#36 - Limitless Ventures Founder, Alexander Holt on Investing in Behavioral Health and Addiction Solutions

Apr 28, 2020

Alexander Holt, Founder of Limitless Ventures, joins us today to talk about addiction, recovery, and investing in behavioral health and addiction-focused startups. His venture fund, Limitless Ventures is an impact investment firm, that looks to fund companies seeking to help people who need behavioral health and addiction treatment solutions.

Their mission at Limitless is to combine venture capital and philanthropic capital to scale multi-disciplinary solutions for people impacted by mental health challenges as well as addiction. They have a unique way of combining capital from non-profits as well as for-profit investors that he explains in detail in our conversation.

You can connect with Alexander here: Limitless Ventures Website, Alexander Holt LinkedIn

HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT:

1. Alex talks about growing up in a great family environment surrounding by love and afforded many great advantages in life.  However, this did not spare him from difficulty, and a desire to be accepted which ultimately led him to alcohol, and eventually to drugs and finding his way into trouble.
   
   
2. Alex explains having ADHD as a kid and struggling to focus his attention.  He suggests that he needed more behavioral support, but never got it and eventually found himself getting into fights and struggling socially in middle school.  Eventually, his desire to fit in led him to figure out how to “bring the life” to the party which meant getting access to alcohol. 
   
   
3. Alex shares about the moment he realized when he was powerless over alcohol and that his life had become unmanageable.  We talked about our shared experiences in rehab, and Alex shares in detail how he got sober, and how he has maintained his sobriety for over 5 years.
   
   
4. We talked about our shared experience in the Alcoholics Anonymous program and one of the key components of that program: Service.  Alex talks about how he gives back to the AA community, how he helps others, and why that is so important for his recovery.
   
   
5. We talked about the “recovery community” which is a concept that seemed so foreign to both of us as we entered rehab.  However, that recovery community has been one of the most powerful and influential things in both of our lives in recent years. There are over 40 million people out here who are going through what we went through, and they are there to help each other on a regular basis.  There is a lot of power in that.
   
   
6. Alex talks about his venture capital fund, Limitless Ventures and his “double bottom” line approach.  His objectives are to improve mental and behavioral health outcomes while also driving outsized returns for investors.  Limitless is structured as a family of 5 funds, each focused on various points in the continuum of care:
   
   1. Prevention
   2. Life sciences
   3. Healthcare Technology
   4. Treatment
   5. Long Term Recovery

   Limitless currently operates as an independent sponsor creating SPVs for each deal while they work toward their goal of raising $3.5 billion over the next few years.

   Source of Capital: Every dollar they invest is comprised of 40% ROI focused on investor capital and 60% non-profit foundation capital.

   Alex explains the tax structure, and plan that allows him to combine capital types and do something unique for his industry.

7. Alex talks about one of his investment projects which is filling a hole in the recovery market around housing for those in recovery.  He is part of a team-building a 500 bed co-living apartment in New York, NY that will house people living in recovery.  The apartment building will be located in Times Square, in a 40-story high rise where a full continuum of care will be proved to people living in recovery from addiction.

Connect with the Stigma Podcast in the following ways: Website, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Email

Connect with host Stephen Hays here: Stephen Hays Personal Website, Twitter, LinkedIn, What If Ventures (Mental Health Venture Fund)