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  • December 2022 (Revised August 2023)
  • Case
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Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity

By: Shai Bernstein and Allison M. Ciechanover
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:28
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Abstract

Ten-year-old, Palo Alto-based Ribbit Capital is best-known for its global investments in fintech. The firm was also an early advocate of crypto and blockchain, having invested in more than two dozen startups in the space in the past decade. In the Spring of 2022, Partner Nick Shalek contemplates an investment into Gauntlet, a Brooklyn-based crypto startup. He weighs not only the pros and cons of the Gauntlet investment in the context of the fund’s overall portfolio, but also the deal structure. While investing in crypto startups played to many of the strengths that the Ribbit Capital team had built investing in fintech startups, there were a variety of aspects of crypto startup investing that were new and different. Sourcing deals, performing diligence, providing guidance to entrepreneurs, understanding governance, and negotiating deal terms were similar in principle, but presented new opportunities and challenges to navigate.

Keywords

Alternative Assets; Cryptocurrency; Business Startups; Investment Portfolio; Decision Choices and Conditions; Negotiation Deal; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Venture Capital; Financial Services Industry; California

Citation

Bernstein, Shai, and Allison M. Ciechanover. "Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity." Harvard Business School Case 823-038, December 2022. (Revised August 2023.)
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About The Author

Shai Benjamin Bernstein

Entrepreneurial Management
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Related Work

    • December 2022 (Revised August 2023)
    • Faculty Research

    Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity

    By: Shai Bernstein and Allison M. Ciechanover
Related Work
  • Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity By: Shai Bernstein and Allison M. Ciechanover
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