# 🔍 Why I stopped angel investing after 15 years (and what I'm doing instead)

**URL:** <https://forum.devtalk.com/t/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after-15-years-and-what-im-doing-instead/197671>\
**Category:** In The News\
**Tags:** via-news-bot\
**Created:** [3 May 2025 15:52 UTC](https://forum.devtalk.com/t/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after-15-years-and-what-im-doing-instead/197671 "2025-05-03T15:52:11Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![CommunityNews](https://forum.devtalk.com/user_avatar/forum.devtalk.com/communitynews/32/1113_2.png) [@CommunityNews](https://forum.devtalk.com/u/CommunityNews)\
**Post date:** [3 May 2025 15:52 UTC](https://forum.devtalk.com/t/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after-15-years-and-what-im-doing-instead/197671/1 "2025-05-03T15:52:11Z")

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> Plus: My interview with Oscar co-founder Mario Schlosser

Read in full here:

> **[🔍 Why I stopped angel investing after 15 years (and what I'm doing instead)](https://halletecco.substack.com/p/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after)**
>
> Plus: My interview with Oscar co-founder Mario Schlosser

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**Author:** ![alvinkatojr](https://forum.devtalk.com/user_avatar/forum.devtalk.com/alvinkatojr/32/6613_2.png) [@alvinkatojr](https://forum.devtalk.com/u/alvinkatojr)\
**Post date:** [3 May 2025 21:28 UTC](https://forum.devtalk.com/t/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after-15-years-and-what-im-doing-instead/197671/2 "2025-05-03T21:28:16Z")

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Short and sweet article on the realities of angel investing. The outlook is **not exactly pretty**.

Here are some titbits:

> **For new investors to come in and wipe out early investors just because the market was in their favor was painful**. It felt like opportunistic resets that enriched later investors at the expense of early supporters (not to mention early employees).

> It’s also worth noting **I’ve made more money building companies than I have investing in them.** Some of that is luck, but founding a company provides something angel investing doesn’t: the ability to directly influence outcomes.

> When you account for the opportunity cost of capital, the extreme time horizon, the macro risks, and the possibility of having your ownership severely diluted, **the potential returns need to be astronomical to justify the investment.**

Also here’s a link to another article by the same author that shares the [numbers on how much she’s made](https://halletecco.substack.com/p/heres-how-much-ive-made-angel-investing) from angel investing.

Here’s a preview:

> Yesterday, I got an email from the law firm of a company I invested in 10+ years ago that has raised $100M+. The company is _getting acquired_, and they want me to sign some docs.
> 
> **Unfortunately, my shares have been diluted over time** and converted from preferred to common. While a VC who backed them just a few years ago will make money from this acquisition, **I will get $0. _Zero_**.

> It’s not just that early investors often get the short end of the stick while later-stage VCs reshape the cap table to their advantage. **It’s that we are _often_ forgotten** and get this news from lawyers and not the CEO.

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**Author:** ![DanielJefferson](https://forum.devtalk.com/user_avatar/forum.devtalk.com/danieljefferson/32/4977_2.png) [@DanielJefferson](https://forum.devtalk.com/u/DanielJefferson)\
**Post date:** [17 August 2026 19:28 UTC](https://forum.devtalk.com/t/why-i-stopped-angel-investing-after-15-years-and-what-im-doing-instead/197671/3 "2026-08-17T19:28:24Z")

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I’ve been reading about how community giveaways can build momentum similar to what early-stage startups experience when they secure smart funding. When scaling any project, understanding capital structures matters, and I found a clear breakdown of this at [What is a venture fund? | Skaala](https://skaala.org/what-is-a-venture-fund/) that helped me see how patient investment works over time. Your approach to engaging readers through giveaways and errata support feels like a solid foundation for long-term growth.