Mike Davis
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Hey Mike — similar background, been deep in impact-oriented PE origination thinking lately. Would be good to connect.
Hey Mike, see we share a similar PE path, though I was in London doing growth equity not building a fund like Olive Tree. most funds at this stage have stacked up a pretty solid toolkit — PitchBook, a CRM like Affinity or DealCloud, maybe Grata, sourcing consultants, the works. but the off-market pipeline doesn't seem to match. the tools don't talk to each other, thesis and network stay disconnected, so proprietary origination never really builds on itself — it just restarts. wondering if that's still how it plays out at Olive Tree? — Russ
Hey Mike, see we share a similar PE path, though I was in London doing growth equity not building a fund like Olive Tree. most funds at this stage have stacked up a pretty solid toolkit — PitchBook, a CRM like Affinity or DealCloud, maybe Grata, sourcing consultants, the works. but the off-market pipeline doesn't seem to match. the tools don't talk to each other, thesis and network stay disconnected, so proprietary origination never really builds on itself — it just restarts. do you disagree? — Russ
hey Mike — this kept rattling around. when I was doing growth equity we had every subscription going — PitchBook, CRM, enrichment tools, the lot — and I still spent half my time manually pulling origination together across all of it. always wondered if that was just us being disorganised or if it's genuinely universal. did you ever run into that at Olive Tree, or was it just us? — Russ
hey Mike — no stress on any of this. I'm in and around impact PE origination all day — if you ever want to swap notes on what's working, I'm easy to find. — Russ
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Prospect Research
## PROSPECT INFORMATION: Name: Mike Davis Title: Founding Partner Fund: Olive Tree Ridge Background: PROSPECT SUMMARY: Mike Davis CURRENT FOCUS Mike is a Founding Partner at Olive Tree Ridge and a Managing Director at Village Capital and VilCap Investments. He is primarily focused on venture capital and investment banking, specifically removing systemic barriers for women and immigrant founders. He is also a Contributing Author for Forbes, where he writes about fintech, private equity, and alternative investments. BACKGROUND A "consultant turned serial entrepreneur," Mike has successfully built and exited multiple technology ventures. Most notably, he was the Co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of MPOWER Financing, a company that provides financial access to international students. His early career included technical leadership roles as CTO at Fusebox and a Director of Innovation and Strategy at Avon. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and a BS in Computer and Electrical Engineering from Purdue University. He is multi-lingual, with proficiency in English, Persian, Russian, and Spanish. KEY SKILLS Venture Capital, Private Equity, Fintech, Entrepreneurship, Investment Banking, Scenario Analysis (Excel/Financial Modeling), Product Management, and Strategic Partnerships. NOTABLE LINKEDIN POSTS & QUOTES November 20, 2025: Mike shared a story about authenticity in a past photography business, stating: "If one tree stayed green in winter, she’d know something was off -- real stories are richer when they reflect reality." He emphasized sticking to principles even if it means "taking a financial hit." November 7, 2025: Endorsing a peer's offer for coffee chats, he noted how such conversations helped him in "refining both how I define the problems I aim to solve and the approach I take to solving those problems." July 18, 2025: Commenting on a founder who did 172 meetings in 3 weeks, Mike observed: "The law of large numbers applies to fundraising as well." April 22, 2025: A detailed post on using XLOOKUP for financial modeling, where he noted: "XLOOKUP for scenario analysis isn’t just about looking fancy in meetings. It’s about actually understanding your investments from every angle — the good, the bad, and the ugly." April 14, 2025: Reflecting on his shift from entrepreneur to investor, he advised founders to "Choose investors who create safe spaces" and warned against "empty promises" from prestigious advisors who aren't present during critical moments. November 8, 2024: He published a deep dive on fintech risks, warning: "Asset-liability mismatch: the silent killer of promising fintech startups." March 12, 2021: Celebrating a partnership between MPOWER and ETS, he shared a personal connection: "My dad took the TOEFL when he was getting his Ph.D. in the '70s. Now, just one generation later, the company I co-founded... has partnered with ETS... to support millions of international students." Fund details: - Description: Olive Tree Ridge is a long time-horizon private equity firm investing money on behalf of institutions, family offices, and individuals. OTR finds fulfillment, diversity of experience, and earnings through building, buying, and operating sustainably profitable companies which serve as community role models by gratifying customers, making employees happy, and respecting the environment. - Website: https://www.olivetreeridge.com/ - Location: New York, New York, United States - Lead qualification: Research: - Query: =Olive Tree Ridge Mike Davis recent investments fund thesis - Answer: Mike Davis recently launched Olive Tree Ridge, focusing on investments for women and immigrants, with a fund thesis centered on removing barriers for these groups. The firm targets opportunities in fintech amid inflation. Davis's fund seeks to create value through strategic investments.