James is experienced in both sides of the investment world - as a professional investor and a startup founder.
For many years he worked in the investment management industry as an analyst and researcher, starting with the Alliance Trust doing traditional value-based research. After a spell at a startup hedge fund James ended up at a highly-successful global macro hedge fund that and where he ultimately became a director at BlackRock, part of a team based in London and San Francisco.
James has modelled everything from engineering companies to macroeconomic activity to gasoline and cattle price arbitrages.
Now he helps startups get their head around their financial modelling, helping them model their go-to-market strategy, their financial forecasts, their fundraising needs (when to raise, how much and at what valuation). James understands what investors are looking for and can help make your business investor-ready.
James previously ran his own startup - something he characterises as more of a learning experience than a successful investment. He has experienced the whole startup journey from the idea stage, through launch, scaling, raising investment and on to exit. He understands entrepreneurs and the challenges they face.
James' skill set includes financial modelling, fundraising strategy, market research, writing business plans and preparing pitch decks.
James has a wide network of VC connections will work on a success fee basis where he thinks he can help.
James Middleton
Hailing from California, Daniel started his career with Arthur Andersen in Silicon Valley, amongst IPOs and booming technology. After graduate school he worked for PwC in San Francisco, and eventually became the Corporate Controller for a software company in Cupertino, where he was closely involved in its sale to a growing multinational in the UK, which moved him to London in 2008. Daniel became part of the continued growth of the multinational by being involved in the acquisition of several additional companies.
Since then he has worked across different industries, including software, manufacturing, events and media, continuing to be involved in the acquisition and sale of businesses.
Daniel’s skill set is around the finance function, including financial modelling, financial reporting, international tax and business partnering, as well as leadership and M&A.
Daniel Torres
What our clients say:
"Decollare Capital has been instrumental in helping us refine our business model and build our financial projections. James took the time to understand our start-up’s industry, dedicated multiple sessions to build an excellent financial model that helps us show investors our plan and vision. James has years of invaluable experience in the financial and start up world, evident in his collaboration with us, and is friendly, patient and generous with his time and resources . Overall, James has been a pleasure to work with, and has delivered excellent results in a timely, detail-oriented and efficient manner. We look forward to working with Decollare again in the future and recommend James without reservation."
Tiffany Ma, PhD, MTM, Co-founder and CEO of GambitBio.
"Decollare Capital are a phenomenal team to work with. I learned so much from them regarding how to structure a pitch and the critical elements behind our financial model that investors are likely to focus on. They were extremely generous with their time and were always very responsive to follow-up questions and discussions. Highly recommended!"
Xavier Witdouck, CEO of D3X Systems
"Decollare Capital has been extremely helpful in providing us with a reliable financial forecast model, allowing us to set up everything which was needed to kickstart our fundraising efforts. Furthermore, James has always been kind and patient whenever he needed to provide us with some clarifications and explanations regarding the model he created. Working together has been a pleasure, and we have learned much from his advice."
Cristiano Peron, Co-founder and CEO of Oxbridge Clinical
Our values
Integrity
We will recommend only suitable investment types and always strive to give you the best advice for your specific case. If we feel we cannot help you, we will say so. We pride ourselves on delivering only sound investment ideas to our investor connections.
Independence
We pride ourselves on independent thought and analysis.
Professionalism
We will put your interests first. You can expect us to work hard for you and to pull out all the stops to add value to your business.