Alexa von Tobel, Co-Founder at Inspired Capital — Bucking the Status Quo
Miguel Armaza sits down with the talented and energetic Alexa von Tobel, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Inspired Capital, a $200M early-stage venture capital firm based in New York City. The firm was founded by Alexa and Penny Pritzker, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
Prior to Inspired Capital, Alexa founded LearnVest with the goal of helping people make progress on their money and later sold the company to Northwestern Mutual for $375 million.
She is also the host of the very successful podcast, Founders Project, as well as the author of two New York Times bestsellers: Financially Fearless & Financially Forward.
We talk about
- Alexa’s background & entrepreneurial journey
- Why she dropped out of Harvard Business School to build LearnVest
- What it really means to be the CEO of a growing company and why she decided to sell her business
- The reason why she loves hosting her own podcast and what led her to write two books
- Working with President Obama
- The importance of having a supportive spouse
- And a whole lot more!
Full interview → Spotify | Soundcloud | Apple
Alexa von Tobel describes herself as a “normal American.” But the truth is, she’s a force of nature who has built, advised, and invested in several transformational companies, inspiring many people along the way.
Her entrepreneurial journey began in 2009 when she dropped out of Harvard Business School to build LearnVest — a company with the mission to help Americans make better decisions in their financial journey. Launching a financial planning startup in the middle of the century’s defining financial crises turned out to be an excellent decision. Over the next five years, she grew LearnVest from zero to a $375 million exit to Northwestern Mutual. Alexa stayed with the company for four more years, but in January 2019 decided it was time to go back to the drawing board and build something new.
Inspired Capital
Alexa is an entrepreneur by nature and, by the same token, has always been passionate about helping other builders scale their companies. So launching Inspired Capital, a VC, was only the natural best next step for her career. Having been the CEO of a fast-growing fintech, she understands how tough it is to build a company from scratch. Moreover, she vividly remembers always having to fly out to the West Coast to raise funds and wondering why there was not enough venture capital in New York City — which is what drove her decision to build the fund in the financial capital of the world, New York.
The Future of FinTech
Alexa is excited about the future of the industry. She describes companies like LearnVest or TurboTax as being part of fintech 1.0, where startups would take services or ideas offered by big incumbents and digitize them and offer 24/7 services. Fast forward a decade later, she describes we are now living through fintech 2.0, with a much more robust industry comprised of dozens of categories. More importantly, fintech companies are now redefining and reimagining the infrastructure of financial services and unlocking more possibilities for innovation in the future. She is particularly interested in the automation of the consumer’s wallet and believes we will soon be using artificial intelligence to create a “self-driving wallet“. In addition, Alexa is also excited about the future of the insurance industry. She is convinced insurtech companies will be using increasingly improved user data to offer better and more innovative insurance products.
Your spouse as your Co-Founder
Throughout the interview, Alexa kept mentioning the importance of her supportive husband in her journey. She described their meaningful relationship and why she looks at the partner of any founder as, essentially, their co-founder. In her own words, “One of the things that’s really special about being a founder, if you’re married or partnered up with somebody, there’s no way that other person isn’t deeply responsible for the success of something that’s happened — deeply. So we approach our whole life as a partnership. Everything that he does, I get to take some credit for and, for sure, everything I’ve ever done, he should take most of the credit for.”
Full interview → Spotify | Soundcloud | Apple
Alexa von Tobel
Alexa is the co-founder and managing partner of Inspired Capital. Prior to Inspired Capital, she founded LearnVest in 2008 with the goal of helping people make progress on their money. After raising nearly $75 million in venture capital, LearnVest was acquired by Northwestern Mutual in May 2015 in one of the biggest fintech acquisitions of the decade. Following the acquisition, von Tobel joined the management team of Northwestern Mutual as the company’s first-ever Chief Digital Officer. She later assumed the role of Chief Innovation Officer through which she oversaw Northwestern Mutual’s venture arm.
Alexa, who holds a Certified Financial Planner™ designation, is the New York Times-Bestselling Author of Financially Fearless and Financially Forward. She is also the host of The Founders Project with Alexa von Tobel, a weekly podcast with Inc. that highlights top entrepreneurs.
Alexa is a member of the 2016 Class of Henry Crown Fellows and an inaugural member of President Obama’s Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship. She has been honored with numerous recognitions including: a Forbes Magazine cover story, Fortune’s 40 Under 40, Fortune’s Most Powerful Women, Inc. Magazine’s 30 Under 30, and World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leader.
Originally from Florida, Alexa attended Harvard College and Harvard Business School before settling in New York City where she currently resides with her husband, Cliff, and three children, Toby, Cashel, and Rosey.
About Inspired Capital
Inspired Capital is a $200M early-stage venture capital firm based in New York City. Inspired backs founders with transformative ideas, brilliant teams, and relentless determination. The firm was founded by Alexa von Tobel, who previously founded LearnVest, and Penny Pritzker, founder and chairman of PSP Partners who served as U.S. Secretary of Commerce. By leveraging deep experience across consumer and enterprise technology, the firm invests in tech-advantaged, capital-efficient businesses, striving to help them become category-defining companies. For more information, visit www.inspiredcapital.com.
Previous Episodes You May Enjoy:
Unlocking Entrepreneurial Progress with Vanessa Colella, Head of Citi Ventures
Accelerating Global Fintech Ecosystems — Maelis Carraro, Director of Catalyst Fund
Developing Talent & Culture with Crystal Williams, Chief HR Officer at FLEETCOR
Empowering the Vulnerable with Financial Tools — Claire McDonnell, Co-Founder of True Link
Financial Literacy, Mocking Oprah, and Life Lessons with Neale S Godfrey
Building Big Things and Moving Fast — Allison Barr Allen, Co-Founder/COO at Fast
Jackie Reses — Leadership Lessons, Fintech Innovation, & Helping Small Businesses
Miguel Armaza is Co-Host of the Wharton Fintech Podcast and Co-Founder of Gilgamesh Ventures, a seed-stage investment fund focused on fintech in the Americas.
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