NZ Entrepreneur

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

While capital to large tech companies is increasing, smaller rounds for early-stage companies is drying up. This decline has also become evident in startup accelerator programs shifting their focus on later-stage scale-ups that provide higher returns. Each stage of tech company growth has unique challenges.

Developer 68

Developer Early Stage Later Stage Acquisition 68

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 30, 2011

With more competition in early-stage many VCs are investing smaller amounts at earlier stages. Some are going later stage to not miss out on hot deals. I call this “stage drift.&#. Brick wall = lost money for early-stage capital primarily concentrated on angels. The Coming Brick Wall.

Venture Capital 289

Venture Capital Early Stage Valuation Angel Investor 289

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

There’s a quick litmus-test conversation any early-stage VC will have with the founder and it’s one that you should be as prepared for as your elevator pitch. One entrepreneur refrain I sometimes hear is “We want to raise some extra money for M&A activities.” It goes something like this … VC: “How much money are you raising?”

Burn Rate 247

Burn Rate Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Dilution 247

David Teten

MAY 9, 2012

I am very happy to announce today a new program I’ve been working on designed to support women and diverse entrepreneurs, particularly those in the technology sector. VCAP© Addresses the Gap between Venture Capital and Funding for Women and Diverse Entrepreneurs. for non-diverse firms.

Venture Capital 154

Venture Capital Programming Accredited Investor New York 154

David Teten

JUNE 22, 2012

HBS Angels of NY and the NAIC have named the finalist women and minority entrepreneurs of the Venture Capital Access Program; check out the press release below. VCAP© is a collaborative venture that provides women and diverse entrepreneurs nationwide with access to venture capital through accredited investors within the HBSAANY network.

Programming 128

Programming Accredited Investor Naming New York 128

David Teten

JUNE 22, 2012

HBS Angels of NY and the NAIC have named the finalist women and minority entrepreneurs of the Venture Capital Access Program; check out the press release below. VCAP© is a collaborative venture that provides women and diverse entrepreneurs nationwide with access to venture capital through accredited investors within the HBSAANY network.

Programming 114

Programming Accredited Investor Naming New York 114

The Equity Kicker

OCTOBER 14, 2014

Then, if you press them for more detail most will say that for them the team is the most important (although I think they say that at least partly because it’s what entrepreneurs want to hear). Early stage investors like Forward Partners look for a minimum of a great entrepreneur and a great idea.

Early Stage 123

Early Stage Institutional Investors Venture Capital Startup 123

Up and Running

AUGUST 17, 2015

As I read stories of college dropouts who had successfully sold tech companies, or entrepreneurs with innovative ideas who made it big on Shark Tank, it became clear that there was no set path to startup success. In many ways, the startup process requires the founding team to be irrationally optimistic about success at every stage.

Entrepreneur 60

Entrepreneur Cofounder Angel Investor eCommerce 60

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

I recently read a post over on VentureHacks titled, “ Top Ten Reasons Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers &# written by Scott Walker (who blogs on legal issues for entrepreneurs ). They want to lock in future clients at an early stage. I know that people have an allergy to lawyers out of fear of being screwed.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 13, 2013

Many Asian entrepreneurs tell me that they want to raise funds from Silicon Valley firms because they perceive the valuations to be higher. But the problem with this is that most VCs in the Valley, especially early stage ones, only like to invest in companies that are within driving distance from their offices.

Asia 132

Asia Silicon Valley India Term Sheet 132

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 22, 2010

And for some strange reason entrepreneurs didn’t share this information. I’ve started from day one trying to build total transparency into my process with entrepreneurs. This starts with understanding how VCs and entrepreneurs often see valuation differently. Back then VentureHacks didn’t exist.

Valuation 405

Valuation Liquidation Preference Pre-Money Valuation Term Sheet 405

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

In venture capital in particular, early-stage companies are often operating in frontier industries, where the rules are unpredictable and conventional analytic frameworks may be misleading. The Pocket Negotiator is very early-stage attempt to aid in the negotiating process itself. . 3) Originate investments.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 27, 2014

We both agree that the later-stage valuations are being driven up to a point that feels irrationally priced [he uses b-round SaaS valuations as an example and I am willing to be even more broad based]. While this is temporarily a good thing for entrepreneurs it will turn sour when we go through the next inevitable downturn.

Valuation 309

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Non-Compete Later Stage 309

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

I have conversations with entrepreneurs and other VCs on a daily basis about fund raising, the prices of deals, how much companies should raise, etc. The earlier you invest the higher the chances the company won’t work out and thus you pay a lower price than later-stage investors. So how exactly are prices determined?

Pre-Money Valuation 336

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Stock 336

Gust

JANUARY 4, 2012

Many thanks to David Rose , Ilana Grossman , Justin Stanwix , and the whole Gust team for making the Gust Blog such a valuable platform and resource for entrepreneurs and angel investors. The amount of investment in IP in any direct sense is generally small for early stage startups. In practice, this leads many U.S.

Intellectual Property 143

Intellectual Property IP Startup United States 143

Austin Startup

MAY 11, 2017

Our unique approach to investing, coupled with a pioneering spirit, provides the vision to guide early stage growth companies beyond today and toward future success. Aspect Ventures | Aligned VC We believe that the interests of investors and entrepreneurs can and should be aligned.

Private Equity 48

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Seed Stage 48

Steve Blank

JUNE 11, 2009

Other Roles in a Startup Generic advice given to entrepreneurs assumes that everyone is going to be the founder/co-founder. Yet for every founder there are 10-20 other employees who take the near-equivalent risks in joining an early-stage company. Founders know they want to start something. But make sure it fits who you are.

Cofounder 219

Cofounder Founder Silicon Valley Technical Cofounder 219

View from Seed

JANUARY 5, 2016

This sounds tangential but is perhaps THE deciding factor for many early-stage employees or execs when joining you — perhaps alongside their insight into your talents as entrepreneurs.). Early Growth (Founding Team to ~20). What is our mission, and how do we articulate that consistently and succinctly?

Founder 120

Founder Cofounder Startup Early Stage 120

View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

From a company milestones perspective, entrepreneurs who take on venture debt are almost always thinking about raising that next round of capital from other institutions. GM: The model is more about the relationship with the entrepreneurs, the investors, and us as the bank, as opposed to cash flow or fixed assets to lend on.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 15, 2016

This has led VC & entrepreneur bloggers alike to similar conclusions: start raising capital early and be careful about having too high of a burn rate because that lessens the amount of runway you have until you need more cash. I’m surprised how few entrepreneurs have this open conversation with their investors.

Burn Rate 150

Burn Rate Cap Table Valuation Software Review 150

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 2, 2010

I’m writing this post to explain to entrepreneurs what you should be thinking about in terms of the VC’s you approach and the size and stage of their funds. A fund size of $25 – $100 million in normally an “early stage&# fund that is likely to do seed investments and/or smaller A round investments.

Venture Capital 269

Venture Capital Balance Sheet Early Stage Software Review 269

Feld Thoughts

JULY 13, 2014

I wish he had called it “This Unicorn Thing Is B t For Early Stage Investing” but I think he’s a little more restrained than I am. My original title for this post was “How Can This Be A Billion Dollar Company and other b t VCs ask early stage companies.” I don’t think so.

Later Stage 195

Later Stage Early Stage Valuation Seed Stage 195

David Teten

JULY 25, 2017

We also have a better known brand than some of our early stage companies, so we can leverage that to help source talent. A nalysis – One of the luxuries of being a VC is that we have a larger data set than most entrepreneurs of performance. N etwork – We organize events regularly to build out our community.

Portfolio 60

Portfolio Technical Review Private Equity Database 60

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2016

During the Q&A I was asked about how I make investment decisions in early-stage businesses. I was asked again in an LP meeting later in the week and then again at a founder breakfast gathering we hosted yesterday. I know that sounds trite but it’s the best way I can describe my early-stage investments.

Early Stage 254

Early Stage Non-Compete LP Later Stage 254

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 19, 2017

Thus, more entrepreneurs can rise up to the challenge and innovate. Venture capital fundraising can be divided into three stages: seed, early stage, and later stage. According to the same report by KPMG, the median deal size is the largest for later-stage funding, at $26 million.

Venture Capital 175

Venture Capital Asia Artificial Inteligence Later Stage 175

Seeing Both Sides

AUGUST 28, 2017

Early stage entrepreneurs will also still likely value experienced advice on company-building from seasoned venture capitalists. In short, token sales allow early stage companies to skip the series B round and beyond. Shift of value from equity holders to token holders. Fuzzy Governance. Seeking Liquidity.

Early Stage 20

Early Stage Equity Venture Capital Government 20

Seeing Both Sides

AUGUST 28, 2017

Early stage entrepreneurs will also still likely value experienced advice on company-building from seasoned venture capitalists. In short, token sales allow early stage companies to skip the series B round and beyond. Shift of value from equity holders to token holders. Fuzzy Governance. Seeking Liquidity.

Early Stage 20

Early Stage Equity Venture Capital Government 20

The Next Web

AUGUST 26, 2013

It’s part three of a series, cross-posted from his own blog , in which he draws on his experience to offer advice for aspiring entrepreneurs in Europe and beyond. They’ve worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs, and built huge tech companies themselves (e.g. Before you start talking to large VCs, find some early stage investors.

Management 120

Management Cofounder Startup Bootstrapping 120

The Equity Kicker

MARCH 10, 2014

As you can see from the graphs below the number of seed funds is growing very fast whilst the number of later stage funds is flat. For anyone running an early stage fund or accelerator programme that means you have to work like crazy to be the very best of the 278 funds investing in rounds of $1m and less.

Later Stage 142

Later Stage Early Stage Europe Green 142

Hippoland

OCTOBER 9, 2016

As an entrepreneur, you think your idea is unique. If you’re still in the early stages of your entrepreneur-education/journey, you may even think you need to protect your idea and not share it with anyone. Most entrepreneurs overpitch their ideas but underpitch how they’ve been executing.

Seed Stage 48

Seed Stage CTO Hire Email Later Stage 48

Austin Startup

JUNE 27, 2017

Looking for Funds in All the Right Places: The Definitive Guide to Austin Capital By David Altounian and Stephen Straus OVERVIEW For entrepreneurs: We’ve compiled a definitive list of sources of capital in Austin to help focus your fundraising efforts. We would also welcome seeing more high risk, high reward investing by the firms in Austin.

Venture Capital 54

Venture Capital Austin Texas Private Equity 54

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 20, 2014

I’ve written about this before, but I was reminded again a while back at a conference for startups when an entrepreneur started berating investors for not funding early-stage startups. Of course, I’m sure entrepreneurs sense that many investors feel entitled to deals with no risk. It’s bad news either way.

Later Stage 240

Later Stage Early Stage Equity Employee 240

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

However, most often, these funds are solicited by a well-meaning entrepreneur from investors who are not qualified as accredited investors under the law (currently requiring a proved income of $200,000 a year or $1 million in net worth for an individual investor).

Private Equity 118

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 118

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 12, 2020

Intellectual property can create trouble for startups in their early stages, and getting it right is a crucial aspect to running a successful business. The post Common Intellectual Property mistakes made by startups appeared first on NZ Entrepreneur Magazine. i) Assuming your intellectual property is not important.

Intellectual Property 91

Intellectual Property New Zealand Startup Early Stage 91

K9 Ventures

JUNE 5, 2015

I still wanted K9 to be the first institutional money in a company and work with “frighteningly early-stage” companies. As the check size increases, investors tend to look for more traction, established revenue models, proven unit-economics, and other metrics that were previously associated with later stage companies.

Seed Stage 48

Seed Stage Venture Capital Early Stage Valuation 48

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 30, 2018

One of the hardest things about the fund-raising process for entrepreneurs is that you’re trying to raise money from people who have “asymmetric information.” As an entrepreneur it can feel as intimidating as going to buy a car where the dealer knows the price of every make & model of a car and you’re guessing at how much to pay.

Valuation 324

Valuation Post-Money Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Cofounder 324

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 25, 2011

Yesterday I saw a Tweet from Chris Sacca fly by that prompted me to want to write a blog post helping entrepreneurs understand why they should push back against VCs asking for “super pro-rata” rights. Read: it’s an option for that investor and a super expensive one to you, the entrepreneur. Why should you care?

Entrepreneur 310

Entrepreneur Dilution Finance Silicon Valley 310