Fool's Gold gives you the money-making hindsight that accomplished angel investor Henry Fiorillo wished he had when he was first starting out. Angel investing-putting your own money into early-stage startups in exchange for equity-is a high-risk, high-reward endeavor that blends entrepreneurship with speculation. While stories of striking it rich have glamorized the industry, the reality is that most startups fail, founders can dissemble, and investors are often left with tough lessons and empty pockets. Yet for those willing to learn-and to learn from the best-there is a shot at winning. With over 60 years of real-world experience, Henry Fiorillo takes you behind the scenes of startup investing. He guides readers through a digestible series of lessons that blend evidence-based financial models and psychological theories with personal insights drawn from his own wins and losses. This book reveals what you truly need to evaluate when considering startup investments-and spoiler-it's not just the business idea. Fool's Gold shares lessons, red flags, and essential questions that other startup manuals hesitate to disclose; it's essential reading for anyone curious about angel investing or already in the game. Avoid being blinded by the shimmer of FOMO, polished performers, or overconfidence that lead to fool's gold investments. Instead, take advice from an investor behind storied startups as he teaches you the fine art of losing money, so you can master the finer art of making it.
"Fool's Gold is a bracing antidote to the hype and mythology surrounding angel investing. With uncommon honesty, Henry Fiorillo shows how cognitive bias, misplaced trust, and overconfidence quietly destroy capital. This is not a how-to-get-rich book. It's a how-to-survive one. Required reading for any serious early-stage investor."
J.B. Handley, Founder of Bochi Investments
"A brutally honest acknowledgement by a veteran investor of the pitfalls of startup investing, rich with the details of errors made and insights gained over decades of experience making and (mostly) losing money in the startup ecosystem. A valuable reality-check for anyone planning to commit capital to this high-risk asset class."
Bev W. Tudhope, Former Co-Chair, National Angel Capital Organization (NACO)
"Henry Fiorillo's Fool's Gold is a refreshingly honest solution to the hype-driven narratives that dominate startup investing. With wit, hilarity, candor, and hard-won wisdom, Fiorillo exposes the cognitive biases and common traps that lead even experienced angels astray. This is essential reading for anyone considering early-stage investing-or anyone who wants to understand why most startups fail."
John Ruffolo, Founder & Managing Partner, Maverix Private Equity
