"Moonfare gave me a shot and that meant a lot to me."

In 2019, Tony Cotzias was working from Athens, managing public market investments. While he had no private equity experience, Moonfare saw his talent and determination. That’s how he rapidly rose to take on the role of Investment Manager.

Today, Tony is the founder of Centaur, a trading analytics venture. And he credits Moonfare for giving him the confidence and the skills to build something of his own.

How did you land a job at Moonfare with zero private equity experience?

I was working at a publicly listed shipping company in Athens, focusing on ship finance and public market investments. We wanted to allocate to private equity, so I found out about Moonfare that way.

During the due diligence process, I thought highly of the people at Moonfare. So I just asked if there was an opening, which led to getting in touch with Magnus. He was running the investments team at that time.

Look, I appreciate that he didn't just allow my credentials to dictate everything. I was coming from Athens, working in a shipping company, which doesn't relate in many ways. I had this unconventional background. But Magnus and Moonfare gave me a shot and that meant a lot to me.

You joined in 2019, fairly early in Moonfare's journey. What was that like?

It was phenomenal. I came in right as they were starting to grow rapidly. At that time, we were less than 20 people and moving into bigger offices. It was a really interesting inflection point.

Joining at that scale meant you could learn from everyone on the team and work on many meaningful projects. That really worked for me.

What was the best part of the job?

The team. They made the work meaningful and impactful in different ways.

I worked closely with Magnus. He was my direct manager and I consider him a friend and mentor. He was with me in the day-to-day grind, teaching me things, giving me opportunities.

With Steffen, I had the chance to be involved at the highest level and own projects under his guidance. Being able to operate so close to him was extremely motivating.

How would you describe the Moonfare culture?

There was a very clear sense of direction and vision. Everyone understood the opportunity and why it was important. That gave meaning to our work.

The team had that startup ethos too. We were relatively younger, hungrier and grinding hard.

This was also coupled with having an impact on the world of private markets at the highest level. We were working with some of the best funds in the buyout and VC stage.

This combination of vision, passion and impact tends to create something special.

What made you decide to move on?

After three years at Moonfare, I came to realise I wanted more of an operational role. Magnus was truly a mentor to me in this journey. We basically co-decided that I would do an MBA at INSEAD.

Magnus took a personal interest in what was best for me. He looked beyond what was just best for him as my manager or what was best for Moonfare as a company.

Did INSEAD shape what came next?

Definitely. After doing the MBA, a lot of people enter one of the more well-defined career paths — consulting, investment banking, the large corporates.

I knew I wanted to get closer to the action, be an entrepreneur. Through that programme, I somehow got the confidence and comfort to say that this is what I want to do and I'll do it now.

And then you started Centaur.io. Tell us about your business.

Sure. We're building a trading analytics product based on signals extracted from social media platforms.

Here's the simple idea: a popular trader on X shares a post detailing their long thesis on a particular blue-chip stock. We then use AI to transform that information into a very precise, organised trading signal on that particular stock. Retail traders can then assess whether this is a signal or a trader worth taking into account in their decision-making process.

Now imagine that on a global scale and across time. We believe this gives rise to a uniquely relevant set of data that can give every trader an edge, in any market, for any asset.

Very interesting. Did Moonfare help you become a better business leader?

Yes, in so many ways. But I'd single out the way Magnus managed our team and the relationship he built with me.

Whenever I think of myself as a manager or leader, I always think: how would Magnus do it? He had a truly elegant style. I often try to do the same.

Any advice for someone who wants to be ‘the next Tony’ at Moonfare?

One of the things I did well was be extremely devoted to the work. I pushed myself very hard. And to be honest, that did not go unnoticed.

If you really want to be successful at a company like Moonfare, I believe it's quite a simple hack — just work very hard and stay very focused. Let the results and the volume of work do the talking. That went a long way for me.

Simple but wise. Thank you for your time, Tony. Wishing you continued success with Centaur.