Capital Connections: Bridging Family, Finance & Future with Denny Chared

Timecoded Guide:

[00:00] Podcast begins - Capital Connections: Bridging Family, Finance & Future with Denny Chared

[01:18] Origins of DC Finance & global conferences for community building

[04:49] Infiltrating the Texas market & DC’s involvement at Texas Venture Gala

[14:19] Family office interest in venture investments & the obstacle of high-risk aversion

[23:37] Regional conferences & meeting investors with a customized cultural strategy

[25:58] Future of family offices & investment trends to watch for

What does DC Finance do, if not finance?

Contrary to the name, DC Finance has nothing to do with the District of Columbia or finance operations. Instead, DC Finance builds communities and hosts regional conferences that connect what Denny describes as new money and old money. High net worth individuals and investors meet old money family offices, sharing strategies and connecting with the issues they want to solve and the subjects they find interesting in their city and area at each event.

“We're building communities. We're not producers of conferences; if you want to do a conference for doctors, you go get doctors. With family offices, you need to build a community if you want to get the right people there. We've been building communities in cities worldwide.”

How has DC Finance been involved in conferences in Texas?

Despite being based in New York, Denny has been involved for several years in hosting conferences in Dallas and Houston. Connecting with local groups in Texas, Denny feels that DC Finance has been able to tap into the innovative community present in Texas cities and create relationships that benefit the ecosystem. Alongside DC Finance’s own conferences, Denny was invited to the Texas Venture Gala to share his expertise in family office investments.

“We build partnerships with different groups and that's how we get the locals to come. After a while, it becomes the community. So, in Houston, we started with GOOSE Society and Houston Angel Network and Texas Medical Center and the Jewish Federation and we built this group and it was a win-win for everybody and it just keeps on growing.”

Are family offices interested in venture?

While the perception of family offices is that they’re risk-averse and venture-opposed, Denny says that present-day research from financial institutions and his personal experience networking with family offices tell a different story. Citing research from Goldman Sachs and Wealth Management respectively, Denny says that 41% of family offices intend to increase their private equity investments and 63% of family offices are already using high direct investments.

“Research shows more family office wealth is going into technology, whether through funds or as direct investing. Especially in the last year or two, when the situations in the world became so unstable, it pushed them into saying, you know what? I might as well take a chance with tech.”

What is the future of family offices?

The future of family offices is prominent, impactful, and influential, according to Denny. Not only are family offices more inclined to get involved in venture than ever before, but Denny also believes that family offices will continue to see the current trends of investments and tap into major industries that need influential decision-makers. Keeping a close network with family offices is essential for entrepreneurs because the wealth and control of family offices will not be shrinking any time soon.

“I think family offices going to become more prominent. You see big guys, like BlackRock, are starting to have practice departments that deal with families because they understand they’re serious. They have a lot of wealth, control companies, and can make instant decisions.”