In this episode of Tank Talks, host Matt Cohen sits down with Julia Maltby, a Principal at Fengate Asset Management who has lived the full venture capital lifecycle. Julia started as the first employee at Plum Alley Investments, ran partnerships at WeWork during its hyper-growth phase, spent over five years rising from Associate to Principal at Flybridge Capital, and even ran her own seed fund, Deco Ventures, before moving to the LP side at Fengate in 2025. Today, she invests in early-stage VC funds and direct opportunities across North America.
Julia offers a brutally honest perspective on what she wishes every emerging manager knew about fundraising. She explains why LPs value process over outputs, why founder references from failed companies are more valuable than those from winners, and how GPs can stop leaving first meetings as a “polite maybe” and start qualifying LPs like a sales funnel. She also pulls back the curtain on LP-to-LP communication (which she says is 10X stronger than GP gossip), shares tactical advice on building data rooms that actually get read, and reveals how Fengate pre-approves co-investments to move at startup speed.
Whether you’re a GP in the middle of a raise, an LP sorting through an endless stack of emerging manager pitches, or just curious what venture looks like from every seat at the table, this episode is for you.
From Liberal Arts to Venture Capital (02:07)
Julia’s unconventional path from studying architecture and social inequality to becoming one of venture’s most respected emerging investors.
How a cold LinkedIn message landed her first job in venture capital.
Why having no finance background became an advantage instead of a limitation.
Learning Venture from the Ground Up (04:13)
Building crowdfunding platforms and SPVs before venture became mainstream.
Why early-stage investing means wearing product, operations, and fundraising hats.
Lessons learned from saying “yes” before knowing exactly how to do the work.
Inside WeWork’s Hypergrowth Machine (05:11)
Joining WeWork during its explosive expansion and learning from one of startup history’s fastest growth stories.
What Adam Neumann got exceptionally right about building mission-driven teams.
The leadership lessons worth keeping and the scaling mistakes worth avoiding.
The Flybridge Investing Framework (10:39)
Why durable venture investing starts with disciplined systems rather than intuition alone.
The importance of pricing integrity and staying focused on core business strengths.
How evaluating customer urgency shaped Julia’s investment philosophy.
Becoming a Solo GP (14:14)
Launching Deco Ventures with Flybridge’s support.
The challenges of making investment decisions without partners.
Why every solo GP needs trusted people whose job is to challenge—not validate—their thinking.
What Makes a Venture Manager Truly Different? (18:00)
Why there isn’t just one formula for becoming a successful GP.
Understanding your competitive advantage instead of copying other managers.
How LPs think about portfolio fit beyond fund performance.
The Data Room Mistakes GPs Keep Making (23:18)
Why withholding information often slows fundraising rather than helping it.
Julia’s advice: send everything instead of drip-feeding documents.
How GPs should reference-check LPs before sharing sensitive materials.
Looking Beyond Markups and Valuations (27:16)
Why portfolio KPIs matter more than inflated funding rounds.
How disciplined reserve strategies separate thoughtful investors from reactive ones.
Using follow-on decisions as a measure of investment discipline.
The Power of Great References (31:45)
Why founders from failed companies often provide the strongest references.
How LP references reveal governance, transparency, and communication quality.
Why perfect references can actually make LPs more skeptical.
Stop Leaving Meetings as a “Maybe” (34:35)
The questions every GP should ask before ending a fundraising meeting.
Understanding the difference between genuine interest and structural misalignment.
How qualifying LPs like a sales pipeline saves months of wasted fundraising.
Building Better Co-Investment Relationships (37:06)
How proactive communication makes co-investments move faster.
Why LPs build internal pipelines long before deals officially launch.
The importance of giving institutional investors time to prepare.
The Future of Early-Stage Venture (39:27)
Why Julia remains optimistic despite today’s challenging fundraising environment.
The growing divide between mega-funds and smaller venture firms.
Why smaller funds continue delivering meaningful returns that often go unnoticed.
Using AI to Build Better LP Portfolios (41:17)
How Fengate uses AI to understand portfolio exposure across hundreds of startups.
Moving beyond broad fund branding into detailed market analysis.
Why better portfolio intelligence leads to better future investment decisions.
About Julia Maltby
Julia Maltby is a Principal at Fengate Asset Management, where she invests in early-stage VC funds and direct opportunities across North America. She has lived the full VC lifecycle: she was the first employee at Plum Alley Investments, ran partnerships at WeWork, spent 5+ years rising from Associate to Principal at Flybridge Capital, and founded her own seed fund, Deco Ventures. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and writes about her LP experiences on her Substack, Julia’s Field Notes.
Connect with Julia Maltby on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/juliamaltby
Learn more about Fengate Asset Management: https://fengate.com/
Read Julia’s Field Notes:
Connect with Matt Cohen on LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/matt-cohen1
Visit the Ripple Ventures website: https://www.rippleventures.com/
