If you’re active in the fintech space on X, chances are you’ve encountered Sheel Mohnot’s account, who is the co-founder and general partner of Better Tomorrow Ventures.
With a follower count exceeding 150,000, Mohnot has established a notable presence on the platform. Interestingly, many of his tweets do not focus on venture capital topics.
Mohnot founded Better Tomorrow Ventures (BTV) after co-founding several enterprises, including FeeFighters, which was acquired by Groupon in 2012.
BTV, managing $300 million, primarily invests in early-stage fintech startups at the pre-seed and seed levels. Additionally, it runs an accelerator named The Mint.
Since its launch in November 2019, BTV has invested in companies such as AngelList, Charlie, Coast, and Unit. Mohnot himself has been an angel investor for over ten years, backing firms like Flexport, Ironclad, Ethos Insurance, and Apartment List.
I recently had the opportunity to chat with Mohnot during an episode of the Equity Podcast, where we delved into topics like his journey to amassing a large following on X through viral content, his appearance in a Justin Bieber music video, the fintech sectors that excite him the most, and his insights on the role of artificial intelligence in the fintech arena.
This interview has been condensed for clarity and brevity.
While you enjoy a significant presence on social media, your primary role centers on investing in fintech startups through Better Tomorrow Ventures. Can you share your perspective on what BTV defines as a fintech enterprise?
We believe that the definition of fintech is broader than most consider. For example, we classify vertical SaaS companies as fintech. Take Toast and Shopify; over 80% of their earnings come from financial services, so we see them as fintech entities. We also include B2B marketplaces in that category.
Let’s pivot back to fintech later. First, I’m curious about your approach toward social media. With over 151,000 followers on X, how did you establish yourself as a social media personality?
I’m not sure I’d call myself a star, but I do find it enjoyable. I joined Twitter quite a while ago, but my activity surged during the pandemic. At that time, I became very engaged on Clubhouse and gained a lot of followers there. I think I peaked at around 3.3 million—but that number isn’t relevant anymore. Since messages on Clubhouse were primarily exchanged via Twitter, I naturally shifted my focus there, which led to increased engagement. I began sharing my thoughts and found great pleasure in the process and in receiving feedback.
What would you say were your most viral posts over the years?
One of the most viral posts came from my wife, who shared a meme of herself at the Folsom Street Fair, where her expression conveyed a sense of bewilderment. That tweet garnered 250,000 likes. My own viral moment happened while I was evaluating pitches from web3 founders addressing non-existent problems. I came across a video of a person splitting the rear wheel of their bike in two while still maintaining rideability and tweeted something like “Web3 founders solving problems that don’t exist.” It exploded in popularity.
In addition to your investments, you’ve made headlines for some fascinating events, including your Taco Bell Metaverse wedding in 2023 and your appearance in a Justin Bieber video in 2021. How did those unexpected events come about?
I got engaged in 2022 and posted a fun engagement story on Twitter. During that time, Taco Bell announced a contest to find a couple to marry in the metaverse. Several friends and followers saw my engagement announcement and my love for Taco Bell and suggested I participate, leading to our selection as the winners of the contest.
Regarding the video, I participated in a dating show during the pandemic called Zoom Bachelorette. While I didn’t win, I captured the audience’s vote, and Scooter Braun, Justin Bieber’s manager, was part of that audience. We connected on Clubhouse, which eventually led to my inclusion in the video.
While not all of your posts relate directly to investment or fintech, have they influenced your deal-making or attracted founders you might not have reached without your online presence?
Absolutely, although that was never my intention. I simply enjoy sharing intriguing and thought-provoking content and welcome the feedback. Yet, I do believe my social media activity has been beneficial.
The first time it hit me was when I emailed a founder I was eager about. I was aware other investors were reaching out to them, but when I contacted them, they responded right away, mentioning our mutual interest in fitness due to a viral tweet I had made about Chamath [Palihapitiya] with his shirt off. Our interaction led to a productive conversation and was quite enlightening.
Regarding Better Tomorrow Ventures, how many funds have you managed to raise thus far? And I’ve been hearing whispers that fintech is on the upswing again. Would you concur? What excites you the most about the sector?
We’re currently disbursing our second fund and are gearing up for our third. I believe the fintech market is indeed regaining momentum, and we can look forward to more exits soon. The landscape for fintech is ripe for favorable outcomes in the upcoming period.
I’m particularly thrilled about the overarching narrative that “everything is fintech,” which remains true. As mentioned, vertical SaaS and B2B marketplaces are transitioning into fintech businesses, and there are ample opportunities to support these models. I’m also keen on the accounting sector, where we identify a significant shortfall of accountants in the country.
It’s noteworthy that you say this despite the unexpected shutdown of an accounting startup called Bench at the end of last year, which shortly got acquired by Employer.com. There’s a lot of analysis surrounding what went wrong with Bench, but it appears your optimism about the sector remains intact?
Absolutely. I view Bench primarily as an accounting service rather than a scalable venture-backed enterprise. They had a significant number of employees handling the accounting, making it challenging to grow at a venture scale. Feedback from clients indicated that they began to compromise on certain standards, leading to difficulties that ultimately impacted their operations.
Recently, a buzz has emerged around DeepSeek. It seems to be a hot topic, with discussions of it potentially being a threat to OpenAI. What’s your take—do you think DeepSeek is a serious contender, or is it merely hype?
There’s a lot to dissect regarding DeepSeek. It’s noteworthy that it’s originating from China, it’s open-source, and it’s purportedly developed at a low cost.
We’ve believed that the costs associated with inference and recent model development would decrease, and the launch of DeepSeek seems to have accelerated that trend. This development has ushered in a price competition among foundational models, which is beneficial for startups building on AI technology. It’s a fantastic situation for them.
What do you think about the overall hype surrounding AI?
Many companies pitch themselves as AI businesses to us, but upon inspection, it often turns out that they have little to do with AI. Few are genuinely AI companies. Meanwhile, many organizations are reaping substantial benefits from AI without labeling themselves as “AI companies.” We invest broadly across this spectrum. There does seem to be the misconception that being tagged as an AI company is essential for visibility, but I believe authenticity is more important.
Want to stay informed on fintech? Subscribe to TechCrunch Fintech here.
Have a tip to share? Reach out via email at maryann@techcrunch.com or on Signal at 408.204.3036. Alternatively, you can contact the entire TechCrunch team at tips@techcrunch.com. For secure communications, click here for options, including SecureDrop and encrypted messaging applications.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
Fanpage: TechArena.au
Watch more about AI – Artificial Intelligence
