Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 13, 2020

Too many entrepreneurs tell me they are looking for an investor, and can’t differentiate between venture capital (VC) investors versus accredited angel investors. They fail to realize that the considerations are quite different for each, which can make or break their investment efforts, and ultimately their startup.

Angel Investor 314

Angel Investor Entrepreneur IRR Valuation 314

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

In the old days, every entrepreneur dreamed of easily taking their startup public, and making it big. Today the rate of startups going public (IPO – Initial Public Offering) is up from the dead zone, but is still half the rate of 15 years ago. In addition, most ordinary investors are convinced that IPO rewards only go to insiders.

IPO 218

IPO SEC Prospectus Technical Review 218

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 29, 2022

In the old days, every entrepreneur planned on taking their startup public, and making it big. Today the rate of startups going public (IPO – Initial Public Offering) is finally up from the dead zone of the last two decades, and is now double the rate back in 1999. Startups going public are laid open to competitors and critics.

IPO 245

IPO SEC Prospectus Startup 245

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2011

We are talking about angel investors here, meaning people who invest their own money in early-stage startups for a share of the equity. Generally, the same criteria applies to venture capital investors, although they invest other people’s money, at a later stage, in larger amounts. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Investor 217

Angel Investor Angel Groups Early Stage Startup 217

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

In the old days, every entrepreneur dreamed of easily taking their startup public, and making it big. Today the rate of startups going public (IPO – Initial Public Offering) is up from the dead zone, but is still less than half the rate of 15 years ago. Startups going public are laid open to competitors and critics.

IPO 120

IPO SEC Prospectus Startup 120

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

In his tenure as CEO of DataSift we have never missed a monthly revenue figure. He has grown our US operations from 1 employee (him) to a global organization of 75 employees that will finish the year with 8-digit revenues (90+% recurring) and more than 350% year-over-year growth. Startup Advice' Ask for short conference calls.

Advisory Board 365

Advisory Board CTO Hire Fractional CTO Los Angeles 365

Gust

DECEMBER 25, 2013

To start with, a pre-revenue mobile company cannot expect to raise anything from “the VCs” Venture capital funds invest in only one out of every 400 companies seeking funding, so the odds of your particular startup getting funded are astronomically against you. Conceivable, but unlikely. Good luck with your venture!

Revenue 136

Revenue Angel Investor Mobile Venture Capital 136

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 5, 2016

Too many entrepreneurs tell me they are looking for an investor, and can’t differentiate between venture capital (VC) investors versus accredited Angel investors. They fail to realize that the considerations are quite different for each, which can make or break their investment efforts, and ultimately their startup.

Angel Investor 120

Angel Investor IRR Valuation Startup 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 12, 2012

We are talking about angel investors here, meaning people who invest their own money in early-stage startups for a share of the equity. Generally, the same criteria applies to venture capital investors, although they invest other people’s money, at a later stage, in larger amounts. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Groups 237

Angel Groups Angel Investor Early Stage Startup 237

Growthink Blog

JANUARY 24, 2012

Specifically I found that the lion's share of this funding went to later stage companies (companies who have already raise previous rounds of venture capital, have revenues, and are looking to grow further before being acquired or going public). So, how should you decide if angel funding is right for you? read more.

Angel Investor 98

Angel Investor Venture Capital Equity Later Stage 98

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2012

If you are looking for an outside investor, you need to know how they see you. Different types of investors look for startups at different levels of maturity. If your startup is at the wrong stage for the investor you are approaching, fishing for money is a waste of time for both of you. Growth stage.

Investment Bankers 241

Investment Bankers Venture Capital Startup Initial Public Offering 241

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

In the old days, every entrepreneur dreamed of someday taking their startup public, and making it a multi-national powerhouse. According to an Ernst & Young report , the number of startups that have gone public in the US over the past decade is down about 75% from the previous decade, to about 10% of startup exits.

IPO 242

IPO SEC Prospectus Startup 242

VC Cafe

JULY 5, 2010

A s venture funds struggle to raise money in Israel, seed capital, one of the earliest and riskiest stages of investment, is becoming harder and harder to secure. Janvest: To my previous answer – the market for seed stage companies is not crowded at all in Israel. VCs are investing in later stage companies.

Technical Review 106

Technical Review Software Review Seed Stage 106

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

See Bessemer Venture Partners’ A comprehensive guide to security for startups. Data companies focused on early-stage startups include Aingel , fundsUP , Preseries , PredictLeads , and Sploda. – angel investor networks ( AngelList , FundersClub , OurCrowd , Republic *, SeedInvest ). . 2) Market .

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

www.paulgraham.com

APRIL 28, 2010

Want to start a startup? A typical startup goes throughseveral rounds of funding, and at each round you want to take justenough money to reach the speed where you can shift into the nextgear. Few startups get it quite right. I dont mean to suggest that our investors were nothing but a dragon us. Many are underfunded.

Technical Review 76

Technical Review Startup Software Review Angel Investor 76

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2010

If you are looking for an outside investor, you need to know how they see you. Different types of investors look for startups at different levels of maturity. If your startup is at the wrong stage for the investor you are approaching, the courting is a waste of time for both of you. Early or embryonic stage.

Investment Bankers 231

Investment Bankers Venture Capital Startup Initial Public Offering 231

Gust

JULY 1, 2012

We are talking about angel investors here, meaning people who invest their own money in early-stage startups for a share of the equity. Generally, the same criteria applies to venture capital investors, although they invest other people’s money, at a later stage, in larger amounts.

Angel Groups 143

Angel Groups Angel Investor Early Stage Startup 143

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2013

Many entrepreneurs I know don’t realize that the language they learned in the corporate world, or even their recent MBA class, won’t get them ahead in the startup world today. Even if you have heard some of the new terms, but can’t explain how, when, and why they are relevant to your startup, you may be in jeopardy. Super-angels.

Entrepreneur 274

Entrepreneur Accredited Investor Silicon Valley Angel Investor 274

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). And even with the significant cost of credit card debt, many entrepreneurs aggressively use existing cards to finance a startup.

Private Equity 118

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 118

Steve Blank

JUNE 15, 2011

Today, the signs of the new bubble are the Linked-In initial public offering (IPO), Facebook’s stratospheric valuation and the rapid rise of early-stage startup valuation. In the stealth phase , prescient angel investors and Venture Capitalists (VCs) start investing in an industry or market segment that others have not yet found.

Silicon Valley 327

Silicon Valley Stealth Valuation Mississippi 327

www.mint.com

MARCH 9, 2010

If you are considering working at a startup, you should ask these questions. If the answer to the question centers around “We will achieve revenue soon so our net will improve and give us more runway,” it means the company is in trouble because no product ever ships on time nor achieves the company’s “conservative forecast.”

Software Review 68

Software Review Startup Post-Money Valuation Technical Review 68

Gust

NOVEMBER 22, 2011

If you are looking for an outside investor, you need to know how they see you. Different types of investors look for startups at different levels of maturity. If your startup is at the wrong stage for the investor you are approaching, fishing for money is a waste of time for both of you. Growth stage.

Venture Capital 171

Venture Capital Investment Bankers Angel Investor Initial Public Offering 171

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

” “Mark has a vested interest in talking down valuations of startups.” Most prefer not to say this publicly for two reasons: 1) they have an entire portfolio of startups, many of whom are raising capital and 2) they prefer not to be attacked publicly or seem “anti entrepreneur.” goes into a startup.

Valuation 150

Valuation Down Round Startup Later Stage 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 3, 2010

We are talking about angel investors here, meaning people who invest their own money in early-stage startups for a share of the equity. Generally, the same criteria applies to venture capital investors, although they invest other people’s money, at a later stage, in larger amounts. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Groups 121

Angel Groups Angel Investor Early Stage Later Stage 121

pandodaily.com

NOVEMBER 29, 2012

I’ve been hearing about the so-called Series A Crunch for at least six months, and in recent weeks, I’ve spoken with more than 20 venture capitalists, angel investors, incubator heads, lawyers, and other necessary cogs in the ecosystem trying to get some details about it. A name like 500 Startups says it all.

Technical Review 93

Technical Review Silicon Valley Incubator Syria 93

Growthink Blog

MAY 10, 2012

You see, equity capital is raised in stages or rounds. The five main stages include the following: 1. Early Stage Investment (Series A & B) 4. Later Stage Investment (Series C, D, and so on) 5. Put everything else on your "wish list" to buy with revenues from sales or additional financing. read more.

Equity 88

Equity Mezzanine Later Stage Venture Capital 88

Berkonomics

JUNE 8, 2017

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). And even with the significant cost of credit card debt, many entrepreneurs aggressively use existing cards to finance a startup.

Private Equity 106

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 106

Hippoland

AUGUST 31, 2018

He has done incredibly well financially on his past two startups, and he’s now building his 3rd company. But Sand Hill VCs who are known for being Series A investors are serving this stage. And companies typically have $2m-$3m revenue runrate at this point. This was surprising to me.

Pre-Money Valuation 90

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Early Stage 90

Gust

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

How to finance a new seed-stage startup? Turn the question on its head: How could it make sense to lend money to a brand new, seed-stage company with no revenue, no products, and no collateral? (You Convertible debt? Convertible equity? You won’t see banks doing that.)

Finance 134

Finance Convertible Security Equity Seed Stage 134

Hippoland

AUGUST 31, 2018

He has done incredibly well financially on his past two startups, and he’s now building his 3rd company. But Sand Hill VCs who are known for being Series A investors are serving this stage. And companies typically have $2m-$3m revenue runrate at this point. This was surprising to me.

Pre-Money Valuation 48

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Early Stage 48

Altgate

MARCH 8, 2009

I say ecosystem as opposed to industry because it is not just the VC funds themselves that are imploding, instead the collapse includes entrepreneurs and startups that were funded by VCs, angel investors, service providers like lawyers, bankers and accountants as well as limited partner investors in VC funds.

Later Stage 34

Later Stage Early Stage Venture Capital Portfolio 34

www.gabrielweinberg.com

AUGUST 28, 2012

Three years ago we (my wife and I) started angel investing. We set aside $250K to make initial $25K investments in ten startups, and possibly invest more in follow-on rounds if it made sense. It also means practically that you see a logical path to $3-5M in revenue. Location agnostic. Theme agnostic. Try to actively add value.

Valuation 54

Valuation Syndicate Syndication Angel Investor 54

Berkonomics

JANUARY 20, 2010

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder is able to self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). And even with the significant cost of credit card debt, many entrepreneurs aggressively use existing cards to finance a startup.

Private Equity 69

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 69

techcrunch.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Problem was, I seemed to suck at the whole startup thing. Rather, I didn’t have anyone around me familiar enough with startups to tell me that I was doing it all wrong. One of the things I do as a founder of a later stage startup is to meet with early stage entrepreneurs to help them get their companies going.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84