate partnerships to cut sales cycles.
    • Pricing: Model usage-based costs (esp. AI) to avoid COGS surprises during pilots. Keep pricing digestible.

  • Non-dilutive and ecosystem resources

    • Grants: Stellar Development Foundation for crypto/fintech on Stellar; explore foundation/impact grants for social safety/community projects.
    • Credits: Microsoft for Startups for cloud and tooling.
    • Accelerators: Seek programs aligned with your mission (workforce, civic tech, safety, financial inclusion).

How to follow up

  • With Rahul: Connect on LinkedIn (name spelling provided in-session; he’s minimally active on X). He leads Erie Strategic Ventures’ insurtech/fintech investing under his firm’s corporate venture programs.
  • With Virginia: Email is best with a clear ask and deck. Address: [email protected] (also has a contact form on fullcirclefund.io). Thoughtful, contextual outreach increases response odds.
  • With Daryl: Follow on X/Chatter; join the Startup Founders Community group referenced in the session header on Chatter; office hours resume Nov 7.

Notable moments

  • Corporate venture model clarity: Decoupling commercial and investment decisions unlocks strategic learning and adoption at scale while keeping financial discipline.
  • Market bar reset: From “growth at all costs” to sustainable fundamentals and capital efficiency; AI accelerating time to initial ARR in enterprise, heightening differentiation demands.
  • Fundraising mindset shift: Move from volume to precision—pre-qualification, thoughtful context, and human connection consistently outperformed cold mass outreach in investor responses shared.
  • Ecosystem generosity: Founders shared concrete resources (Stellar grants, Microsoft credits) and transparent path-to-capital stories to help peers.