About Nodem Capital

Nodem was quietly launched in the summer of 2024 to meet the acute need across Next Wave markets for a creative liquidity provider. The team broadly defines Next Wave markets as the world minus the 10 “legacy” advanced economies (North America, Western Europe, etc.).

The firm will offer secondary liquidity to the holders of VC-backed assets in markets that include Emerging Europe, Turkey, Latin America, Southeast Asia and India. Nodem will specialise in offering partial liquidity (through preferred equity investments) to “non-sellers” who want to maintain exposure/control but accelerate liquidity for distributions or growth.

Nodem is well into the process of seeking FCA authorisation. All investment activities will commence once regulatory approvals are granted. Initial investor capital is in place, and our anticipated timeline is for us to start investing in Q125. In January 2025, Nodem will host a launch event and kick off monthly online panel discussions with leading Next Wave investors.

Macro backdrop

Pitchbook data suggest that from a near non-existent base in 2011-12, there has been a rapid build-up in capital raised by VC funds across Next Wave markets, peaking in 2021, when nearly $57bn was raised. The explosion in capital raising from 2019-21 was fuelled by earlier successes in the US/China and major early mobile internet successes by Next Wave VCs. 

Whilst these early fund vintages are rapidly maturing, widescale exits continue to be pushed back – with up to 20x as many companies now being financed by VCs versus exited. 

Many investors are now seeking (and struggling to find) liquidity solutions for their Next Wave holdings, resulting in LPs being reluctant to commit to new funds until value is released from earlier vintages. 

Nodem is launching ahead of an expected 10x increase in the investable universe – defined as the value of assets held in VC funds older than 10 years old - to around $130bn.

Nodem’s founder, Alex Branton

Alex was a senior member of Sturgeon Capital’s PE and VC teams. Sturgeon is an emerging markets investment firm with assets over $300 million, and investors include Chevron, the IFC, and SBI. Before Sturgeon, Alex was also an investor at Cambridge Associates, advising some of the world’s most sophisticated institutions. 

“Having spent my career as both a GP and LP in emerging markets, I feel uniquely qualified to solve the liquidity needs of our stakeholders. We're building a firm that investors can rely on for speedy solutions tailored to the specific needs of LPs and GPs active in our markets”.