Maria Poly
Fundraising Strategist
I spent 15 years in fundraising inside VC funds, alongside founders, and on both sides of the table. I ran investor relations at TMT Investments (AUM:$200m+ ), Blockchain CoInvestors (AUM: $350m+) Pantera Capital (AUM: $1B+) and others. I worked with early-stage founders trying to get their first check and with GPs trying to close their next fund. I got my FINRA licenses, worked at a boutique investment bank, and then walked away from it to come back to early-stage venture. That's where the work felt real.
Along the way I kept seeing the same thing. The founders who raised weren't always the ones with the best ideas. They were the ones who were already known. Who had the right school on their resume, or the right person willing to make a call on their behalf.
I don't think that's how it should work.
There are founders building genuinely important things who don't have a Stanford network or a warm intro to a top-tier fund. They're not less capable. They just haven't had a way in.
That's what I'm trying to change. If you know how to tell your story, and you know where to tell it, the network catches up. I've seen it happen. That's the work.