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7
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Risks & Mitigation
Identifying the biggest risks to success and concrete strategies to mitigate each one.
Risks & Mitigation - Deployed PRD
The following risks represent the most significant threats to Deployed's success. Each risk is assessed for likelihood (probability of occurrence) and impact (severity if it occurs), with concrete mitigation strategies outlined.
Risk: Verified allocators won't engage without real listings, and credible sellers won't list without visible allocator intent. Without initial trust density, Deployed appears "empty" and loses institutional confidence.
✓ Mitigation:
Seed supply first — onboard 20–30 verified brokers and developers with live mandates before public allocator access
Whitelist allocators — only invite known LPs, family offices, and PE/RE funds via direct relationships and Strategic Partner Access Program (DIAP)
Run pilot liquidity events with banks and developers to demonstrate functioning deal discovery before open beta
Guarantee confidentiality and verification — institutional users must see that every counterparty is vetted before engagement
Focus geographically — Western Europe (UK–Iberia–Benelux) until liquidity network effects are proven
Leverage existing networks: Use founder's network and relationships to secure first 50 users
White-glove onboarding: Personally help first 100 users create high-quality listings
Incentivize early adopters: Free accounts for first 50 sellers who list 3+ deals
2. Verification Failure / Data Breach
Likelihood: MediumImpact: Critical
Risk: If even one unverified or fraudulent participant enters the network, trust collapses. Similarly, any data leak or NDA-breach destroys brand credibility.
✓ Mitigation:
Multi-tier verification — email + LinkedIn + company registry + manual review (as per MVP scope)
Zero tolerance policy: Immediate ban for any fraudulent activity, public transparency about why
Trust-score algorithm with visible logic (users see how it's computed)
Redacted-by-default data structure — ensures no confidential data exposure
Partner with professional KYC providers (Onfido/Jumio) for Premium tier
Periodic data-security audits by external firm once >200 verified users
3. Competitive Reaction
Likelihood: MediumImpact: High
Risk: Incumbents like Palico, Deal Locker, StepStone, or Preqin replicate features or shift marketing toward "trusted access" once Deployed gains attention.
✓ Mitigation:
Move fast — MVP and institutional validation in 2 months
Different DNA — confidentiality-first infrastructure cannot be easily retrofitted into volume-based business models
Build verification & data moats — structured JSON-LD data and verified user graph create irreversible switching costs
Anchor partnerships early — Systemic Partner Tier institutions (pension, sovereign, or bank) make incumbents hesitant to compete directly
Consistent brand language — "infrastructure" vs "marketplace" keeps differentiation clear
Continuous innovation: Don't stand still — always ship new features faster than they can copy
4. Regulatory Ambiguity
Likelihood: MediumImpact: High
Risk: Regulators could reclassify Deployed as a broker-dealer, creating licensing or compliance burdens.
✓ Mitigation:
Information-only model — no execution, escrow, or settlement flows in MVP
Legal architecture — UK & UAE legal opinions confirming information-platform status before launch
Disclaimers in onboarding flow — explicitly state Deployed is not an intermediary
GDPR compliance baked in — consent management, data deletion, audit trails
Plan regulatory progression — FCA (UK) → MIFID (EU) → ADGM (MENA) → Broker-Dealer (US and/or Singapore) only when brokerage functionality adds clear ROI
5. Monetization Resistance
Likelihood: MediumImpact: High
Risk: Users engage under free access tiers but don't convert to paid Action Packs or Subscriptions, delaying revenue traction.
✓ Mitigation:
Friction-based upsells — allocate only one EOI/listing per free user; monetize at the moment of intent
Differentiated value at paywall — analytics, liquidity visibility, and multi-deal management only available to paid tiers
Early institutional anchor clients — convert 3–5 Unlimited or Systemic Partners in first 6 months for stable ARR base
Revenue-share partners (DIAP) drive motivated introductions without internal sales overhead
Continuous A/B testing of credit pricing (€950–€8,550 packs) to optimize conversion yield
6. Technical Integrity / Scalability
Likelihood: MediumImpact: Medium–High
Risk: Speed to MVP introduces architectural shortcuts that could compromise reliability, performance, or data lineage — undermining institutional trust.
✓ Mitigation:
Modern, opinionated stack: Next.js + TypeScript + Prisma + AWS RDS with strict data schema control
Structured-data first — all listings stored in JSON-LD format to ensure machine readability and easy migration
Code reviews mandatory: No code ships without peer review, even in early days
Automated verification testing — flows for onboarding, EOI, and NDA gating covered by unit tests from Day 1
Refactoring cadence: dedicate 15–20% of each sprint to tech debt repayment
Technical documentation and version control discipline from Day 1. Every major feature gets a doc page explaining architecture decisions
7. Institutional Conversion Lag (Adoption Cycle Risk)
Likelihood: HighImpact: Medium–High
Risk: Institutions evaluate tools slowly; procurement and compliance reviews delay conversion even with strong interest.
✓ Mitigation:
Start with brokers & developers (faster sales cycles) to prove liquidity data first
Offer "pilot access" agreements to larger allocators to bypass procurement hurdles
Demonstrate immediate value — weekly liquidity reports using platform data
Create FOMO through exclusivity — Systemic Partner cap per vertical (250 max globally)
Build regulatory readiness narrative to reassure compliance departments from day one
