100 LP Contacts at 36 Funds of… | The VC Corner Summary

1. Key Themes

Theme: Funds of funds are a natural first institutional door for emerging managers

Fund of funds are built to back GPs

The article frames the fund of funds as the allocator whose core business is manager selection, which is what makes it accessible to newer GPs.

"Between those two sits the allocator built to back fund managers as its core business: the fund of funds."

"Picking GPs is the whole job, and some programs set aside capital for new manager relationships. For an emerging manager with a clear strategy, that makes it one of the most natural first institutional conversations to have."

The LP landscape has a speed/access trade-off

The author contrasts the three LP archetypes a GP meets early, positioning FoFs as the middle path.

"Pensions and endowments want a long track record and a long diligence cycle. Family offices move fast once they believe in you, and finding them takes months of one-by-one work."

Fit is strongest for specific GP profiles

"Emerging managers on Fund I to Fund III with a defined strategy and a credible way to source deals."

"Managers raising in a region where a state-backed or regional program has a mandate to back local funds."

"GPs who can show early proof, such as a warehoused portfolio, a strong first close or a track record from a prior platform."

Theme: The bottleneck is reaching the right person, not finding the firm

Large allocators have many titles but few relevant decision-makers

"The hard part is reaching the right person. A large allocator carries dozens of senior titles, and only some of those people sit on the manager selection side."

Segmentation should shrink 100 contacts to 20-30

The article prescribes scoring every contact on six criteria (strategy, stage, geography, vehicle size, live mandate, emerging manager fit).

"A list of 100 works best once you cut it down to the 20 to 30 people who match your raise."

"Confirm the allocator is deploying from a current vintage. Recent commitments and new program launches are the clearest signals."

Fund size must be compatible with allocator minimums

"A large platform with a minimum commitment above your target close is a later-round conversation."

Theme: LP fundraising is a multi-quarter, systematized pipeline process

Commitments take quarters, not weeks

"Fund of funds commitments often take 2 or more quarters from first call to signature."

Treat LP outreach like a CRM-managed funnel

The workflow runs from research to tiering to outreach to quarterly follow-up, with status tracking after each touch.

"Update the status of every row in the tracker after each touch so each relationship keeps moving."

Layer LP types into a full map

"Funds of funds are one layer of a full LP map. For the institutional side, pair this list with our database of 260+ institutional LPs that back VC funds, which adds pensions, endowments and sovereign programs."

2. Contrarian Perspectives

Sometimes the right move is to not approach funds of funds yet

Against the typical "raise early, raise everywhere" instinct, the author argues first-time managers still testing their thesis should build proof before pitching allocators.

"The fit is weaker for a first-time manager still testing the thesis. In that case, the stronger first move is to build the proof, then come back with numbers."

Supporting evidence: the author points to how allocators evaluate early performance (IRR vs. return multiples) as the gating factor for readiness.

"Our guide to IRR versus return multiples shows how allocators read early performance, which helps you decide when your story is ready."

A bigger list is worse; cutting it by ~70-80% beats mass outreach

Counter to volume-based fundraising, the playbook says to ruthlessly narrow the list and invest time per name.

"Spend 10 minutes on each name... Write one line in the research notes column that links their interests to your fund."

"Keep the top 30 and park the rest in a later wave."

Warm paths come from other GPs, not just LPs

The best intro route is often an existing GP in the allocator's portfolio.

"The best introduction into a fund of funds comes from one of its existing GPs or from an LP who already backs you."

3. Companies Identified

Isomer Capital

Description: Venture-focused fund of funds / multi-manager allocator
Why mentioned: Example of a venture-focused allocator in the workbook
Quote: "The mix runs from venture-focused allocators such as Isomer Capital to impact programs such as Better Society Capital"

Better Society Capital

Description: Impact-focused allocator program (UK)
Why mentioned: Example of the impact end of the allocator spectrum in the database
Quote: "...to impact programs such as Better Society Capital, alongside large multi-manager platforms and state-backed programs."

The VC Corner (publisher)

Description: Substack newsletter and resource provider for founders and investors
Why mentioned: Seller of the database, workbook and companion tools (investor qualification engine, outreach system, other LP databases)
Quote: "Below the paywall, premium subscribers get the full workbook with all 100 contacts and the outreach tracker."

4. People Identified

Ruben Dominguez

Description: Author/publisher of The VC Corner
Why mentioned: Byline author of the playbook and workbook
Quote: Article byline attributes the post to "Ruben Dominguez"; contact listed as "ruben@thevccorner.com"

(The 100 named LP contacts are in the paywalled workbook and are not identified in the visible article text.)

5. Operating Insights

Build a scored, tiered target list instead of blasting 100 emails

Score contacts on strategy, stage, geography, vehicle size, live mandate, and emerging-manager fit, then tier them by fit and warm-path availability.

"Tier 1 is strong fit with a warm path. Tier 2 is strong fit with cold access. Tier 3 is partial fit worth a light touch. Start with Tier 1 and build references you can mention in Tier 2."

Use a disciplined, short outreach format

For warm intros, make the note forwardable and proof-based; for cold emails, be brief and specific.

"For warm intros, send your contact a short forwardable note with the fund size, strategy, current stage of the raise and one proof point. For cold outreach, keep the email to 5 or 6 lines, open with the specific reason you chose this allocator and close with a clear ask for a 30-minute intro call."

Maintain a quarterly update cadence to stay top of mind

"Send a short quarterly update to every contact who took a meeting, with progress toward your close and one fresh data point on performance."

6. Overlooked Insights

Data freshness caveat: only 69% of contacts have direct emails, and they need re-verification

Roughly a third of contacts require LinkedIn or warm routes, and even the included emails come from a point-in-time build.

"69 of the 100 rows include a direct work email from a June 2026 build, so re-check each address before you send. The rest are best reached through LinkedIn search or a warm introduction."

The list is heavily US/Europe-weighted, with state-backed programs requiring home-market fit

Geographic skew (47 US, 16 UK, 27 continental Europe, leaving only ~10 across Asia-Pacific and Latin America) means GPs outside those regions will have thin coverage, and regional mandates can gate eligibility.

"The United States holds 47 of the contacts, the United Kingdom 16 and continental Europe 27, with the rest across Asia-Pacific and Latin America."

"State-backed programs often have a home-market requirement, and global platforms often split coverage by region."