Redesigning venture capital: Eric Collins on the overlooked founders beating the odds

Eric Collins co-founded Impact X Capital to back the founders traditional venture capital overlooks. Inspired by the "original investors" in his own life, Eric’s work is driven by his belief that while talent is distributed equally, opportunity is not.

In this episode - our season finale - Eric discusses his move from technology executive to investor and why he sees the racial wealth gap as a problem that can be solved through intentional capital. He reflects on the journey of Impact X portfolio company Marshmallow to unicorn status and shares the logic behind investing in the animated series Iyanu.

You’ll learn:

- Why Impact X invests where other VC firms don't - and the data that backs its strategy

- Why good ideas are distributed equally across populations, but venture capital remains stubbornly concentrated

- How Marshmallow helped bridge the insurance gap for immigrants, reaching a $1.2B valuation in 18 months.

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About Eric Collins

Eric Collins is a serial entrepreneur, investor, technology executive, host of award-winning Channel 4 business show, The Money Maker. In 2018 he co-founded Impact X Capital Partners, a UK domiciled VC fund that has closed 2 funds with 49 investments including Europe’s 2nd Black unicorn, insurtech innovator, Marshmallow. In his award-winning book, We Don’t Need Permission: How Black Business Can Change Our World (Penguin), Eric argues investing in Black and underrepresented entrepreneurs is the surest, fastest socio-economic game changer there is.

Follow Eric Collins on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericdcollinsba/

Learn more about Impact X: www.impactxcapital.com

Read We Don’t Need Permission: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/446046/we-dont-need-permission-by-collins-eric/9780552178648

Learn more about the Black Literary Club: https://www.theblackliteraryclub.com/

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Season 3 credits:

Creator, producer & host: Tosin Sulaiman

Audio engineering: Justin Orive | Graphic design: Judith Raynault

Social media: Shilton Freeman | Cover art: Valentin Grimoux