Osint

OSINT (Open-Source Intelligence) is the practice of collecting and analyzing publicly available information to produce actionable insights about entities (people, firms, funds, assets, markets, or events). “Open source” means the information is lawfully accessible to the public—not private databases, hacked data, or restricted systems.

Why it matters in private markets

In allocator and fundraising workflows, OSINT helps teams move faster than static databases by capturing what changes first in the real world: mandates, strategy language, team movements, portfolio signals, public disclosures, and institutional positioning.

Common OSINT sources (examples)

• Regulatory and public filings
• Company and fund websites (strategy pages, team pages, PDFs)
• Press releases and reputable media coverage
• Conference agendas, speaker bios, membership directories (public)
• Public registers and corporate records (where available)
• Social and professional platforms (public profiles/posts)
• Podcasts, interviews, and published transcripts

What OSINT is not

• Not “hacking” or unauthorized access
• Not private inboxes, leaked datasets, or scraped paywalled systems in violation of terms
• Not a substitute for full diligence—OSINT is signal + context, not a guarantee of accuracy on its own

In practice (allocator intelligence)

OSINT is often used to infer and verify:

• Investment mandate and thesis (what they say they invest in)
• Behavioral evidence (what they’ve actually backed or allocated to)
• Network context (who they’re connected to, boards, affiliations)
• Recency (what changed this month vs. last year)