Exploring New Ventures: A Summer With Boost Capital Partners

This summer, we had the incredible opportunity to intern alongside the team at Boost Capital Partners in London.

Founded in 2022, Boost is a venture capital firm that focuses on driving societal change by bringing life to products in impactful sectors of society such as health, education, and infrastructure. In doing so, they are committed to investing in high-impact start-ups that promise financial returns and create meaningful social and environmental benefits. Geographically, this manifests in them investing globally, particularly in Europe and Latin America.

The summer we spent with Boost was a journey of discovery and learning. As part of the investment team, we both became fully immersed in all elements of the investment process. Lewis worked particularly closely with the team in London and spent a large proportion of his time undertaking due diligence on prospective investments and meeting founders across a range of verticals. All the while, the focus was on trying to find breakout investments in high-impact start-ups that can tackle the societal challenges of the region and bring about significant growth. 

As a native Colombian, Santiago worked closely with the Latin America team, supporting their deal flow efforts led by the regional leadership. His contributions ranged from helping the lead generation strategies to increase the fund's deal pipeline to conducting the required due diligence for evaluating potential deals aligned with the investment thesis. He also drafted the necessary investment memorandums for the final investment decision process. Additionally, Santiago supported the fund's head of platform in defining and implementing standard operating procedures (SOPs) as part of the portfolio management vertical.

In the fast-paced and ever-evolving landscape of early-stage businesses, the summer spent with Boost provided a unique perspective on the intricacies of start-up ecosystems. Learnings were vast and varied, ranging from understanding the nuances of market analysis to understanding the dynamics of how an investment in venture capital works.

Invaluable insights were gained regarding the strategic decision-making process, learning how to effectively communicate with stakeholders, which in this case included founders, as well as industry experts and advisors, and we observed firsthand the rigorous steps involved in moving from initial pitch to final funding.

Additionally, we gained an understanding of investor relations and fundraising. Our exposure to this area involved observing the management of communications with potential and existing investors and understanding the fund's investment strategy aimed at maximising returns. This experience was invaluable for understanding the importance of strong investor relationships and highlighted the strategic communication skills necessary for successful capital raising.

This hands-on experience has not only equipped us with a deeper understanding of venture capital dynamics. Still, it has also improved our analytical and interpersonal skills, better preparing us for future challenges in our professional endeavours.

We want to thank Alvaro, Lari, and the Boost team for warmly welcoming us over the summer and the Hoffmann Institute for supporting us and enabling us to have the experience we did.

This internship experience was supported by the INSEAD Hoffmann Institute Impact Internship Stipend and gifts from alumni.