View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

There’s been a lot of digital ink spilled around the various types of capital available to startups today. As a startup grows, venture debt becomes a viable option to continue that growth. Glen is an active contributor to the local tech ecosystem and well-versed in how and when startups can use venture debt to their advantage.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

Pascal's View

JULY 9, 2017

Andrew Krowne and I recently co-wrote an article in Tech Crunch , Why SAFE Notes Are Not Safe for Entrepreneurs. This is a fundamental issue that does, indeed, boil down to understanding the post-money valuation of a company. There is nothing wrong with using a SAFE or a convertible note in a startup if you know its implications.

Post-Money Valuation 49

Post-Money Valuation Valuation Cap Table Covenant 49

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

More and more startups are pursuing Revenue-Based VCs , but “RBI” doesn’t fit everyone. Yes, via conversion rights at a valuation cap. Yes, via conversion rights at a valuation cap. See Why Are Revenue-Based Investors Investing in Women & Diverse Entrepreneurs? Of the Inc. 5000 companies, only 6.5% raised from angels.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

Agile VC

APRIL 17, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Post-money valuation probably no higher than $12M (2). Pre-money valuation was initially set higher but was adjusted to match the Ser B valuation. Pre-money valuation was approx. Pre-money valuation was approx. Pre-money valuation was at least $250M (2).

Pre-Money Valuation 113

Pre-Money Valuation Liquidation Preference Dividend Common Stock 113

Gust

OCTOBER 12, 2011

During the summer of 2010, I developed a workshop, A New ACEF Valuation Workshop for Angels and Entrepreneurs. To provide some reference points, I surveyed thirteen angels groups in North American to determine their recent experience in negotiating the pre-money valuation of pre-revenue companies. Current Average. up slightly.

Angel Groups 125

Angel Groups Valuation Pre-Money Valuation St. Louis 125

thebarefootvc

MAY 8, 2012

The best VCs are the ones that balance their optimism, vision and enthusiasm for startups with realism based on very real constraints (the primary one being his/her own time, but also includes market development and exit timing). As an entrepreneur at heart, I often innately grasp the potential of entrepreneurs and ideas that I meet with.

Venture Capital 78

Venture Capital Syndicate Syndication Bandwidth 78

Agile VC

MAY 26, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Salesforce.com is a startup with 76,000 subscribers (over 2.1M I also joke with Reid Hoffman that this was back in the days before he was “Reid” Reid’s an incredible entrepreneur, startup investor, and human being. How to Evaluate Firms for a Seed VC.

Term Sheet 178

Term Sheet Silicon Valley Technical Review Social Network 178

Genuine VC

MAY 29, 2014

Yet even today, whether or not to take a (relatively) small check in a seed round syndicate from a multi-hundred million or even billion dollar fund is still a decision which takes quite a bit of consideration and sometimes consternation. So there is an element of (positive) selection bias in the larger VC syndicate cohort companies.

Syndicate 166

Syndicate Syndication Seed Stage Valuation 166

View from Seed

JUNE 10, 2020

of teams’ online pitch decks and recorded videos, as well as loved the dozens of second-round video conversations which we had with Founders working on quite compelling startups. So in this blog post, we wanted to expand upon three aspects that aren’t typical to the usual Accelerator model. .

Cofounder 177

Cofounder Syndicate Syndication Alabama 177

View from Seed

AUGUST 20, 2014

It seems like a high-class problem for an entrepreneur to be able to influence round composition, and it is. How should an entrepreneur think about the different types of investors affecting their seed and Series A rounds? But I find that once a company has investor interest, many other folks tend to want to pile on.

Startup 301

Startup Syndicate Syndication Boston 301

Gust

OCTOBER 20, 2011

In 2011, the valuation of pre-revenue, start-up companies is typically in the range of $1.5–$2.5 million and is established by negotiations between the entrepreneur and the angel investors. Scorecard Valuation Methodology. In most regions, the pre-money valuation does not vary significantly from one business sector to another.

Valuation 146

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Intellectual Property Technical Review 146

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

Of course these are great places to network with other investors, meet great entrepreneurs and keep your connections strong with senior execs at larger companies like Yahoo!, But it’s very easy to be flattered into “here’s why we want YOU as an investor” by entrepreneurs and earlier-stage investors alike.

Cofounder 374

Cofounder Syndicate Syndication Early Stage 374

Genuine VC

JULY 30, 2012

In theory, there are three levels of pricing for an entrepreneur to potentially signal to a prospective investor: Lower than “market.” This approach is almost never a good idea. By definition, all entrepreneurs should think that their endeavor is truly exceptional. Above market.

Valuation 136

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Angel Investor Syndicate 136

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 3, 2014

The NYC startup community maintains a positive, supportive atmosphere. I was just noticing that a professional acquaintance of mine just changed jobs for the third time in two years--going from startup to startup to startup without, ostensibly, accomplishing much at any of the companies. At what valuation?

Syndicate 124

Syndicate Syndication Venture Capital Valuation 124

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

The only problem that faces startup investors now is how to mine this new data layer efficiently to increase returns.”. Chris Dixon, Partner, A16Z, observes , “ Success in VC is probably 10% about picking, and 90% about sourcing the right deals and having entrepreneurs choose your firm as a partner”. 3) Originate investments.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2015

*. If you are a 20-something tech entrepreneur you could be forgiven for thinking that seed-stage investors, Angellist Syndicates and widely available angel money always existed. I was out to raise my first seed money in my second startup of $500,000. I was out to raise my first seed money in my second startup of $500,000.

Seed Stage 150

Seed Stage Silicon Valley Syndicate Syndication 150

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 29, 2015

Now that everyone is overly focused on unicorns, the headline number on the valuation (e.g. Company X raised Y at a valuation of Z from A, B, and C) has crept into the story on big rounds. While this makes for press release fodder and ego gratification, it’s of very little use to entrepreneurs. financing of Mattermark.

Atlanta 70

Atlanta Valuation Term Sheet Finance 70

Agile VC

FEBRUARY 28, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Startups in NextView’s portfolio frequently receive inbound interest from other VC investors who are intrigued about what they’re doing, and I often talk with other early-stage entrepreneurs how to approach similar situations. February 28, 2012.

Early Stage 100

Early Stage Syndicate Syndication Silicon Valley 100

Agile VC

MAY 21, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. There’s also a meaningful cohort of newly public companies that now have valuations of $1B+ who could seriously contemplate an acquisition of $100M+ for stock or cash… Yelp, Zillow, Tripadvisor, Jive Software, Splunk, and others. How to Evaluate Firms for a Seed VC. May 21, 2012.

Acquisition 162

Acquisition Silicon Valley B2B Seed Stage 162

View from Seed

JANUARY 26, 2016

It’s become increasingly common for startups to raise several seed rounds, and this has led to a bifurcation in the seed stage between what are known as “pre-seed” (or “genesis”) and institutional seed rounds. The entire funding progression of startups pushed out to the right.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Early Stage Cofounder Finance 120

Agile VC

JANUARY 27, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Something has clearly changed within the last 5-6 years in terms of the speed with which monster startups are created in the software and internet space. Multi-billion dollar valuations for late stage startups like Dropbox, et al. Are Google-Scale Outcomes More Frequent?

Hockey Stick 113

Hockey Stick Seed Stage Silicon Valley Syndicate 113

Agile VC

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Providence Equity invested $100M at a $1B valuation not because of their technology or product, but because the network owners contributed a lot of valuable content… or at least access to it for 2years. Im a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur turned East Coast VC. Read More ».

Silicon Valley 100

Silicon Valley Seed Stage Syndicate Syndication 100

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 1, 2010

Many firms do it in a way that can be more detrimental to entrepreneurs. We’ll probably end up paying more than we’d want to because we want to take the investment off the market and the entrepreneur will likely feel they should get a higher price if they shopped it broadly on the open market.

Post-Money Valuation 298

Post-Money Valuation Term Sheet Warrant Partner 298

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

Small investment firms often have interns and entrepreneurs in residence passing through, each of which is a security risk. 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. 2) Market .

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Each has a process in place to accept applications or recommendations for investment into new companies, and to review these and make decisions based upon their exploration, previous experience in the field, knowledge of the company or industry, or about individual entrepreneurs. Some can supply more when syndicating with other such groups.

Equity 62

Equity Finance Liquidity Event Angel Groups 62

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 2, 2014

I’ve seen a few cases now where a number of very high-quality institutional investors were interested in investing in a company at valuation, but a non-institutional investor was willing to set terms 1.5 – 2X higher than that valuation. All in all, this is good for entrepreneurs. Alternative funding sources.

Cram Down 66

Cram Down Institutional Investors Dilution Seed Stage 66

Tim Keane

APRIL 12, 2006

Startups and angels: Along the way to success. Ten questions the entrepreneur should ask the (prospective) investor. If they’re making it as part of a group that the entrepreneur likes, fine. valuation than the previous round. If the investors ideal size is smaller than your need, you ought to ask about syndication.

Entrepreneur 60

Entrepreneur Valuation Sweat Equity Common Stock 60

Professor VC

JULY 25, 2013

This is the feeling you get from watching the venture capitalists talk about the entrepreneurs and other investors in the film. Startup outcomes tend to be very binary. I''m all for transparency, but won''t be naming names in this post as I don''t want to put some entrepreneurs in a difficult position.

Term Sheet 46

Term Sheet Silicon Valley Syndicate Syndication 46

View from Seed

JANUARY 28, 2016

But let’s make this more concrete in the context of an entrepreneur raising a round: How NextView Approaches Pre-Seed Rounds. This is the best time to fundraise because that’s when you are able to command a meaningfully higher valuation for your next round to minimize your own dilution.

Cofounder 120

Cofounder Finance Founder Syndicate 120

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2010

I know many super experienced entrepreneurs who don’t understand the basics of how fund size and age can affect them so I thought it was worth establishing a baseline. In a world of The Funded, VentureHacks and entrepreneur blogs this kind of informations spreads like wildfire. Let me explain: 1. And they don’t.

Venture Capital 265

Venture Capital Term Sheet Early Stage Silicon Valley 265

Austin Startup

DECEMBER 20, 2010

A group of seasoned Austin technology entrepreneurs and executives are announcing the formation of their new company, Mass Relevance , to help consumer brand use real-time social content to drive engagement on television, the web, and in the mobile world. Does this prove the “garage startup&# is a valid way to get off the ground?

Curation 118

Curation Austin Cofounder Ruby 118

www.gabrielweinberg.com

AUGUST 28, 2012

We set aside $250K to make initial $25K investments in ten startups, and possibly invest more in follow-on rounds if it made sense. I syndicated (helped them put together the round) in five: Notehall, MyZamana, Locately, Zippykid, and Instinct. Get an edge (lower valuations, better deal flow, etc.) Beware of the acquihire.

Valuation 54

Valuation Syndicate Syndication Angel Investor 54

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2010

A reminder that it is important for all entrepreneurs is to remember to be careful about “deal drift.” We were trying to optimize around a few criteria: price, size of round, number of syndicate partners and, of course, terms. million at a $15 million pre-money valuation. We ended up agreeing a term sheet for $16.5

Technical Review 301

Technical Review Term Sheet Due Diligence Venture Capital 301

Agile VC

FEBRUARY 2, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. I recently wrote a post noting that while the growth cycle of startups has clearly accelerated in the last 5 years, the number of truly monster new businesses (a company ultimately worth $75-100B) remains about the same … it’s a once in a decade sort of thing. February 2, 2012.

IPO 100

IPO South Korea Venezuela Revenue 100

Rob Go

JANUARY 7, 2013

We have pretty strong guidelines internally about how much capital we want to invest in a given company, at what valuation, and thus, what ownership we are looking for. Tom Brady Entrepreneurs: 8. Introduced by other entrepreneurs: 6. Syndicate Composition: NextView + Seed Funds + Angels: 9. 5 are in other locations.

Portfolio 49

Portfolio Seed Stage Cofounder B2B 49

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 8, 2010

The founders felt that having a legitimate site for content would discourage Silicon Valley VC’s from funding entrepreneurs to create the next big TV killer. They raised $100 million from Providence Equity Partners at a $1 billion valuation and have thus proven that they understand that a degree of independence is vital for their success.

Video 292

Video Technical Review Advertising Distribution 292

Rob Go

JANUARY 28, 2016

But let’s make this more concrete in the context of an entrepreneur raising a round: How NextView Approaches Pre-Seed Rounds. This is the best time to fundraise because that’s when you are able to command a meaningfully higher valuation for your next round to minimize your own dilution.

Cofounder 28

Cofounder Finance Founder Syndicate 28