Keith Koo Explains How Angel Investors Prioritize Startup Funding Decisions

During a market contraction, investors tighten their belts. Promising startups and VC firms felt like allies during a season of economic prosperity, but during market volatility, however, the two groups’ reliance on each other can feel threatened. With potentially fewer resources available, every funding decision must be allocated thoughtfully and startup founders face greater scrutiny from investors pertaining to their business model, leadership team, and probability of scale in the current climate.

Managing Partner of Guardian Insight Group, Keith Koo is no stranger to high-stakes investment decisions. After a 20-year corporate career with Bank of Tokyo, Cisco Systems, and Wells Fargo, Koo has spent the last 10 years as an angel investor for 10 years and a startup advisor.

In this interview, he discusses the criteria that savvy investors consider when navigating a funding decision and shares key insights that hopeful startups need to consider in order to position themselves to attract capital.