Most VCs believe data will transform every industry… except their own.
That contradiction sparked something radical.
Rob Hodgkinson, MD at SignalRank, isn’t just another investor. He’s part of a quiet revolution—one that's rewriting how we pick winners in venture capital.
🎧 Listen to this podcast episode on YouTube or Spotify
📈 Instead of betting on founders or decks, they bet on investor track records.
👀 Instead of chasing hype, they eliminate zeros through an algorithm that mimics the logic of hedge funds.
And just like that, a radically new approach to venture capital reveals itself—high precision, low recall investing at Series B.
💸 LPs get index-like exposure with vintage diversification.
🌍 Seed investors get pro-rata access they otherwise couldn't afford.
📈 The SignalRank Index may one day be listed like a public ETF.
It’s a new paradigm.
An entirely different way to be in venture.
The age of artisanal investing is giving way to systematic precision.
And, they have gained ground rapidly.
SignalRank sees 60% of the Series B market and invests in the top 5%.
And in 2 short years, they’ve become the second most active Series B investor globally, right behind a16z.
Ask yourself:
If 50%+ of public assets are indexed… why is venture still hand-crafted?
🚀 This is Venture 3.0. Are you ready?
We discussed:
Pro-Rata Rights as an Access Strategy
The Philosophical Divide in Venture: Craft vs. System
Building a Publicly Tradable Venture Product
Scaling Through SPV Infrastructure
Vintage Diversification as a Structural Advantage
and so much more…
If you're a seed investor looking to defend your winners, or an LP tired of inaccessible managers, SignalRank is building the bridge between exclusivity and access.
🌐 Web | 📺 YouTube | 🌐 LinkedIn | 🗞️ Newsletter | 🎧 Spotify | Apple
Some of the podcast discussion points
SignalRank’s Core Proposition
SignalRank is “an index of the top 5% of Series Bs,” aiming to be the equivalent of the “S&P 500 for venture capital.”
They access these rounds via “the pro rata of existing seed investors,” allowing scale without operational complexity.
The firm plays within the theme of “democratization of access and using data to invest into venture capital.”
Investor-First Algorithm
SignalRank “exclusively looks at investor patterns and signals,” instead of traditional company fundamentals.
They track “how many unicorns have you invested in,” the “unicorn efficiency,” and “MOIC per stage.”
The model assumes “persistence in venture capital,” where top investors keep getting access to top deals.
Precision Over Prediction
Rob explains, “Our algorithm is very good at identifying zeros. That leaves a pool of assets where the probability of success is much higher.”
Instead of trying to predict the next Databricks, they “randomly sample within that pool” of de-risked Series Bs.
This Monte Carlo-simulated approach yields a “5x in five years” outcome, based on their backtests.
Why Series B is the Sweet Spot
Series B offers “enough signal” with limited noise and enables strong portfolios with “30 investments a year.”
It still offers “25x, 50x, even 100x” upside while being “well insulated from post-IPO risk.”
It’s a perfect entry point because “most seed investors have run out of capital by then.”
The Pro-Rata Edge
SignalRank has created a “network of about 300 seed partners” who share deal flow.
They offer 20% deal-by-deal carry, and “can finance and close within a week.”
The offering is especially compelling for seed managers who “do not have an opportunity fund” but want to stay in the game.
A Passive Model in an Active Industry
Rob frames their model as “passive, systematic investing,” akin to the evolution of hedge funds and public markets.
“No individual active manager can beat the index over time,” and VC is no exception.
They envision listing SignalRank so investors can “get immediate exposure and vintage diversification” through a single share.
The Long Game: Democratizing Access to Venture Is Inevitable
Rob says, “The idea of indexing and democratizing access to venture capital is inevitable.”
He cites moves by BlackRock, StepStone, Coatue, and Larry Fink’s annual letter as validation.
SignalRank wants to “play an ever-increasing role in the ecosystem,” and ultimately go public to enable real-time liquidity for LPs.
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