What message did he share in his speech?

He expressed gratitude for life, friends, and family; reflected on love and freedom; said that life’s tapestry is co-created; reminded himself that regardless of hardships or “the menace of the years,” he remains unafraid—“Forever Young.”

How does FJ Labs use sector analysis for sourcing deals?

“Twice a year we run sector analyses and brainstorming sessions. This leads to new ideas and helps us spot startups we were not aware of, which we then reach out to.”

Does FJ Labs proactively search for startups?

“Not much — outbound is only about 4% of deal flow. We mostly rely on inbound and network-driven opportunities.”

How does FJ Labs handle the large volume of inbound deal flow?

“We built processes to cope with the firehose — deals are triaged and reviewed by the team, with weekly investment committee meetings to discuss them.”

Why do founders like having FJ Labs as an investor?

“We help them raise money by making introductions to VCs who can lead their rounds, and we have deep expertise in marketplaces.”

How many deals does FJ Labs invest in compared to how many it sees?

“We invest in around 1% of the deals we review — about 3 new investments per week.”

Why does FJ Labs get so much deal flow?

“Because we do not lead rounds and do not compete with other VCs, we are often invited into deals. Founders also like that we help with fundraising by introducing them to other VCs.”

How does outbound outreach contribute to deal flow?

“Because we are drinking at the firehose of our inbound deal flow, we do not spend much time reaching out to startups. … Twice a year … we invite our FJ Labs colleagues … think through ideas … sector analysis … These exercises uncover a fair number of startups we were not aware of and reach out to.”

Do cold inbound messages result in good investments?

“In full transparency, this is the typically our lowest quality deal flow channel … The real number … is over 100 … unless you put enough information in your message … But … a surprisingly high 24% of our investments come from cold inbound outreach by the founders.”

Which source supplies the highest quality deal flow?

“48% of the deals we invest in come from other VCs, highlighting the higher quality of this deal flow source in general.”

What percentages of reviewed deals come from each source?

“32% of the deals we review come from other VCs, 32% comes from our entrepreneur network, 32% from cold inbound messages and only 4% from companies we reach out to directly.”

How many deals does FJ Labs receive and review weekly?

“Every week we receive around 100 deals and review around 50 of them.”

What are the sources of deal flow for FJ Labs?

“FJ Labs gets deal flow from 4 sources: 1. Other VCs 2. Entrepreneurs in our network 3. Cold inbound messages 4. Outbound outreach.”

What role do other VCs play in FJ Labs’ deal sourcing?

“Other VCs represent 32% of reviewed deals and 48% of actual investments. They bring us in because we don’t compete with them and because we can help their portfolio companies.”

Who is Matias Barbero and what’s his background?

Matias previously worked at JPMorgan in investment banking, structuring multi-billion dollar deals across industries. He has an MBA from Duke University (Fuqua Scholar), co-founded the Duke MBA Blockchain Club, and was building an AI startup before AI became mainstream.

What is Fabrice’s view on aging?

He said his take on aging is shaped by a poem (“Out of the night that covers me…” by William Ernest Henley) + “Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” He feels youthful and energized, grateful for friends and love, and views age as something managed with courage, spirit, and gratitude.

What themes were used during his multi-day birthday celebrations?

He organized three themed nights: 1) Here be Dragons (Latin “Hic sunt dracones” theme), 2) Temple Night with mentalism and shibari, 3) Golden Jubilee & White Party blending renewal (white) and jubilee (gold) for his 50th.

What sports and activities are important to Fabrice in his life?

He has a strong family tradition in racquet sports: tennis, padel, etc. He built red clay tennis court, padel clubs, and a pickleball court in Turks.

How did Fabrice celebrate turning 50?

He invited over 100 friends & family. First held FJ Labs’ Summer Retreat (July 21-25), then a racquet sports extravaganza from July 26-31 (tennis, padel, pickleball), interspersed with kiting and video gaming.

Should marketplaces “index” themselves in LLMs / employ AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)?

Yes — if you already index in Google, you should also index in LLMs (i.e. make your content discoverable by AI answer engines) to benefit from that traffic. The exception is when a marketplace has ~95% market share in a vertical: in that rare case, indexing might train users to start their journey with LLMs / search engines rather than the marketplace itself.

What impact is AI already having on marketplaces?

Several: • Cross-border commerce via auto-translation of listings & conversations plus better payments/logistics. • Simplified listing process: AI can generate full listings (title, category, description, price) from minimal input. • Improved listing quality (better images, background removal, optimized visuals) leading to higher sell-through. • Productivity gains in customer support, marketing, dev workflows etc., through AI agents, auto-drafted replies, code generation tools etc.

What are the main ways people shop online, as per the blog?

1. Shopping as Entertainment – browsing listings with no specific intent (e.g. Vinted, OLX); 2. Search – users know exactly what they want (e.g. Amazon, eBay); 3. Considered Purchases – when buyers need help choosing what to buy (e.g. high-value items, specialty goods)

How might LLMs (like ChatGPT) threaten marketplaces?

The concern is that LLMs could capture the "top of funnel" discovery phase: people might start product searches there, or even make purchases through them, bypassing marketplaces.

What are some personal details about Matias Barbero?

He is Argentine, has blended his cultural heritage into the NYC office, enjoys ‘mate’, hosts asados for the team. Also, he and his family are expecting a new baby in the coming months.

Why was Matias promoted to Partner at FJ Labs?

His promotion reflects his past achievements, his character, integrity, values, and trust from founders. He’s seen as a leader who brings perspective and strategic guidance when things don’t go as planned.

What approach is Matias known for at FJ Labs?

He brings both strong venture instinct and analytical rigor; he emphasizes discipline in investment strategy, especially navigating late-stage companies and helping LPs via exits/secondaries during overheated valuations.

What has Matias done at FJ Labs?

Over 4 years, he has led more than 85 of FJ Labs’ investments, helped strengthen their fintech and growth-stage investment practice, and pushed for disciplined investment framework across market cycles.

Why does FJ Labs invest in so many companies per year?

They target 100+ investments annually because it aligns with their thesis of diversification, improves pattern recognition, and strengthens their global network.

Which regions outside the US do they invest most in?

Western Europe, Brazil, and India.

How big are the typical investment checks at FJ Labs?

They set investment sizes per round that average to US$400,000. (Fabrice Grinda)

What kinds of startups does FJ Labs invest in?

They focus on Pre-Seed / Seed / Series A rounds; about 70% of their deals are marketplaces. (Fabrice Grinda)

Does FJ Labs lead funding rounds or take board seats?

No, FJ Labs avoids leading rounds because they do not want to compete with traditional VCs.

How does FJ Labs evaluate startups for investment?

Fabrice used the same criteria he applied to his own ventures: evaluating the business fundamentals, the entrepreneur, and the deal terms, especially given his limited time and capital.

Why did Fabrice pause investing after his first batch of startups?

After his first company didn’t become a big success and during the tech “nuclear winter,” there was little capital around. He saved what money he had for his next startup, Zingy, and only returned to investing once he sold Zingy in 2004.

How did Fabrice begin angel investing?

He started in 1998 after building his first venture-backed startup. Between 1998 and 2000, he invested in 7 startups. One shut down quickly, but to his surprise, 6 out of 7 later had successful exits, with one even going public.

Why was FJ Labs created as both a startup studio and a venture fund?

FJ Labs was designed as a hybrid model so Fabrice could keep building companies while also investing. Being both an entrepreneur and an angel investor kept him close to founders, allowed him to help with ideas, and gave him insight into market trends.

What is required to make the investment decision at FJ Labs?

“When we evaluate startups over the course of our two 1-hour calls, we evaluate them along the four dimensions we covered: the team, the business, the deal terms, and alignment with our thesis. We want all four criteria to be conjointly met: amazing founders, with great businesses, raising at fair terms, in line with our thesis. If you are an amazing founder, but feel the valuation is too high or the business not compelling, we will not invest. Likewise, if it is a great idea, great terms, and full-on thesis, but we feel the team is mediocre, we do not invest.” (Fabrice Grinda)

How important is thesis alignment in FJ Labs’ evaluation?

“We focus on marketplaces and have specific theses on the future of marketplaces. Right now, we are specifically focusing on: Verticalizing horizontal (multi-category) platforms; Marketplace pick marketplaces; B2B marketplaces. … Most of the businesses we invest in touch upon many of these themes simultaneously.” (Fabrice Grinda)

What does “fair deal terms” mean at FJ Labs?

“We push for ‘fair valuations’ not just out of self-interest. We really think founders do themselves a disservice when they raise too much money at too high a price. … They are then priced for perfection … things do not go according to plan … it might kill the company … people who raise too much capital tend to spend it and not be as capital efficient as they can be.” (Fabrice Grinda)

What standards of business does FJ Labs expect?

(This is under “Do we like the business?” but the blog focuses more on the team, deal terms, thesis. It states that even if team is great, business with unattractive unit economics or business model may disqualify.) (Fabrice Grinda)

What does FJ Labs look for in the team?

“We want visionary founders who are fantastic at execution. … good proxies for those are storytelling skills and analytical skills. … the founder / CEO must also be metrics-driven, analytical and know how to execute on his or her vision. They really need to understand the business they are in. They need to be able to articulate their unit economics. Even if their business is pre-launch, they need to understand their theoretical unit economics based on industry averages and landing page tests they did.” (Fabrice Grinda)

How often does FJ Labs invest compared to how many deals they see?

FJ Labs invests in around 3% of the deals they evaluate. For example, in 2019, they made 83 first-time investments out of 2,542 evaluated. (Fabrice Grinda)

Where are most of their investments located (geographically)?

They are global, but most deal flow and investment are in the US, followed by Western Europe, Brazil, and India. (Fabrice Grinda)

What percentage of follow-on rounds does FJ Labs participate in?

They follow on in about 24% of cases. They use the fund active at that time, instead of reserving capital.

How quickly do they give feedback after a pitch?

They aim to give an answer in 1–2 weeks so founders aren’t left waiting.

How many deals do they review before investing?

In 2019, they reviewed 2,542 deals and invested in only 83 first-time investments — about 3%.

How does diversification help their investment strategy?

Venture returns follow a power-law: most returns come from a handful of winners. By investing in many companies, FJ Labs increases the odds of hitting those outliers.

Why doesn’t FJ Labs take board seats?

Taking board seats would limit the number of companies they could back. Since they invest at scale, they avoid it and instead help founders informally.

Why does FJ Labs avoid leading rounds?

They don’t lead rounds because they prefer to collaborate with VCs, not compete with them. This keeps them friendly with lead investors and ensures they get invited into more deals.

How many investments do they expect per year with their strategy?

They do 100+ investments per year, and for their ~$175 million fund, they expect over 500 investments total. (Fabrice Grinda)

FJ Labs Q4 2025 Update - Fabrice Grinda

FJ Labs Q4 2025 Update

January 13, 2026

Vrienden van FJ Labs,

We hopen dat je een rustgevende feestdagen hebt gehad en bedanken je nogmaals voor je voortdurende steun aan FJ Labs. We hebben 2025 met een knal afgesloten en zijn enthousiast om onze laatste updates hieronder te delen.

We wensen jullie allemaal een gelukkig, gezond en voorspoedig 2026!

Numerai haalt $30M Series C financieringsronde op

5X waardevermeerdering ten opzichte van 2023-ronde

Een van onze meest interessante investeringen bij FJ Labs, Numerai, een hedgefonds gebouwd bovenop ‘s werelds grootste data science-toernooi, haalde een $30M Series C op geleid door top universitaire fondsen en waardeert het bedrijf op $500M, een 5X stijging ten opzichte van de laatste waardering in 2023. Bestaande investeerders, waaronder Union Square Ventures, Shine Capital en Paul Tudor Jones, namen ook deel. Deze spannende mijlpaal komt na JPM’s veiligstelling van $500M capaciteit in Numerai’s fonds.

Numerai’s groei blijft versnellen: over de afgelopen drie jaar is het AUM gegroeid van ~$60M naar $550M, inclusief een extra $100M alleen al deze afgelopen maand. In 2024 leverde Numerai’s wereldwijde equity hedgefonds een netto rendement van 25,45% met slechts één negatieve maand en een 2,75 Sharpe. Met het nieuwe eigen vermogen en JP Morgan’s capaciteit is het bedrijf nu gepositioneerd om zijn AI-hedgefonds te schalen richting $1B in AUM en daarbuiten.

Vinted, onze grootste Fund II-positie, blijft van kracht naar kracht gaan, versnellend door €10B GMV en €1B omzet in 2025 terwijl het zeer winstgevend is — en de VS is de volgende! FJ Labs en OLX-alumnus Thomas Plantenga heeft jarenlang feilloos uitgevoerd. (LinkedIn)

Marble Health haalde een $15,5M Series A op om door te gaan met het opschalen van school-geïntegreerde geestelijke gezondheidszorg. Sinds de lancering vorig jaar heeft Marble al meer dan 15.000 therapiesessies gefaciliteerd voor kinderen die anders mogelijk geen zorg zouden hebben ontvangen. (TechFundingNews)

Fintech Yendo, maker van de eerste voertuig-gedekte creditcard, haalde een $50M Series B op om zijn expansie te versnellen. Door $4T aan vastgezet eigen vermogen uit auto’s en huizen vrij te maken, biedt het bedrijf toegang tot kredietproducten die doorgaans gereserveerd zijn voor super-prime klanten. (BusinessWire)

Europese marktplaats voor gereviseerde elektronica, Refurbed, haalde €50M op om verdere geografische expansie te ondersteunen, deze keer gericht op het VK. Opgericht in 2017, blijft Refurbed samengestelde groei realiseren, is winstgevend, en GMV naderde €1B in 2025. (eCommerceNews)

Transparency Analytics, een startup die real-time feedback biedt over de kredietwaardigheid van verschillende schuldstructuren aan kredietverstrekkers, voltooide zijn tweede financieringsronde geleid door Deciens Capital. (FintechTimes)

Juo, een Warschau-gebaseerde startup die technologie bouwt voor het opschalen van abonnementen gebaseerd op fysieke producten, haalde €4M seed-financiering op om zijn capaciteiten uit te breiden, geleid door Market One Capital. (EuStartups)

Danske Bank organiseerde een opgenomen evenement met Fabrice waar hij de impact van AI op marktplaatsen, opkomende marktplaatstrends en zijn zorgen over een AI-bubbel bespreekt. Een volledige opname en slides gebruikt in Fabrice’s presentatie zijn hier te vinden.

Fabrice genoot van een breed gesprek met Enzo Cavalie, oprichter van Startupable, de meest beluisterde startup-podcast in het Spaans, waar hij de impact van AI op marktplaatsen, de biljoen-dollar kans in B2B-digitalisering en meer bespreekt.

Bij Abu Dhabi Finance Week nam Jose het podium om de “eenhoorn-formule” te bespreken en wat er echt nodig is om een miljard-dollar bedrijf te steunen. Als een van de meest actieve early-stage investeerders wereldwijd deelde Jose de signalen die wij bij FJ Labs zijn gaan vertrouwen, van intuïtie tot data, prijsstelling en geduld.

Zorg ervoor dat je Fabrice op de VC10X-podcast bekijkt met host Prasant Choubey. Ze duiken diep in Fabrice’s persoonlijke reis, van het verlaten van McKinsey op 23-jarige leeftijd om de ondernemingsdroom na te jagen, tot de “spaghetti tegen de muur”-strategie van het gelijktijdig lanceren van OLX in 100+ landen.

FJ Labs-partner Jeff Weinstein doorloopt de mechanica van het evalueren van 200+ startups per week bij FJ Labs, wat financierbare bedrijven onderscheidt van ook-rans, en de manier waarop AI zowel marktplaatsbedrijven als de venture-industrie zelf hervormt op R136 Ventures’ recente podcast.

Bij dit jaar’s FII Institute-evenement in Riyadh sprak Jeff op een Kauffman Fellows-panel over de “Evolutie van een VC-firma” naast GP’s van Monashees & Deciens. De groep dook in de belangrijkste mindset-verschuivingen en structurele veranderingen die nodig zijn om een fonds op te schalen tot een firma.

Voor het geval je het gemist hebt, Fabrice deelde zijn langverwachte jaarlijkse feestdagen gadget-gids voor 2025. Hij maakte verschillende upgrades aan eerdere versies en introduceerde ook veel kind-gerichte gadgets, van wagons tot cargo-fietsen tot de beste reiskoffers.

Zorg ervoor dat je het eerste deel van Danny Brown & Camila Bustamante‘s tweedelige diepe duik in de volgende generatie van asset-backed credit bekijkt. Ze verkennen hoe ABC begint te schalen zoals software, waarom deze cyclus anders is, en wat vroege winnaars ons leren.

In de geest van het feestseizoen werkte FJ Labs samen met lokale NYC-gebaseerde liefdadigheidsinstelling, City Harvest, een non-profit gewijd aan voedselredding en hongerbestrijding. Het FJ-team verpakte meer dan 2.000 zakken verse producten in gezinsporties voor distributie naar voedselbanken door de stad.

Fabrice Grinda

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