Question 1

Will taking VCIs™ make it harder to raise VC or angel money?

Accepted Answer

No. We regularly work alongside angels and institutional investors, and they tend to read it the way we do: a founder who secured deep, aligned senior support while extending runway has done something sensible, not something that needs explaining away. Nothing about the arrangement blocks, gates or pre-empts a future round.

Question 2

Could it make the next round harder in any way?

Accepted Answer

The opposite, in our experience, for two reasons. You arrive with milestones actually delivered rather than described — every accepted Ticket is dated and signed off by both sides, so your progress is evidenced rather than asserted Your cap table stays short. One institutional line, not a dozen advisor entries and side letters for a new investor to work through

Question 3

What does it actually cost, compared with raising equity or debt?

Accepted Answer

You are not giving equity away. You are swapping a minority stake in your company for VCIs™ of equivalent value. For example: if £200,000 goes into your round, you receive £200,000 of VCIs™ — backed by the whole portfolio rather than by your company alone — which you then spend on operators. It is not debt either. There is no interest, and no repayment schedule that starts whether or not the business is working.

Question 4

Is there a fee?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Fees are set per ecosystem and defined in that ecosystem’s terms and conditions, which you see in full before you commit to anything. Nothing is charged outside those terms, and there are no side arrangements.

Question 5

Do I have to spend all of it?

Accepted Answer

No. VCIs™ are flexible, and unspent ones are not lost — you can redeem the balance for the equivalent value in shares. Nothing is stranded, and you are not pushed into engaging operators you do not need in order to avoid wasting it.

Question 6

What if I am unsure about a particular operator?

Accepted Answer

That is what the ticketing system is for. You post a brief, see who is interested, and negotiate terms — with no obligation to go ahead at any point. You decide who you work with, what you pay them, how that splits between cash and VCIs™, and when they start.

Question 7

Can I negotiate directly with the operator?

Accepted Answer

Yes — by design. Scope, timeline, acceptance criteria and the cash-to-VCI™ split are agreed between you and them. Nobody sets a rate on either side’s behalf.

Question 8

Who ends up on my cap table?

Accepted Answer

One line: the Execution Capital investment vehicle, holding the rights you committed. It does not multiply with the number of operators you use, and no operator is ever on your cap table in their own name. Your investor may sit there too — but because they invested cash in your round, which is separate from any of this. The founders page sets it out in full.

Question 9

What is the split between cash and VCIs™?

Accepted Answer

Around 30% cash and 70% VCIs™ is the most common shape, but it is not a fixed rule. You negotiate it directly with the founder, per Ticket, before the work starts — more cash on something you are less sure about, more VCIs™ on something you believe in.

Question 10

Why take VCIs™ rather than just investing my own cash?

Accepted Answer

Because it buys a different kind of position. You end up diversified across a portfolio selected and funded by established VCs and syndicates, without writing a cheque and without doing your own sourcing or diligence. It is a way to build a portfolio out of work you were doing anyway.

Question 11

Do I choose which work I take?

Accepted Answer

Always. You see Tickets, you decide which to bid on, and you propose your own terms. Nothing is allocated to you.

Question 12

What is the risk?

Accepted Answer

Real, and worth being straight about. There are steps in place to reduce it — we work with vetted VCs and syndicates, companies are selected and funded before any Ticket exists, every Ticket pays a cash portion on delivery, and your position sits across a portfolio rather than one company. None of that removes the risk. Early-stage companies fail, VCIs™ are illiquid, and the timing of any return depends on portfolio outcomes. If you need certainty or liquidity, this is not the right instrument for you.

Question 13

Do I pay tax on VCIs™?

Accepted Answer

We are not tax or financial advisers and cannot answer this for you. Treatment depends on your circumstances and where you are resident — please take advice from your own specialist before you commit to anything.

Question 14

How long does it take to launch an ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

A few weeks. Most of that is your decisions rather than our build — thesis, selection criteria, delivery standards and terms.

Question 15

Is this LP friendly?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The ecosystem vehicle sits outside your fund, so it does not draw on fund reserves or alter fund economics, and support reaches your companies without follow-on capital leaving the fund. Your own LPA and reporting obligations still apply as normal, so it is worth walking your counsel through it before you launch.

Question 16

What is the best strategy for an ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

The pattern that works is scouting and first cheques paired with portfolio support. Selection gives you the companies; execution support is what changes how they perform once you are in.

Question 17

Who selects the startups?

Accepted Answer

You do. The VC or ecosystem builder running the ecosystem controls the thesis, the companies and the standards, and instructs us. Execution Capital then runs its own independent verification before anything proceeds.

Question 18

Who do you work with?

Accepted Answer

VCs who want to build an ecosystem around themselves in order to improve portfolio performance — and the founders and operators inside those ecosystems.

Question 19

How is Execution Capital structured?

Accepted Answer

Two entities. Execution Capital Ltd, incorporated in the UK, runs the platform. Execution Capital SPC, incorporated offshore, holds ecosystem assets and obligations in ring-fenced portfolios, separated by duty from the platform.

Question 20

Where do I read about VCIs™ properly?

Accepted Answer

On the VCI™ page. It covers what Venture Capital Interests™ are, what backs them, how they are priced, how value returns, and the constraints that apply to them.

The questions we get most often.

For founders

For operators

For ecosystem builders

About Execution Capital

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