Date: Monday 23 March 2026 Time: 9.00am - 10.00am GMT
Venue: Sheikh Zayed Theatre, Cheng Kin Ku Building, LSE (map)
Speaker: Dr Steffen Pauls (Moonfare)
Chair: Dr Juanita Gonzalez-Uribe (FMG &LSE Finance)
Dr Steffen Pauls, Founder and CEO of Moonfare, will join the Entrepreneurial Finance course for a guest session.
The session will begin with an entrepreneurial reflection on the founding and growth of Moonfare, focusing on how the firm identified structural inefficiencies in private markets and built a technology-enabled platform within a traditionally relationship-driven asset class.
This will be followed by a fireside discussion on the evolution of private markets and the question of “democratization” of access to private equity and venture capital. The conversation will examine the structural features of private markets, including return dispersion, access to top-tier managers, and the role that platforms may play in expanding participation in the asset class.
The session will conclude with an open Q&A with students, including discussion on the future development of private markets and the potential implications of artificial intelligence for the industry.
Registration
This public event is delivered in-person only, is free and open to all, with no ticket or pre-registration required. Attendance will be on a first-come, first-served basis, within the limits of the venue capacity.
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Biographies
Dr Steffen Pauls founded Moonfare in 2016 with the vision to broadening access to private investing. He runs the company as Chairman and Co-CEO. Steffen is a serial entrepreneur with a strong background in the private equity industry. Before becoming an entrepreneur Steffen served as a Managing Director of private equity at KKR. While at KKR, he was responsible for the firm’s coverage of the German market. Prior to joining KKR, he was co-founder and served as Chief Executive Officer of firstfive AG. He served as Chairman of The Supervisory Board at A.T.U Auto-Teile-Unger Investment GmbH & Co. KG and as a member of the Advisory Board at Versatel, Serbia Broadband and Hertha BSC. Steffen holds a B.A. with high distinction from the University of Mannheim and the Ecole Superieure des Sciences Economiques and a Ph.D. from the University of Trier. He worked as a research assistant at Harvard University where he wrote his master thesis. Steffen lives in Munich with his wife and children.
Dr Juanita Gonzalez-Uribe is Associate Professor in Finance at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and Co-Director of the Financial Markets Group. Her research focuses on entrepreneurship, private equity and innovation. Her work spans different regions including Latin America, the UK, and the USA.
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