The LP Perspective: Fast Five with Matt Curtolo, 20+ Year Veteran Allocator and Investor in Private Markets
Fund managers face the challenge of distinguishing themselves in a competitive landscape where countless funds compete for limited LP capital. As the private markets evolve, the importance of brand differentiation, strategic digital engagement, and tailored outreach has never been greater. In this context, we turn to Matt Curtolo, a seasoned investor with over 20 years of experience across all functional areas of private markets.
In this fast five interview, Matt shares his insights on the critical role of brand and reputation in differentiating fund managers in today's crowded market. He delves into how social media can be effectively utilized for brand building and discusses the significance of humanizing a brand.
About Matt Curtolo
An experienced, well-respected and active participant in the private markets, Matt has spent the last 20+ years covering all functional areas of the private markets from both an allocator and investor lens.
Most recently, Matt built the investment capability from the ground up as an early employee at a fintech start-up called Allocate, focused on offering high-quality venture capital and alternative investment opportunities to a broader investor base in a fully digital experience.
Prior to that role, Matt was a senior leader co-managing MetLife's Alternative Investments Portfolio, investing globally and across strategies. Prior to that, he was the Head of Private Equity at a large independent OCIO after spending his formative years learning the PE business at Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ: HLNE) during its early growth, before it became the world's pre-eminent private markets allocator.
These experiences allowed him to invest with and on behalf of some of the largest limited partners in the world, as well as work directly on the front lines in client facing roles, with high net worth clients and large sophisticated institutional investors.
In addition, Matt has been directly and indirectly involved with the management and oversight (including serving on several advisory boards) of hundreds of general partner relationships during his career, across the full spectrum of private capital investment strategies.
Impact of Brand and Reputation
With thousands of funds currently in the market, differentiation has become more critical than ever. In such a competitive environment, a fund manager’s brand and reputation can be powerful tools in standing out and attracting LP interest. Understanding the weight these factors carry in the decision-making process is essential for capital raisers and brand builders aiming to make a lasting impact.
With your background as both an allocator and investor, how have you seen brand and reputation play a role in differentiating fund managers in today’s crowded market?
These words, brand and reputation, can mean a lot of things. First, I think internal brand development for a firm is critical. How a firm presents themselves to the external world offers everyone an opportunity to both know what a firm stands for and also push their distinct narrative into the public sphere, which can provide a lot of nuance in how they are different (and better). Brand also plays a role in LP decision making. Legacy or stalwart brands are viewed by some LPs as safer places to invest, and have drawn significant capital because of it. Others look at ‘emerging’ brands as more interesting places to put capital, with more niche focus.
Reputation is more about the perception in the market often based on the lived experience of others. This is an important factor for a firm or partner when I look at a prospective investment. More than one reference call that brings into question the character or reputation of an investor raises a red flag pretty high. Having been in the industry for a few decades, it’s not difficult to triangulate a diverse set of opinions on how a manager or investor is viewed in the market, and a negative or even lukewarm sentiment is enough to give a bit of pause. I guess that is a long-winded way of saying that the reputation of a person or firm, if they have treated CEOs, founders or LPs poorly, will come back to bite them. That is something that is very hard to outrun, and is often deeply personal to how you carry yourself as an individual.
All things said, brand and reputation matter immensely in today’s market. Investors doing their due diligence should investigate both deeply to determine if the firm and fund (and partners) are who they say they are and can deliver in the future.
Role of Social Media
As digital presence becomes increasingly critical, social media platforms offer a powerful channel for fund managers to showcase their brand and engage with potential investors. However, not all content resonates equally with LPs. For those building brands in the private markets, it’s crucial to know what works.
Social media has become a powerful tool for brand building, but how effective is it in influencing LPs? Are there any platforms or approaches you believe GPs are underutilizing when it comes to reaching institutional investors?
I am a huge believer in using all methods to get the message out. Maybe not TikTok just yet, but when you think about the growing audience of people who are actively investing in private markets, having a social presence is essential. It serves many purposes.
First, you have control of your message – both the content and the frequency. This is important beyond just social media, but all forms of content distribution. Most of your LPs and prospective LPs are consuming content across all forms of media, so you can craft your message and distribute it broadly in a format that can reach the broadest audience. Many LPs assume that just because someone works for a large institution, a public pension for example, you need to only engage with them through the formal methods. These are real people, who have Instagram accounts and are active on LinkedIn, etc.
Many GPs just need to recognize that their target audience is consuming content all day every day across a number of platforms, and if you can deliver interesting, salient messages across those, you will put yourself in a better position than others to potentially win their business.The other piece is the efficiency of a one-to-many distribution method. In the old days, road shows and conferences were the primary ways to get in front of prospective LPs. If I told you 20 years ago, that you could increase your top of funnel by 500% or 1000% by doing just one thing, most folks’ jaws would drop. That is the opportunity with social media. I think most professional folks gravitate towards LinkedIn, but don’t ignore other avenues that may optically be a little quirky, but can still get your message across.
Humanizing a brand
People invest in people. Personal branding is becoming a crucial part of fund managers’ strategies, with groups such as Blackstone and CapMan being great examples of this.
You’re listed as a Top Venture Capital Voice on LinkedIn. How can GPs effectively humanize their brands through leadership voices or personal stories to connect with LPs?
Spot on - as blind pool investors, we’re investing in people. I took a position early on in my career as an allocator that I will happily and readily provide my personal perspective and feedback, even if it doesn’t directly align with broader viewpoints. In the purest sense, telling people ‘who you are’ is the best way to connect with them. In the end, we are all just people, as you say. I have been an allocator for 20+ years, investing in funds but really investing in people.
What I’ve found with the LinkedIn community in particular, is that everyone appreciates engagement. Some are more reticent to share than others, but creating a community is hugely valuable. One of the things I always say is that ‘no one is smarter than everyone’. I love the opportunity to engage a community of intelligent and interested parties. I always end up learning something and it often can be the nudge to allow people to think more deeply about broader topics.
For GPs, they bring a wealth of experience and expertise, which is one of the reasons LPs invest with them. While sharing an announcement of a new deal or a noteworthy exit is important, remember to share the how and the why. Don’t share the secret recipe, but let people in on some of the details beyond financial metrics. That is a clear way to humanize their brand, particularly if it’s a large fund that LPs sometimes can view as a machine rather than a collection of people.
New sources of capital
As capital raising evolves, the landscape of limited partners is shifting. Non-traditional LPs, such as family offices, are playing an increasingly influential role in private markets.
How do you see these non-traditional LPs shaping the future of private markets? What should GPs know about tailoring their outreach to effectively engage these groups?
It’s hard to argue that the future is not in the retail / non-traditional segment of the market. Having spent much of my career in places with long-term allocations to privates, those are not inexhaustible. GPs will continue to grow, new firms will continue to emerge, and there is not a new endowment or pension fund forming on a regular enough basis to support that growth in the market. This means the natural area for growth is in the untapped or underserved market of what I’ll call ‘institutional retail’, family offices, wealth managers and high net worth individuals.
The truth, in my experience, is that that segment needs to expand the breadth of opportunity that is available to them. It’s not just the bulge bracket names that have been offered via private bank platforms. There are many groups that can offer the opportunity for these LPs to access things that have never been available before.The biggest firms are investing massive dollars and resources into covering this market, but I believe that this part of the market needs to and will realize the power they have as individual investors and as a group.
Advice for Fund Managers
Finally, I’d love to hear your thoughts on what fund managers could do better when it comes to engaging with LPs. There are many new ways to assess whether an LP could be a potential fit or not with new private markets technology becoming available frequently.
What advice would you give to fund managers who are looking to enhance their engagement with LPs?
Remember that you are always fundraising, even if you aren’t in market with a fund. Your content strategy is critical, making sure people keep you top of mind in the RIGHT way, know what kind of deals you do, on an ongoing basis. Anything you can do to reduce the amount of introductory conversation during your next active raise is valuable. The other piece is a bit more obvious: your existing customers will generate your best business. Referrals from your existing LPs, who you have been transparent with, who you have treated well, who know you best, will give you the best prospects for future funds. Don’t short change the existing LPs from a content and material perspective, make sure they know exactly what is going on, so they can be your advocate in the market.
Bonus question
Thinking beyond the private markets, what is your all time favorite brand and why?
I tend to be brand agnostic in most of my buying habits, but one brand that holds a special place in my heart is Dollar Shave Club. I remember seeing the first YouTube ads in 2012 and it really opened my eyes, not just the platform shift, but how you could be funny and irreverent and still deliver a clear message and value proposition. I signed up for it within days and am still a loyal subscriber :)
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