A VC's Take on Founder Insights: Lessons Learned, Traits That Matter, and Why Fintech’s Moment Is Now
A VC's Take on Founder Insights: Lessons Learned, Traits That Matter, and Why Fintech’s Moment Is Now
We sat down with Ioto Iotov, Founder & Managing Partner at Main Set, a London-based venture firm backing high-conviction Fintech and adjacent technology companies from late Seed through Series C. Drawing on his experience as both an operator and investor, Ioto reflects on the lessons he’s learned from working alongside founders, the qualities he sees in those who succeed, and why he believes Fintech is facing a once-in-a-generation wave of innovation.
You have a unique perspective as someone who's built a business yourself while also investing in founders. What's something you wish founders knew before they started fundraising?
I should say upfront that I don't think we have all the answers—we definitely don't. These are more observations from experience than strict advice, and there are many ways to build a successful business.
But one observation I have is around fundraising itself. I think it's important that founders accept—and don't just tolerate—fundraising. Too many treat it like a box you open and close as quickly as possible, but I think it's actually a fundamental part of building the business.
Whether you're building toward becoming a public company or reaching sufficient scale, fundraising and investor relations is going to be part of your role. You're always going to be accountable to markets or raising capital. All businesses ultimately die for the same reason—they run out of money.
So don't treat fundraising as a necessary evil. Get comfortable with it. It's not a byproduct of your role—it's one of the core functions, just like managing your team or acquiring customers.
What qualities do you see in successful founders that seem particularly hard to teach?
I think several traits appear in the best founders I've seen—accountability, self-awareness, and drive. But one quality that stands out and is pretty hard to teach is this ability to regulate the present self in service of the future self.
What I mean is: the present self wants to hit the snooze button, but the future self wants to be successful. So the present self should wake up early, do the work required, and then the future self will reap the benefits. The best founders are able to make daily decisions—often difficult ones—that prioritise long-term outcomes over short-term ease. It’s delayed gratification at scale.
That said, sustainability matters. You can’t burn out the present self entirely in service of the future. It’s about pacing and being intentional over the long term.
Can you share a situation where you had to deliver a hard truth to a founder you believed in?
The hardest conversations are never about vision or effort—they're about confronting reality. I had a challenging conversation where I had to explain to a founder that their business model simply didn't work. Coming from a quantitative background, I'm highly analytical and data-driven. The data clearly showed high churn, insufficient lifetime value, and no path to profitability.
The founder struggled to accept that reality. It wasn't opinion—it was fact supported by data. But they continued trying to raise capital and push forward with the same approach, and ultimately the outcome was unsuccessful.
This was a case where the team was unwilling to confront reality and ask, "This isn't working—what else can we do?" And that's the fundamental issue—you can't fix what you won't acknowledge.
What's the biggest financial mistake you see founders make repeatedly?
After a major raise—usually the first institutional funding—there's often an abandonment of cost discipline. Founders go from analysing every expense to being much less careful with spending.
This is understandable. Partly it's to signal ambition, partly because they finally have the resources. But this creates a dangerous precedent during a period when you're also hiring rapidly, bringing in people who adopt this relaxed approach to spending.
When new team members join, this becomes the company culture. When market conditions tighten or growth slows, the results are predictable—bloated teams, high burn, and ultimately painful layoffs.
It's not about austerity or avoiding growth investments. It's about being a responsible steward of your capital.
If you could only invest in one sector for the next five years, what would it be and why?
Financial services technology. It's one of the largest industries globally, structurally important, heavily regulated, and often decades behind on technology adoption.
It represents a massive portion of GDP in most economies, yet many institutions still operate on legacy code from the 1980s. Their infrastructure is monolithic, on-premise, non-cloud-native, and not API-integrated—nowhere near ready for what's coming next.
This represents a generational investment opportunity. There's genuine demand for solutions, real willingness to pay from highly profitable businesses, and clear exit opportunities.
We sat down with Ioto Iotov, Founder & Managing Partner at Main Set, a London-based venture firm backing high-conviction Fintech and adjacent technology companies from late Seed through Series C. Drawing on his experience as both an operator and investor, Ioto reflects on the lessons he’s learned from working alongside founders, the qualities he sees in those who succeed, and why he believes Fintech is facing a once-in-a-generation wave of innovation.
You have a unique perspective as someone who's built a business yourself while also investing in founders. What's something you wish founders knew before they started fundraising?
I should say upfront that I don't think we have all the answers—we definitely don't. These are more observations from experience than strict advice, and there are many ways to build a successful business.
But one observation I have is around fundraising itself. I think it's important that founders accept—and don't just tolerate—fundraising. Too many treat it like a box you open and close as quickly as possible, but I think it's actually a fundamental part of building the business.
Whether you're building toward becoming a public company or reaching sufficient scale, fundraising and investor relations is going to be part of your role. You're always going to be accountable to markets or raising capital. All businesses ultimately die for the same reason—they run out of money.
So don't treat fundraising as a necessary evil. Get comfortable with it. It's not a byproduct of your role—it's one of the core functions, just like managing your team or acquiring customers.
What qualities do you see in successful founders that seem particularly hard to teach?
I think several traits appear in the best founders I've seen—accountability, self-awareness, and drive. But one quality that stands out and is pretty hard to teach is this ability to regulate the present self in service of the future self.
What I mean is: the present self wants to hit the snooze button, but the future self wants to be successful. So the present self should wake up early, do the work required, and then the future self will reap the benefits. The best founders are able to make daily decisions—often difficult ones—that prioritise long-term outcomes over short-term ease. It’s delayed gratification at scale.
That said, sustainability matters. You can’t burn out the present self entirely in service of the future. It’s about pacing and being intentional over the long term.
Can you share a situation where you had to deliver a hard truth to a founder you believed in?
The hardest conversations are never about vision or effort—they're about confronting reality. I had a challenging conversation where I had to explain to a founder that their business model simply didn't work. Coming from a quantitative background, I'm highly analytical and data-driven. The data clearly showed high churn, insufficient lifetime value, and no path to profitability.
The founder struggled to accept that reality. It wasn't opinion—it was fact supported by data. But they continued trying to raise capital and push forward with the same approach, and ultimately the outcome was unsuccessful.
This was a case where the team was unwilling to confront reality and ask, "This isn't working—what else can we do?" And that's the fundamental issue—you can't fix what you won't acknowledge.
What's the biggest financial mistake you see founders make repeatedly?
After a major raise—usually the first institutional funding—there's often an abandonment of cost discipline. Founders go from analysing every expense to being much less careful with spending.
This is understandable. Partly it's to signal ambition, partly because they finally have the resources. But this creates a dangerous precedent during a period when you're also hiring rapidly, bringing in people who adopt this relaxed approach to spending.
When new team members join, this becomes the company culture. When market conditions tighten or growth slows, the results are predictable—bloated teams, high burn, and ultimately painful layoffs.
It's not about austerity or avoiding growth investments. It's about being a responsible steward of your capital.
If you could only invest in one sector for the next five years, what would it be and why?
Financial services technology. It's one of the largest industries globally, structurally important, heavily regulated, and often decades behind on technology adoption.
It represents a massive portion of GDP in most economies, yet many institutions still operate on legacy code from the 1980s. Their infrastructure is monolithic, on-premise, non-cloud-native, and not API-integrated—nowhere near ready for what's coming next.
This represents a generational investment opportunity. There's genuine demand for solutions, real willingness to pay from highly profitable businesses, and clear exit opportunities.
FAQs
All the answers you need for all the questions you’ve got.
(But also TL;DR)
How should a startup business prepare its budget?
To prepare a budget for your startup, begin by listing all potential expenses you anticipate in starting and operating your business. Next, organise these expenses into categories. After that, estimate your monthly revenue and calculate the total costs required to start and run your business.
What are the key steps to creating an effective budget?
Step 1: Determine and track your income sources.
Step 2: Make a list of your cost. Include both fixed and variable costs.
Step 3: Set achievable financial goals.
Step 4: Develop a plan to meet those goals.
Step 5: Put everything together to build your budget.
Step 6: Regularly review and revise your forecast to ensure it remains effective.
What does capital budgeting entail for a startup?
Capital budgeting for a startup involves allocating a set amount of funds for specific purposes, such as purchasing new equipment or expanding business operations. This process is crucial as it supports making strategic investments that are expected to yield long-term benefits for the startup.
FAQs
All the answers you need for all the questions you’ve got.
(But also TL;DR)
How can a startup forecast its cash flow?
To forecast cash flow for a startup, follow these steps:
Step 1: Create a sales forecast by estimating the revenue your products or services will generate over the forecast period.
Step 2: Develop a profit and loss forecast to understand your expected expenses and income.
Step 3: Prepare your cash flow forecast, which involves calculating expected cash inflows and outflows. This can often be done for longer-term by using assumptions around payment terms to forecast a Balance Sheet, and using the movements in Balance Sheet and Net Profit/Loss to calculate the cashflow.
Step 4: Consider ways of improving cash flow by improving your invoicing methods, considering short-term borrowing, and negotiate better payment terms to manage cash flow effectively.
What is the most accurate method to forecast cash flow?
The most accurate method for forecasting cash flow in the short-term is the direct method, which utilises actual cash flow data. In contrast, the indirect method is better suited for longer term forecasting using projected balance sheet movements and income statements to estimate future cash flows.
How is cash flow calculated?
Cash flow is calculated by deducting cash outflows from cash inflows over a specific period. This calculation alongside forecasts of future cash flow helps determine if there is sufficient money available to sustain business.
How do you project cash flow over three years?
To project cash flow over a three-year period, undertake the following steps:
Step 1: Collect historical financial data.
Step 2: Identify all expected cash inflows, which could include revenue, investment, grant income, etc.
Step 3: Estimate all anticipated cash outflows including expenses, suppliers that need to be paid, investments into assets, debt repayments, etc.
Step 4: Calculate the net cash flow by subtracting outflows from inflows.
Step 5: Consider your cash reserves and explore financing options if needed.
Step 6: Regularly review and adjust your projections to ensure accuracy and relevance.
FAQs
All the answers you need for all the questions you’ve got.
(But also TL;DR)
When should a startup consider hiring a CFO?
A startup should think about hiring a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) when it begins to experience rapid growth, finds it challenging to manage finances, or needs to navigate complex investment scenarios. A seasoned financial professional can provide the necessary expertise to handle these challenges effectively.
What are the indicators that my business might need CFO support?
You might need to hire a CFO or consider outsourcing this role if you notice any of the following signs: a decrease in gross profit margins despite increasing revenue, uncontrolled business growth, lack of cash reserves despite having a financially successful year, or a halt in business growth.
Does my startup really need a full-time CFO?
Recruiting a full-time CFO is an expensive hire. Given budget constraints and the need to prove the viability of your business idea, founders will often need to prioritise investing into building and commercialising their product. That's where CFO services for startups are a cost-effective solution for founders looking to take their financial management to the next level.
