Turpentine

How do you navigate the tide turn when your competitor collapses during one of the biggest banking crises in recent history? In this episode of Turpentine Finance, Sasha Orloff sits down with Immad Akhund, founder and CEO of Mercury. Immad pulls back the curtain on the chaos and critical decisions made when Silicon Valley Bank fell. From mobilizing an all-hands effort to rapidly onboard new customers to developing new product features virtually overnight to instill confidence, Immad provides an unvarnished look at crisis management and steadfast leadership during turbulent times. He also shares insights on Mercury's customer-first approach to building, how rising interest rates transformed their business model, and how he thinks about investing in new product initiatives by allocating internal resources like venture investments. *Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC. Watch on Youtube here: https://lnkd.in/g3dzghGF Links to podcast in comments.

What happens when you run a business banking startup during the collapse of SVB? I asked Immad Akhund, CEO of Mercury, about his experience navigating this chaos in the latest Turpentine Finance episode. We dive into: - How Mercury boosted FDIC insurance at lightning speed to keep customers' cash safe - Building Mercury’s innovative approach in business banking by designing for the customer - Prioritizing new features for scaling startups while managing existing customer needs - Building supportive networks that are crucial for startup success. Founders, if you want to learn about resilient leadership during turbulent times, this episode is a must-listen 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: Spotify: https://lnkd.in/g-GuDV86 Apple: https://lnkd.in/g8HXpqE7 YouTube: https://lnkd.in/guCaqXPz

In this episode of Turpentine Finance, Sasha Orloff sits down with Steve McLaughlin, CEO and Managing Partner of Financial Technology Partners / FT Partners. Steve provides an insider’s look into the high-stakes world of capital raising and dealmaking for high-growth private companies. From being Goldman Sachs’ Former Head of Fintech to founding FT Partners, a global fintech investment firm, McLaughlin shares his strategies for crafting compelling narratives that unlock massive fundraising rounds - like the $33 billion valuation for Revolut and a $100 million plus raise for Sam Altman’s Worldcoin. They dive deep into storytelling, the importance of product over marketing spend, founder red flags, and much more. https://lnkd.in/eiZW3XKH

What are the financial operations behind building a successful, enduring venture capital firm? 💰 In this episode, Mark Allen, CFO of General Catalyst, joins Turpentine Finance host Sasha Orloff, to share the intricate strategies required to manage a multi-billion dollar VC fund. Mark pulls back the curtain on topics like: ✅ Portfolio construction ✅ Deploying capital reserves to support the most promising startups ✅ Complex reporting to satisfy investor requirements ✅ How being a VC fund CFO is two jobs: CFO of a fund, and CFO of a firm ✅ Navigating intense crises like the Silicon Valley Bank collapse He also shares invaluable advice for startup CFOs on what to do, and not to do, when pitching. Links to the full episode below!

This week on Turpentine Finance, Razzak Jallow, CFO of FloQast, joins Sasha Orloff to discuss: ➕ How turning down a huge upround led to greater success ➕ Transforming finance into the office of "how to" rather than "no" ➕ Balancing product innovation with financial discipline ➕ Advice for aspiring CFOs on evaluating the first CFO role ➕ Why hiring and "precision Q&A" are key skills for the CFO and much more. https://lnkd.in/deg9hgex Link to podcast in comments.

In last week's episode of The Autopilot Podcast, I sat down with Maggie Sin, who is leveraging artificial intelligence to evolve the relationship between influencers and fans. We are moving from one-way social media, in which people simply consume content, to two-way social media, in which fans interact and converse with influencers. At scale, this is only possible with AI. 

Ever wondered what it's like to negotiate your startup's acquisition with Elon Musk? In the new episode of Turpentine Finance, I talked to Chris Bakke about what it was like having Laskie (acquired by Twitter) acquired by X. We discussed: - Negotiating directly with Musk and navigating a high-stakes deal - Transitioning to build X's job search platform - Skyrocketing his personal brand to 200k+ followers. Founders, if acquisition is your end game, this episode is a must. Chris shares exactly what it takes to build a company that gets noticed by the big players. Link to the episode in the comments.

Aspiring CFOs - take note! Don't miss the opportunity to learn from former Instacart CFO Sagar Sanghvi as he shares practical insights on managing the finances of an ambitious startup. Exclusively on Turpentine Finance podcast: 🔗 Check the links in the comments to listen. Here's a sneak peek... 1. When Amazon, the world’s largest delivery company, bought Whole Foods Market, Instacart’s largest client, it felt like an existential threat. Sanghvi discusses how they transformed this threat into an opportunity. 2. He'll walk you through how they shifted from losing money on every transaction to achieving profitability with a strategic, data-driven approach. 3. Plus, learn how they quickly adapted during the unexpected twists of COVID-19 to meet a surge in demand. For founders facing challenges, this episode is your strategic guide. Here's another sneak peek... Make sure to subscribe to catch future episodes featuring insightful conversations with impressive finance leaders like: - Razzak Jallow | CFO, FloQast - Dan Fletcher | CFO, Planful - Nadia Asoyan | former CFO Robinhood, Controller Square - Sowmya Ranganathan | Controller, OpenAI - Steve Love | CFO, Heap - Jim Cook - First CFO Netflix, Mozilla #CFO #podcast

What better way to launch the inaugural Turpentine Finance podcast than with the one and only Casey Woo?!?!? Why is this podcast different than other podcasts? We go behind the scenes of pivotal moments in a company history, and learn from the best founders and finance teams how to navigate success. 1. Learn how to do financial planning when Adam from WeWork is your CEO? 2. What do you do when you are CFO of Instacart and Amazon buys Whole Foods Market, one of your biggest clients? 3. How do you negotiate against Elon Musk? 4. What do you do when your biggest competition goes from market leader to bankrupt in three days? Learn about this, and more, on Spotify, Apple or YouTube: Turpentine Podcast. First episode, out now! 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻: Spotify: https://lnkd.in/g3MHWReU Apple: https://lnkd.in/g9QrFdY5 Youtube: https://lnkd.in/gYZivWqP

Good morning, Turpentine’s 2,000,000 Listeners!!! BLOWN AWAY💥 to be selected as the lead-off guest for Sasha Orloff's new Turpentine Finance podcast — deep diving into tech and business with a who’s who in the tech finance world — to include:  Sagar Sanghvi (CFO, Instacart), Razzak Jallow (CFO, FloQast), Dan Fletcher (CFO, Planful), Nadia Asoyan (former CFO, Robinhood and Controller, Square), Sowmya Ranganathan (Controller, OpenAI), and my good friends Steve Love (CFO, Heap) and Jim Cook (former Netflix, Mozilla). If you’ve never had a chance to speak with or listen to Sasha Orloff, he’s simply one of the best founders, entrepreneurs and operators I’ve had the pleasure of working with.  I highly recommend you subscribe to the golden nuggets and anvils he dishes out with his guests and my peers. In my session, he grills me on: 1️⃣ Evaluating a CEO's leadership: Look beyond the credentials to the unsaid—values, culture, and the broader vision. We talk tactics and gut checks. 2️⃣ Hyperscale @ WeWork - one of the most incredible tours of duty in my operator life - 10x level-up and “live fire” training ground like no other 3️⃣ 1st class vs. 2nd class citizen - One of the most important determinants I use to joining a company as a finance leader/member Check out the full episode and subscribe (in the comments below)! 👇 #PodcastLaunch #BestofFinance #Tech #StartUp #Operators