Community is a term thrown around quite a bit these days, but it is clear that building genuine networks of people and working to help others can provide real value. Our guest today is Rex Salisbury , Founder and Managing Partner of Cambrian . Cambrian began in 2015 as a community of members and founders interested in the fintech space and that eventually landed him a role at a16z as a partner on the Fintech team where he backed unicorns like Deel and Tally. We talk about launching Cambrian as a Solo-GP fund with $20M in capital and why he thinks now is the best time to build in the fintech space.
About Rex Salisbury:
Rex Salisbury is the Founder and Manager Partner of Cambrian, which is a community and venture fund focused on FinTech. Formerly he was a partner on the fintech team at Andreessen Horowitz.
Previously he worked as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch supporting the real estate industry and as a Product Engineer at Sindeo and Checkr.
In this episode we discuss:
(01:35) Rex’s journey to becoming an investor
(12:07) Making big life choices
(14:28) How Rex got hired as an engineer without an engineering background
(19:41) Lessons from Rexs’s time at a16z
(27:27) The process of turning Cambrian from a pure community into a community driven venture fund
(29:04) The power of the Cambrian network
(30:18) Further benefits of building a community
(34:39) Managing opportunities as a Solo GP
(36:20) Rex’s definition of FinTech
(40:19) Advice to startups around interest rates
(44:11) Where crypto fits into Cambrian’s investing thesis
(48:38) The sociology behind crypto
(50:44) Being a FinTech super connector
Fast Favorites:
🎙- Favorite Podcast: Capital Isn’t
📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Matt Levine , FinTech Law
📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Facebook portal
📈- Favorite New Trend: Moving back to the Bay Area
📚- Favorite Book: Ender’s Game
🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Invest in relationships, networks matter
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