Haystack

JUNE 5, 2018

3/ “Value Is In The Eye Of The Network” Bean-counters may scoff at acquisitions like GitHub as poorly run businesses that aren’t (yet) profitable, but in the world of 10-figure M&A, the exits seem to be largely a function of network defensibility and uniqueness. They’re probably not far off from the truth. 5/ “Decentralized Everything?”

Acquisition 71

Acquisition Azure Open Source Venture Capital 71

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 15, 2022

There are many benefits of selling your startup through a mergers and acquisitions advisor. When selling your startup with a mergers and acquisitions advisor, it’s essential to identify the key employees who have made the most valuable contributions to the business. Source: Pixabay. Identifying key employees. Negotiating a price.

Merger 124

Merger Acquisition Due Diligence Valuation 124

Austin Startup

APRIL 25, 2017

In summary: Snap’s current business doesn’t justify a $20B valuation. How can one justify a $20B valuation for Snap? The product that could most likely justify Snap’s $20B valuation is Spectacles. But if it can’t, it’s going to take Snap a long time to the achieve financial performance necessary to sustain a $20B+ valuation.

Valuation 48

Valuation Technical Review Forecast Social Network 48

VC Cafe

AUGUST 2, 2022

billion valuation) to invest in the Metaverse and build the future of digital entertainment Epic owns Fortnite, one of the most popular multiplayer games, enabling users to interact with each other online in an immersive way to play, socialise, attend to virtual concerts. In April 2022, the company announced it has raised $2 billion (at $31.5

IP 206

IP Cofounder Valuation Acquisition 206

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2018

How could Bird really be worth the reported $2 billion valuation that I read about in this press? While I promised not to comment on the exact valuation you can assume that it is very large and perhaps the fastest rise from zero to what some have called a “unicorn” valuation. Forget the valuation?—?I

San Francisco 256

San Francisco Valuation Technical Review Los Angeles 256

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

If the company's valuation is $2 million, $90k is 4.5%. Of course, to be able to use this kind of formula, you will need to be able to determine how much impact the person will have and figure out a valuation. I've talked about this topic before in How Investors Think About Valuation of Pre-Revenue Startups.

Early Stage 391

Early Stage Equity CTO Hire Sweat Equity 391

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2014

I always advise software startups to file patents to protect their “secret sauce” from competitors, and to increase their valuation. The good news is that a patent can scare off or at least delay competitors, and as a “rule of thumb” patents can add up to $1M to your startup valuation for investors or M&A exits (merger and acquisition).

Software Review 250

Software Review Software Technical Review Intellectual Property 250

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

the government is painfully learning how to reorient its requirements and acquisition process to buy these commercial, off-the-shelf technologies. Rapid advances in these areas are now happening via commercial firms – many in China. This is a radical change in where advanced technology comes from. In the U.S., Semiconductor industry.

Technical Review 366

Technical Review Taiwan Technology Artificial Inteligence 366

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

A VC wants to know that you have a solid plan to execute a stand-alone business and if you require capital for an acquisition they’d rather evaluate it at the time rather than over-fund you now. Every VC knows that the amount you raise is often a proxy for your valuation. Having too little demand leads to bankruptcy. Happy raising.

Burn Rate 247

Burn Rate Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Dilution 247

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

We want money to make some acquisitions (investors would prefer to fund M&A if they know specific deals – not to encourage bad behavior. Valuation. I wanted to call out special attention to valuation in this debate. If you’re raised at $250 million+ valuation even more cautious.

Burn Rate 383

Burn Rate Balance Sheet .Net Valuation 383

The Next Web

APRIL 1, 2018

Latin American startups haven’t had the same valuations as Silicon Valley startups. This frustrates many Latin American entrepreneurs seeking investment, as they don’t understand why Latin American VCs aren’t doing deals at Silicon Valley valuations. VCs need to make returns, or they’ll be out of business.

Silicon Valley 154

Silicon Valley Valuation America Early Stage 154

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 18, 2023

Even if you don’t have a formal board of directors, it pays to have trusted advisors who will give you regular unbiased feedback on your team strengths and weaknesses, financial and operating ratio norms, and an external view of current company valuation issues. Your valuation and salability depends on the credibility of this effort.

Exit Strategy 248

Exit Strategy Valuation Acquisition Metrics 248

ReadWriteStart

JULY 15, 2020

New talk of capital efficiency is gratifying, but there was another lesson from pre-COVID-19 valuation struggles. Venture capitalists and early-stage investors have told all of us, founders are critical to a startup’s valuation. One of their investors, JTC Group has developed a specialty in this arena through a recent acquisition.

Valuation 91

Valuation South Carolina San Jose Balance Sheet 91

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

The bridge or exit stage is generally of very large transactions and for companies with substantial valuation. These phases are focused on inorganic growth, mergers, buyouts, acquisitions, and exit preparation for the business. Point number 3: Never raise money with an increased valuation. Bridge or exit stage.

Entrepreneur 150

Entrepreneur Startup Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

YoungUpstarts

MAY 14, 2018

Of course, these are important ingredients to growth, but the – perhaps unconventional – truth is that this kind of growth can be riskier and less compelling to investors than growth through acquisition. Set clear financial objectives for an acquisition and create benchmarks to gauge attractiveness of potential target companies.

Acquisition 109

Acquisition Finance Raleigh Mezzanine 109

YoungUpstarts

JULY 10, 2017

Effects on valuation. In some instances, revenue will be recognized earlier than in the past, and sometimes later, which will inevitably impact the valuation of the company. Additionally, certain contract acquisition costs, such as commissions, may be added to the balance sheet, thus impacting the timing of expense recognition.

Revenue 124

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Due Diligence 124

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2015

The key elements of leadership in a company, both individual and organizational, are less tangible, but very critical in setting a market value for investment, acquisition, or going public. In the investment community, these leadership elements are often called “goodwill.” How much goodwill can you and your company command today?

Leadership 120

Leadership Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 9, 2021

Even if you don’t have a formal board of directors, it pays to have trusted advisors who will give you regular unbiased feedback on your team strengths and weaknesses, financial and operating ratio norms, and an external view of current company valuation issues. Your valuation and salability depends on the credibility of this effort.

Exit Strategy 434

Exit Strategy Valuation Acquisition Metrics 434

www.forentrepreneurs.com

FEBRUARY 2, 2010

Blog About Log in Register Startup Killer: the Cost of Customer Acquisition In the many thousands of articles advising entrepreneurs on what they have to focus on to build successful startups, much has been written about three key factors: team, product and market, with particular focus on the importance of product/market fit.

Acquisition 103

Acquisition Cost Customer Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 25, 2023

Should they focus on increasing revenues and profitability, or entice more and more users with “free” services, to increase their valuation. Startup productivity is embodied in key ratios, including low cost of customer acquisition, high retention, and high revenue per employee. Most are still confused about the right priority.

Valuation 235

Valuation Revenue Viral Retention 235

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 12, 2019

This means that both parties have equal rights to the property bought/gained during the official marriage, and it does not matter who made a more significant contribution to the acquisition. Use one of two business valuation formulas. Therefore, in a divorce, all their marital property must be divided in half.

Small Business 104

Small Business Valuation .Net Balance Sheet 104

Gust

OCTOBER 19, 2014

I always advise software startups to file patents to protect their “secret sauce” from competitors, and to increase their valuation. The good news is that a patent can scare off or at least delay competitors, and as a “rule of thumb” patents can add up to $1M to your startup valuation for investors or M&A exits (merger and acquisition).

Software Review 173

Software Review Software Technical Review Intellectual Property 173

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 26, 2023

They should also invest in marketing and user acquisition to increase the network effect. The company has grown rapidly and achieved a valuation of over $7 billion by delivering a product that is both intuitive and powerful. Also, you don’t need to reach a billion dollar valuation to be a “Super Founder” in my view.

Founder 88

Founder Cofounder Seed Stage Valuation 88

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 29, 2023

Cost of Acquisition vs. Customer Lifetime Value The balance between the Cost of Acquisition and Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is a critical aspect of ensuring a sustainable customer engagement strategy.

Metrics 127

Metrics Customer Acquisition Harvest 127

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2023

The new investors you need at this stage are investment bankers, private equity, or competitors, to buy you out via merger or acquisition (M&A), or to go public with an Initial Public Offering (IPO). This is the exit stage for the entrepreneur, and for all earlier investors. Tune your investor pitch and funding expectations accordingly.

Angel Investor 313

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 313

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 17, 2015

Privacy issues that come to light in the course of the due diligence process for an acquisition can also threaten their valuation. Additionally, plan for an acquisition now by telling your users in your privacy policy that you may transfer the data in the event of a merger or acquisition. Do what you say.

Software Review 100

Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence Startup 100

Haystack

NOVEMBER 12, 2018

In the wake of what is now considered the second-highest enterprise SaaS acquisition in history, below are some quick takeaways that are on my mind: 1/ The Efficiency Of Silicon Slopes – By now it should be no surprise that Utah’s tech ecosystem is on fire. And, every year, it doesn’t materialize that way.

Acquisition 105

Acquisition Utah IPO Venture Capital 105

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 11, 2015

With the daily demands of running a business along with the financial pressures and challenges inherent in early-stage companies, a business valuation may not be the first thing an entrepreneur thinks of when he awakes each morning. When does a startup company need a business valuation? The timing will vary depending on the purpose.

Valuation 100

Valuation Stock Options CPA Merger 100

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 9, 2016

For a young entrepreneur, the mergers and acquisitions process can be exciting and potentially lucrative but it can also be the source of considerable stress. Here are four areas to look at in your assessment that can help you to determine if a particular advisor is right for your deal: Valuations Expertise.

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Due Diligence San Francisco Merger 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 21, 2020

Should they focus on increasing revenues and profitability, or entice more and more users with “free” services, to increase their valuation. Startup productivity is embodied in key ratios, including low cost of customer acquisition, high retention, and high revenue per employee. Most are still confused about the right priority.

Revenue 434

Revenue Valuation Retention Viral 434

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 12, 2010

In the technology world there are a few websites that most startups track to keep up with the latest financings, acquisitions, product announcements and gossip: BusinessInsider, TechCrunch, Mashable, GigaOm, etc. Specifically we talked about Slide having gotten a $550 million valuation before being sold to Google for $182 million.

Seed Stage 232

Seed Stage Valuation Private Equity Venture Capital 232

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

When you see startups like SpaceX and Pinterest grow from a low valuation to a billion dollars in just a few years, it’s easy to assume that if you just keep doing what you are doing, you can get there as well. Utilize mergers and acquisitions to accelerate growth. But they can be spectacular growth vehicles when they work.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

Transformify

MARCH 4, 2020

From an investor’s point of view, the acquisition of Hermes iTickets in 2015 is a clear red flag. At the time, Wirecard had a choice of acquisition targets and could approach Hermes iTickets directly had it been on the top of their list. billion valuation. Although the valuation of $5.5 Although the valuation of $5.5

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Valuation Stock Acquisition 78

Software By Rob

FEBRUARY 28, 2012

This is final installment of a 3-part series covering my acquisition of HitTail. Could you talk a bit about the diligence you did during the acquisition? Due diligence is the most important part of the process because it dictates whether you should move forward with the acquisition, and at what price. Photo by psiaki.

Acquisition 53

Acquisition Software Review Technical Review NDA 53

View from Seed

DECEMBER 4, 2019

Over the last 10 years, we’ve been in a bull market with considerable froth in late stage financing activity and valuations. The cases of WeWork and Uber cast a cloud of doubt over funds that are largely driven by one or two outlier companies that may have a tremendous valuation, but shaky underlying business metrics.

LP 256

LP IRR Distribution Portfolio 256

Agile VC

APRIL 17, 2011

Now that Google’s acquisition of ITA is closed, following lenghty FTC review, it would appear Kayak is poised to proceed with their IPO in the coming months. =. paying for travel data from ITA or others (customers acquisition spend is not included in COGS). Post-money valuation probably no higher than $12M (2).

Pre-Money Valuation 113

Pre-Money Valuation Liquidation Preference Dividend Common Stock 113

ReadWriteStart

JULY 17, 2023

The acquisition will help Sheela Foam enter the fast-growing branded furniture market and expand its presence in the furniture industry. For Furlenco, the acquisition will provide access to Sheela Foam’s extensive distribution network and marketing expertise. The deal, proposed at $36.5 million, has valued Furlenco at about $104.3

India 104

India Acquisition Merger Business Model 104