Exhort Ventures – 540+ investors and 12 VC co-investments within two years

With a background in investment research, Federico (Fed) Quaia first got into angel investing to expand his experience. Joining a local angel group soon led to venture capital firms offering him an angel allocation on rounds they were leading, only to walk away because the process of getting a syndicate together was too slow.  

“Before I started Exhort Ventures, I had access to strong institutional-grade deals but no way to take them up,” Fed said. 

“The process was taking months and founders closing a VC-led round rarely wait that long, so the allocations go elsewhere.”

Fed set up Exhort Ventures on Ventari (then Aussie Angels) in 2024. He wanted a lean process he could run himself, with no investment committee between a good deal and a decision.

Ventari takes care of the structural and regulatory side. Fed runs Exhort under Ventari's licensing, so he didn't need his own Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL), which can take the best part of a year to obtain and comes with significant obligations ongoing.

Each deal sits in its own trust structure, and deal notes go through compliance review before reaching the syndicate. Fed's time goes into building his syndicate membership, and sourcing and assessing deals.

For Fed, low cost of entry and speed were essential in getting started.

"On Ventari, you're able to set up easier and faster. Not having to fork out a lot of cash up front to get started is great, because you can see if you can do it."

Fed spent his first six months on Ventari growing his investor base, talking to investors about Exhort's investment focus before any deals were on the table. The first deal went live in Q3 2024.

Exhort co-invests in rounds led by established venture firms, opening up institutional-grade opportunities to syndicate members. Fed’s thesis on business types and models is evolving, but access to institutional level deals is at the heart of it.

Decisions sit with Fed, who consults with his trusted adviser network when needed. 

"One person making the decision means you move at a much faster pace. If you like a deal, you run your diligence process and you're not relying on several others."

Fed also highly values the support and expertise from Ventari. 

“You can always pick up the phone and talk to the team with questions about legal, structuring or specific clauses. You can pick their brain on how the market is moving and what the appetite is across specific deals. It’s really good to have that support; it’s a very tailored approach.”

Two years in, Exhort Ventures has more than 540 investors. The syndicate has invested in 12 technology companies across Australia and New Zealand, including two follow-on investments, deploying about $2 million in total.

And it continues to grow. Some investors have found Exhort through the Ventari community, though Fed credits most of the growth to his own groundwork and says this is an area many people underestimate.

"There are a lot of rewards for the people who put the hours in. But a lot of people underestimate the effort to build your network on both sides - you need the numbers on the investor side and on the deal flow side. You need to be very deliberate about the set up and give investors a very clear narrative and focus.”