CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits cover art

CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits

CEE as a Liquidity Lab: What LPs and Emerging Managers Still Miss About Exits

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CEE as a Liquidity Lab: Why the IPO Isn’t the ExitShort episode intro:After a short break, Emerging Forward returns with Episode 10, a deep dive into what real liquidity looks like in ecosystems that never had enough growth capital in the first place.I’m joined by Viktor Manev, Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at IMPETUS Capital, to explore CEE as a “liquidity lab”: using small, disciplined IPOs as funding rounds rather than ceremonial exits, building quality of revenue and earnings before chasing mark‑ups, and asking harder questions about continuation funds, secondaries and real portfolio value.What we coverWhy Series B barely exists in much of CEE – and what founders actually do when they hit the growth cliff.The idea of an IPO as a beginning, not an end – and how that changes founder, LP and exchange behaviour.CEE small IPOs as a missing rung in the funding ladder, underwritten by local wealth, AMs, and pensions rather than mega‑banks.Viktor’s “quality of revenue → earnings → valuation → liquidity” ladder – and why clever liquidity engineering can’t fix weak fundamentals.The “conductor” role IMPETUS plays in small IPOs: coordinating banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers so the whole “symphony” works.How continuation funds and secondaries solve liquidity for GPs/LPs but may not answer the question “is there real value in this portfolio?”.What LPs and emerging managers are still missing about exits and time horizons in CEE and similar markets.A fun closing detour into Viktor’s agnostic travel‑food philosophy – always eat where the locals eat, whether it’s gondoliers in Venice or a canteen in Amman.Timestamps00:00 – Intro and who Viktor is. IPOs as a beginning, not an end.05:00 – How “IPO = exit” became dogma – and why IMPETUS is going back to an older model where public markets fund growth.10:30 – Big vs small IPOs: 4% of deals get 100x the media coverage; the hidden world of sub‑€25m listings.13:00 – Acting as a “conductor” for €10–20m IPOs: aligning banks, auditors, exchanges and lawyers to create real liquidity.16:00 – The niche: profitable, 40–50% growth companies that are “too boring” for VC but perfect for public funding.22:00 – Shelly Group: from “nobody will buy us for €10m” to €1.2B SDAX company and what that journey actually looked like.32:00 – Continuation funds, secondaries and the hard question: is there real realizable value behind the marks?40:30 – What LPs and emerging managers still miss about liquidity in CEE and similar markets – and why many managers will fail.41:30 – Viktor’s agnostic approach to food when he travels – and why he always asks what the locals actually eat.About Viktor ManevViktor Manev is Co‑Founder and Managing Partner at IMPETUS Capital, a private equity firm focused on early‑growth and scale‑up companies in Central and Eastern Europe. He previously served as chief financier of Bulgaria’s Center for Mass Privatization, overseeing the institutional financing of more than 1,000 enterprises and participating in the privatization of roughly 18% of state‑owned assets. Since 1994, Viktor has been involved in structuring corporate‑finance and M&A deals with an aggregate value of over €900m, and has been engaged in the listing process of more than 1,100 companies as a public official, adviser and institutional investor. He holds a BS in Finance from West Virginia Wesleyan College and completed comparative studies at the University of Oxford, and sits on several boards as a non‑executive director.Links & references :📝 Viktor’s thoughts – “The IPO as a Beginning, Not an End: Rethinking Capital Formation in Central & Eastern Europe” (0100 Conferences).🌐 IMPETUS Capital – firm website: https://www.impetus.capital/🔗 Viktor’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/viktormanev This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingforward.substack.com
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