Richard Hawwa is a Managing Director at Nomura Greentech, leading the Mobility and Automotive Technology practice in the Americas. Richard has 18 years of investment banking and operational experience, having advised on M&A and capital raising transactions with an aggregate value of more than $125 billion.
Listen here:
Apple Podcasts: link
Spotify: link
Links:
- Edison Manufacturing Exchange: https://brandonbartneck.substack.com/publish/home
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-hawwa-42a64b44/
Takeaways
- Having a financial picture that makes sense is crucial when building technology and seeking funding.
- Naive founders often have misconceptions about raising capital and need to understand the capital market.
- Founders should be able to answer key questions about their funding, investors, milestones, revenue projections, and competitive moat.
- Scalability is important, and building a business that can operate at scale is a key factor for investors. Finding the right balance between marketing and building a business is crucial in the fundraising market.
- Manufacturing and bomb cost are key considerations when scaling a business.
- Economies of scale and vertical integration play a role in determining the efficiency and core competencies of a company.
- Capital, differentiation, and production at scale are factors that contribute to a sustainable competitive moat.
- Trust and reputation are essential in building authentic and effective relationships.
- Domain-specific experience provides valuable insights and perspectives in decision-making.
- Being a CFO offers a unique perspective on finance, operations, and the dynamics of running a company.
Chapters
- 00:00 Introduction and Background
- 05:42 Misconceptions About Raising Capital
- 09:46 The Significance of Cash Burn and Gross Margin
- 12:13 Understanding the Importance of Cash and Margin
- 16:19 The Skepticism of Investors and Founders
- 18:26 The Never-Ending Fundraising Process
- 22:31 The Importance of Scalability in Building a Business
- 24:45 The Dichotomy of Venture-Backed Startups and Bootstrapped Businesses
- 27:48 Scaling a Business: Manufacturing and Bomb Cost
- 33:04 Building a Sustainable Competitive Moat
- 34:57 The Role of Capital Deployment
- 37:47 The Importance of Trust and Reputation in Relationships
- 41:09 The Value of Domain-Specific Experience
- 46:32 Conclusion
Keywords
investment banking, raising capital, financial picture, misconceptions, capital market, funding, milestones, revenue projections, scalability, marketing, building a business, fundraising, scaling, manufacturing, bomb cost, economies of scale, vertical integration, competitive moats, capital deployment, trust, reputation, domain-specific experience, CFO
Richard Hawwa Bio:
Richard is a Managing Director at Nomura Greentech, leading the Mobility and Automotive Technology practice in the Americas. Richard has 18 years of investment banking and operational experience, having advised on M&A and capital raising transactions with an aggregate value of more than $125 billion. Richard most recently served as the Chief Financial Officer at Embark Trucks, a NASDAQ-listed developer of self-driving software. He was instrumental in taking Embark public and its subsequent strategic sale in 2023, having helped raise $300 million in public and private capital. Prior to joining Embark in 2021, Richard served as a Managing Director at Citigroup, responsible for coverage of companies in the global mobility and automotive sector, advising and executing strategic M&A and capital raising transactions.
Throughout his career, Richard has served as a relationship and execution leader across a variety of sectors and clients and, in this capacity, is actively involved with management teams and Board of Directors in new idea generation, capital raising transactions, strategic and valuation/defense reviews, acquisition and divestiture implications and overall strategic and capital raising advisory services. Richard’s broad industry and transaction experience has been instrumental in supporting new and sustainable technologies in complex transactions and bringing his operational and transaction experience to the benefit of clients.
Nomura Greentech:
Nomura Greentech is a global investment banking advisory firm that supports companies in Capital Raising, M&A and Strategy. The team has the deepest transactional experience across Wall Street to provide real-time advice and form long-term partnerships with clients with access to investors globally
Future of Mobility:
The Future of Mobility podcast is focused on the development and implementation of safe, sustainable, effective, and accessible mobility solutions, with a spotlight on the people and technology advancing these fields.
Edison Manufacturing and Engineering:
Edison is your low volume contract manufacturing partner, focused on assembly of complex mobility and energy products that don’t neatly fit within traditional high-volume production methods.