Two keys to raising rounds in the current macro environment

Capital has never been tighter. Re-investment rounds aren’t guaranteed.

In the current business climate, securing institutional commitments requires a strategic approach. In addition to a strong investing thesis, that means developing and nurturing long-term relationships because when funding is hard to come by, trust, reliability, and confidence in leadership become key differentiators.

That’s a key takeaway from a recent Juniper Square webinar, where Olga Serhiyevich, Founder of Lynx Point, Steven Kim, Partner of Investment Strategy and Risk Management at Verdis Investment Management, and Charlotte Zhang, Senior Portfolio Manager at Inatai Foundation spoke with Derek Shanahan, Strategic Partnerships Director at Juniper Square about the most effective strategies for raising capital, building long-term LP relationships, and positioning your fund for success.

Securing commitments isn’t just about one meeting—it’s about trust built over time. The panel’s best advice for right now: Focus on cultivating a network that supports your fundraising efforts far beyond a single fundraise.

Fundraising success isn’t one-size-fits-all.

Focus on finding LPs that align with your values and goals, and focus on building relationships with them. Not everyone will be the right fit for you—which is fine. The goal, like any networking effort, is to put in the work so you have the right connection when it matters. When time equals value, it behooves GPs to focus on the LPs who are more aligned with your vision and understand what you’re building.

Creating such strategic relationship management efforts with LPs can become a key business differentiator in a tight market.

“Being very thoughtful and strategic about your relationships helps you build a better firm over the long term and gives you a lot more flexibility in everything that you do,” said Serhiyevich.

She recommended three strategies:

• Be long-term oriented. Plan two to three funding rounds out.

• Be metrics-driven. Prioritize LPs as high, medium, or low in terms of their ownership in the fund or prospective opportunity for future business. Create reminders to track activity with them, and engage according to that structure and feedback.

• Have checks and balances. Some LPs excel at relationship building, but does that mean they’re the right one for your fund? Having checks and balances in the form of validating the business side.

Two of the panelists noted that the best place to find new connections is within the relationships you already have. Asking your LPs for introductions into their networks can offer some of the best opportunities for key relationship building.

“When you pitch an LP who really resonates well with your strategy, ask if there are other like-minded LPs that they think you should connect with at the end of the meeting. This is a very natural opportunity to create warm, curated leads for yourself,” said Zhang.

Fund managers should plan fundraising efforts well in advance, engaging LPs two years in advance, and updating them every six months, noted the speakers. Regular touchpoints on team changes, portfolio adjustments, new investments, and fundraising plans help LPs track execution and build trust. Waiting until the fundraise starts is too late—it limits LPs' ability to evaluate performance, which means commitments are harder to secure.

“If the first time I'm engaging with you is already during the fundraise, it just doesn't give me much time to prove out with concrete data points: How is your execution compared to what you articulate?,” Zhang asked.

Serhiyevich cautioned there's always a risk of over-communication, which can start to feel onerous and become counterproductive. However a thoughtful follow-up strategy that keeps the relationship warm can increase the likelihood of securing commitments.

Transparency and consistency build trust.

Many LPs want GPs to do what they say they will do and not change course. Regular communications offer vital transparency into the consistency of the business.

Serhiyevich recommended developing an “appropriate cadence of interactions” to keep LPs apprised of the business. This might include major developments, product releases, roadmaps, growth, and other key initiatives that showcase alignment to a plan, aka consistency.

No one wants constant inbox spam, but a system of regular touchpoints several times a year, for example, keeps LPs in the loop and feeling confident in the business without overwhelming them.

“Be consistent with your strategy and don't let the macro environment change that,” said Kim.

Tools that improve the LP experience have become table stakes for many investors—handshakes alone don’t cut it. Relationships may create opportunities and help close deals, but structure and processes—the good bones of a company—still matter.

Increasingly, the right tools can impress investors and support continued reinvestment over the years. Cutting-edge technology, paired with long-term relationships, can significantly increase the likelihood of a successful fundraise and the likelihood that an investment round kicks off a longer-term connection.

In fact, the experts agreed that the most successful GPs have well-structured data rooms, with data at their fingertips to answer any questions with immediacy and accuracy—and they should showcase those metrics very early on in the relationship. Don’t bury vague information in a deck, said Kim. Clearly showcase previous fundraises and metrics.

Performance metrics are especially key. Having that information readily available in an investor portal also allows the conversation to probe deeper, ultimately saving time, creating more trust, and spurring alignment.

“You should absolutely have [a data room]. It should be institutional grade, and this is where the right technology provider helps you to create the feel and look of your brand, have everything very well organized, provide all the relevant materials, and also set up different levels of access,” Serhiyevich says.

Ultimately, the tightening of capital and new entrants into the market, such as sovereign wealth funds and real estate funds, means that many of the older playbooks or assumptions don’t lead to success.

However, taking time to strategically build relationships and infrastructure can still offer big payoffs for smart leaders. Macroeconomic conditions will shift, but maintaining a steady and thoughtful approach to LP engagement is key to long-term fundraising success.

Looking to enhance your investor experience? Juniper Square’s investor portal, digital subscriptions, and reporting tools make it easy to streamline fundraising, improve transparency, and scale investor relationships. Save time and elevate every investor touchpoint. Learn more →