Key to Startup Success, Purity of Motivation, Compelling Value Proposition

Imagining the future is not a science but an art. This description from Botha about what he is looking for is qualitative: “The key to start-up success is purity of motivation… If they can weave a believable story with a compelling value proposition, they’ll have us hooked.” (source infra)

A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Roelof Botha about Venture Capital and Business | 25iq: "Many businesses described by founders as needing venture capital are really just small businesses looking for what amounts to small business finance. The people who start these businesses are genuine entrepreneurs. Often they are better off with bootstrap financing or borrowing money in the form of a loan. The businesses created by these entrepreneurs are very important businesses, and a key part of building an economy and creating jobs. But they are not the sort of businesses that are suitable for venture investing. Again, that’s OK.  the total amount of venture financing is overall a relatively small part of an economy. Because of its impact on innovation and productivity venture capital punches far above its weight in terms of impact, but the absolute dollar amount invested per year is relatively small." (read more at link above)


more news below

Follow @vcexp

Unshackled, New Angel Fund, Backs Immigrant Entrepreneurs

Unshackled, a New Angel Fund, Forms to Back Immigrant Entrepreneurs - Venture Capital Dispatch - WSJ: Some of the U.S.’s most successful tech companies, including Intel Corp.INTC +0.80% and Google Inc.GOOGL -0.22%, have been built by immigrants, and many people who come to the U.S. aspire to work in or start tech companies. Without work visas, though, they don’t get far. A new San Francisco-based angel fund, Unshackled, which claims more than 50 individuals and funds as investors, has raised a $3.5 million fund to try to change that. Started by an immigrant, Nitin Pachisia, and the son of immigrants, Manan Mehta, Unshackled will hire entrepreneurs as employees, providing them with a paycheck, work visas and health benefits while they try to build their startups to the point where they can raise another round....(read more at the link above)

unshackled.co

Investors include First Round Capital, 500 Startups, Structure Capital, Brad Feld of Foundry Group and Techstars, AngelList founder Naval Ravikant, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, AME Cloud Ventures led by Jerry Yang, and Emerson Collective founded by Laurene Powell Jobs.

more news below


Follow @vcexp

Hedge Funds Boosting Tech Valuations to Dangerous Highs

"Hedge funds and mutual funds that once shunned venture-style deals are flocking to the market’s hottest corner, paying 15 to 18 times projected sales for the year ahead in recent private-funding rounds, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. That compares with 10 to 12 times five years ago for the priciest companies, one said. While some of the startups may become profitable, others are consuming cash and could fail. The torrid action is spurring talk that 15 years after the collapse of the Internet bubble, the market may be setting itself up for another bruising fall. “Some of the valuations are mind-boggling,” said Sven Weber, investment manager of the Menlo Park, California-based SharesPost 100 Fund, which backs late-stage tech startups...." read more at Hedge Funds Are Boosting Tech Valuations to Dangerous Heights - Bloomberg Business


more news below

Follow @vcexp

Go Public or Go Home? The Pros and Cons of IPOs (video)

Go Public or Go Home: The Pros and Cons of IPOs -

Benchmark Capital's Bill Gurley, Social + Capital Partnership's Chamath Palihapitiya and SurveyMonkey's Dave Goldberg discuss the evolving role of venture capitalists and debate the pros and cons of going public. They speak on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg West." (Source: Bloomberg)

more news below

Follow @vcexp