Office building exterior network connectivity background. photo credit: Getty
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Pi Labs founder Faisal Butt recently announced he is stepping back in as CEO of the business, having taken on the role of chairman since founding the London-based PropTech VC in 2015. We sat down to discuss what this move means for him and Pi Labs, and their future plans.
Angelica Donati: Faisal, why the change?
Faisal Butt: Pi Labs is entering a new growth phase, in which we are growing the platform, expanding what we do, hiring new people and building an international presence. We have gone from zero to 45 portfolio companies in just four years and now feels like the right time to launch chapter two. I feel that my hands-on presence is necessary to take the business to a new level, to execute a big vision and build the team.
Donati: What is your vision for growth, then?
Faisal Butt
Spire Ventures
Butt: Pi Labs is most known for the accelerator that we run each year, which is our flagship product and for which we have just completed the seventh cohort. In addition to the cohorts, which we will continue to run, we are going to ramp up seed stage investments. We are doubling down on the pre-series A investment thesis, and our vision is to grow the portfolio to 100 companies over the next five years. As the ecosystem matures, we will also evolve.
Pi Labs is known for pre-seed investments, but in this next stage, the focus will be on growing the pre-seed, seed, and seed extension rounds side of things. We anticipate 10 to 12 new investments per year to grow the portfolio. Further, the ticket size per deal will increase. Whereas previously the Fund invested £250 thousand per seed deal, the aim is now to invest up to £ 1 million per deal. Finally, whilst in the past, the Fund didn’t usually lead rounds, but preferred to co-invest, we intend to become more flexible and will either lead the round or co-invest, depending on the situation.
There is also a focus on ensuring that we have appropriate levels of reserve capital to continue investing in follow on rounds through later stages with our portfolio companies.
Donati: Are you raising a new fund for these ambitious growth plans?
Butt: Investments are still flowing out of Fund 2, with which follow on investments are being made in our current portfolio companies. Discussions are currently underway with various institutions regarding a new fund, which the new investments would come from.
Donati: You mentioned that you are also going to focus on a more global reach. What’s the plan there?
Butt: Besides aiming for growth in the UK, the other thing we are doing more of in this new stage of Pi Labs’ life is scouting for the best PropTech companies across Europe. Our funds have made investments in Officeapp out of Amsterdam, Office R&D out of Sofia, and also a recent investment in an Australian startup called Cribz. The investments made in Europe are just the beginning of us digging deeper and wider into the innovation ecosystem in the continent. We will be traveling more to key cities in Europe looking for the best tech talent there and may look at opening international outposts where appropriate. After all, talent isn’t only located in the known tech hubs – we all use Spotify and they aren’t based out of Silicon Valley!
The Australian investment is part of a larger foray into APAC, which is also a focal point of our strategy for the next five years.
Donati: What about the US?
Butt: We are interested in the US, but want to look at that market on a measured basis. Initially, our new fund would be seeking investments outside Europe in partnership with a local fund that is on the ground. Whilst in the UK and Europe Pi Labs can lead or can be a co-lead for the round, in international markets the strategy is that the investment should be alongside an on-the-ground partner.
Donati: Looks like an exciting few years ahead! Is this a big change for you?
Butt: I have always been the chairman of the company and of the investment committee, so all the deals were closed with my blessings, following the appropriate approvals. Therefore, I don’t think it’s a big transition for me in terms of roles. Remember, I was CEO of Pi Labs, then became an active Chairman, and now I am just going back to my original role! I felt that for the next chapter in Pi Labs’ life, it needed for me to step back in as CEO. I have chosen to double down on Pi Labs, and this is the right time for me to do it.
The conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Faisal Butt is an entrepreneur and investor based in Mayfair, UK. His investment focus has a recurring theme in property, property services, and property related technology. Faisal is the Founder and CEO of Spire Ventures, a property focused private equity boutique, and Founder and CEO of Pi Labs, Europe’s first PropTech focused venture capital fund.
Faisal completed his Bachelor’s degree at UCLA in 1999 in Business Economics and Computer Science and earned an MBA with Distinction from the University of Oxford in 2009.