Episode Summary:
What happens when hundreds of the world’s biggest capital allocators get together behind closed doors to talk about venture, private equity, and where the next $30B is going? Maxine found out firsthand at Super Returns Asia, where she chaired the LP–GP relations stage.
In this episode, Cheryl turns the tables and grills Maxine on everything she learned — from why India and Japan are suddenly hot, to why Southeast Asia is struggling, and why Australia didn’t even make the winners or losers list.
They break down how institutional investors really think about funds, what “look-through ownership” means for angels and VCs alike, and why co-investing has LPs hot under the collar. Maxine also shares how family offices are thriving in the current market, what mega-funds like a16z’s $30B raise mean for everyone else, and why building long-term LP relationships is the only real way to get “super returns.”
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Chapters:
01:00 – What Super Returns is, and why it matters for VCs and angels
06:43 – The LP landscape explained: super funds, sovereign wealth funds, and family offices
10:40 – Winners and losers in APAC: India, China, Japan… but not Australia
18:00 – Why Australia needs a better “brand story” to attract capital
19:54 – Hot topic: co-investing and why LPs love it
23:39 – Look-through ownership: why everyone’s just trying to own the outliers
26:43 – Why emerging managers are struggling in today’s fundraising market
33:49 – Family offices having “the time of their lives” in this cycle
34:23 – Mega-funds, evergreen funds, and the $30B a16z raise
39:30 – Will Sequoia and a16z ever lose their dominance?
42:19 – Why APAC liquidity markets matter more than ever
45:30 – The question nobody asked at Super Returns
49:22 – How to actually build LP relationships that work
53:55 – Maxine’s big takeaway: putting Australia on the winners list
