Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014

It’s like we need a finance 101 course for entrepreneurs. In finance they call it “terminal value” but the truth is the price is as arbitrary at your A round as it is at your seed round. I know how to structure around that to protect the founders from getting screwed on a multiple liquidation preference.

venture capital 417

venture capital capital ventures finance 417

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 29, 2014

This week I wrote about obsessive and competitive founders and how this forms the basis of what I look for when I invest. And that’s what differentiates founders and early employees. So even after raising a $16 million A-round I still paid myself a paltry salary. So I did, in fact, invest in myself. They choose a different path.

startup founder 409

startup founder investing investment founder 409

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 3, 2015

We are big believers in their long-term vision and potential, have led their first 2 rounds of financings and are excited to have investment partners such as Gary Vaynerchuk, Related Companies, and Tim Ferriss on the journey with us.

founder 363

founder ecology sustainability culture 363

Entrepreneurs' Organization

AUGUST 4, 2023

As an entrepreneur or founder starting a business, you may think of capital as purely monetary. Unfortunately, without a solid grasp of how capital — in its many different forms — can influence a business, too many founders make decisions early on in their companies that have unintended consequences down the line.

entrepreneurs 230

entrepreneurs capital founder culture 230

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

And the loosening of federal monetary policies, particularly in the US, has pushed more dollars into the venture ecosystems at every stage of financing. What Has Changed in Financing? They might be ideas they hatch internally (via a Foundry) or a founder who just left SpaceX and raises money to search for an idea.

ventures 471

ventures VC venture capital funders 471

American Entrepreneurship

JULY 15, 2024

The four co-founders are continuing to pass major milestones with an acquisition strategy and timely funding since its launch in 2017 Drivers’ parking experiences around the country are now being enhanced through artificial intelligence, enabling them to readily come and go without checking out. The financing included $1.05

financing 105

financing finance real estate strategy 105

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

They''re new to the gig, super excited about all its potential, and getting out there selling founders hope for that one big gamechanging deal. That''s really all I have to give to the founders I back. It takes longer to get to know the founders. I gave the founder some thoughtful feedback, but declined the one on one.

pitching 369

pitching finance financing incubation 369

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 12, 2014

These companies didn''t announce their financings right away, and for good reason. They''re building up their PR plans to make the financing announcements part of a larger story arc. Sometimes it means establishing founder credibility over time to prospective future investors or to potential employees.

startup 402

startup construction venture capital finance 402

A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

JULY 19, 2021

Over the last 18 months, the early-stage financing market has seen dramatic changes characterized by these three things: A shift from in-person fundraising to virtual fundraising A reduction in financing process timelines from months to weeks A continued increase in the amount of capital available for early stage companies.

board 276

board financing finance sustainability 276

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 28, 2013

Every time he opens his mouth about founder diversity, he seems completely out of his league to address the topic. The biggest question I think VC''s face right now is whether or not, in the future, the best founders will look and act like the best founders of the past. That''s less than 10%. That''s 25%.

venture capital 410

venture capital VC ventures capital 410

Entrepreneurs' Organization

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

What better way to recognize these hard-working innovators than by showcasing female founders who have been featured on EO’s Wonder podcast ? Her guests include the women driving innovation, evolution and revolution in every industry imaginable—including IT, fitness, marketing, nutrition, finance and fashion. Listen here. Listen here.

entrepreneurship 320

entrepreneurship entrepreneurs financing finance 320

Entrepreneurs' Organization

JUNE 19, 2024

This experience allowed me to identify a critical void in financing companies: building healthy capital stacks and navigating the public offering process. With no revenue three years in and an ever-increasing pile of expenses, my personal finances took a hit. Loans replaced savings, and credit lines were stretched to their limits.

entrepreneurship 261

entrepreneurship mentorship financing finance 261

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 4, 2022

For most founders, fundraising is a struggle. I’m a straight white dude who grew up in NYC and worked in finance. What’s that investor going to be like in a board meeting when you as a female founder need their support or worse, actually their vote? I’d argue that the answer is no, but that’s easy for me to say, right?

finance 417

finance financing board VC 417

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 14, 2015

Well, my friend Tom Potter, who I know as a fellow kayaker, but who is much better known as the co-founder of Brooklyn Brewery, is making that happen. Tom is partnering with Vidrik Frankfather, who has been in the finance industry for 16 years. Maybe like a fund."

investing 350

investing investment entrepreneurship finance 350

A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

The founder and CEO of our portfolio company Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, explained this well in a tweetstorm last week: He ended with this tweet: Recently Apple announced a way for developers to suggest updates to the App Store policies. We'll keep you updated on what we hear back.

finance 72

finance financing development innovation 72

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 7, 2014

5 million was always the classic definition of an A-round between the late nineties (crazy financings aside) and say 2007. Entrepreneurs started demanding that VCs call their first-round financings “seed” rounds even if they were $3 million. and there''s always a but]. I saw this myself a few times in a row.

VC 399

VC advice finance financing 399

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

I first met Andrew Stalbow , the founder & CEO of Seriously in August of 2013. and Petri was co-founder and head of creative at Remedy Entertainment that launched the hit PC games Max Payne and Alan Wake. By September 26th we had submitted a term sheet which was signed on October 4th and financing was closed in less than 30 days.

media 373

media education VC financing 373

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

Clearly the founders and senior executives of a company are the most valuable resources and their time should be maximized on the most valuable tasks. I watched Ophir Tanz achieve much in his early days at the Founder & CEO at GumGum, which has now become quite a large business. I have written about the next phases many times.

board 338

board energy financing finance 338

Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative

MARCH 31, 2020

2018 YLAI fellow Kenishia Mais is the founder of ThrivingDollars , a financial education platform empowering young adults with the tools and resources they need to make smarter decisions, create their ideal financial lives, and gain the freedom to pursue more of what they love.

entrepreneurship 245

entrepreneurship financing finance education 245

Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 2, 2020

Contributed by Madhavan Sivashankar , chief executive officer and founder, Gulf International Finance Limited. Madhavan Sivashankar is the CEO and founder of Gulf International Finance Limited , a regulated firm based in the Dubai International Finance Centre. Life’s not about how hard of a hit you can give.

financing 235

financing finance innovation culture 235

Entrepreneurs' Organization

JULY 6, 2020

Brad says: “Talk to people you trust, whether they’re investors, board members, co-founders, mentors, whatever; make sure you’re open about the stress and the struggle you’re going through both financially in the business and personally.” I can personally attest that it’s very easy for a startup CEO to feel alone and isolated.

peer-to-peer 328

peer-to-peer startup advice entrepreneurs 328

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2015

I am reminded of this problem every time my firm does a financing where a note went before us but more specifically I was reminded by this great post by Brad Feld to talk about the pre-money vs. post-money conversion issue. So how DOES a VC think about financings at early stages? It’s very simple. Those are the big three.

VC 364

VC finance financing board 364

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2021

The culture is driven by the 20-something irreverent founder with huge technical chops who in a “David vs. Goliath” mythology take on the titans of industry and wins. But markets have changed and I think investors, founders and experienced executives who want to join later-stage startups can all benefit from playing the long game.

venture capital 363

venture capital capital ventures VC 363

A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

MAY 30, 2019

We are not opposed to convertible and SAFE notes and will not let the form of security the founder wants to use get between us and investing in a company that we like. But I continue to think that convertible and SAFE notes are not in the best interests of the founder(s). They obfuscate the amount of dilution the founder(s) is taking.

finance 210

finance financing VC venture capital 210

Dream It

JULY 29, 2020

Today, the company announced closing $1M in additional seed financing. The round was led by Tech Council Ventures with participation from Boston Millennia Partners Founders Fund and Front Row Fund, who join existing investors including IP Group, Dreamit Ventures, and Ben Franklin Technology Partners.

health 221

health enablement financing finance 221

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 24, 2014

Helping companies get to next financing round successfully: I was just beginning this phase in Sept 2010 and said so. I’ve now been involved with many other successful foll0w-on financings. Sourcing high-quality leads : 9/10. Working with early-stage teams : coaching, mentoring, setting strategy, rolling up sleeves: 9/10.

VC 387

VC venture capital finance financing 387

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

why the hell has seed financing declined so much in the past 3 years?? And this era ushered in by Amazon changed everything from the age of founders to the skill sets required to the structure of the VC industry and even to the layout of cities (yes, I would proclaim that boldly that Amazon AWS affected city development).

investing 328

investing investment VC venture capital 328

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

I’m very worried about any company that has moderate growth plans for 2023 that expects to get another round of financing based on that result. To me, that has a high chance of putting off the inevitable—running out of money during a fundraising process. Maybe the middle ground is not putting away your experiments.

VC 415

VC startup accelerator financing 415

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 2, 2015

Most founders barely have anything that looks like anything at this point, and most of them haven''t done this before. The founders I backed aren''t VCs (well, except Dave ) so I don''t know if that is such a great signal. Obviously, there''s a wide spectrum of founders trying to raise money.

pitching 368

pitching peer-to-peer venture capital creativity 368

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 6, 2015

BBV has talked proudly about its large number of female founders. When you think back to your time at USV, FRC and BBV, can you identify a time you passed on a founder because of a blind spot or unconscious bias you possessed at the time and if so, what did you do going forward to not make the mistake again? There''s literally nothing.

VC 390

VC collaboration disruption founder 390

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

This happens slowly because while public markets trade daily and prices then adjust instantly, private markets don’t get reset until follow-on financing rounds happen which can take 6–24 months. But it will be patiently deployed, waiting for a cohort of founders who aren’t artificially clinging to 2021 valuation metrics.

VC 416

VC strategy investing investment 416

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2018

Because we hadn’t raised much money, me and my co-founder didn’t take much in salary—but as things started to look like they weren’t going to work out, we took less and less. Personal finance is a thing that no one likes to talk about. That’s when things really went off the rails and my debt started to pile up.

finance 286

finance financing pitching founder 286

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

In 2010, Antonio Garcia Martinez, the founder of AdGrok, wrote, “New York will always be a tech backwater, I don’t care what Chris Dixon or Ron Conway or Paul Graham say.” Top founders want to live in a place where employees are serious about working hard. Startup founders always need help. You need both.

communities 434

communities startup real estate mentorship 434

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

I left the meeting and had to attend a 3-hour board meeting where two founders have been fighting and each want the other one fired. But your co-founder had been senior at one of the big enterprise software companies and if I remember correctly American Express had run a big pilot with you. Some were interesting, some weren’t.

pitching 381

pitching board funders entrepreneurs 381

Entrepreneurs' Organization

OCTOBER 27, 2023

We summarize these pearls of wisdom in our new book, Smart Startups: What Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know — Advice from 18 Harvard Business School Founders. For the HBS founders we interviewed, there was no “lightbulb moment” for their startup idea. Here are three key pieces of wisdom to get you started.

entrepreneurs 255

entrepreneurs startup advice angel investing 255

Revolution

MARCH 1, 2023

This post highlights what has happened and what might be coming for investors and founders. And what does this mean for founders? For founders, valuation resets often mean “down rounds” where unrealized employee wealth evaporates seemingly overnight, with the corresponding morale problem.

advice 147

advice founder finance financing 147

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MAY 28, 2021

Contributed by Julia L F Goldstein, the founder of JLFG Communications , which helps businesses share their world-changing ideas through clear and concise content. Entrepreneurs, however, usually call themselves founders or CEOs. I can see listing my title as founder but don’t feel comfortable saying I’m a CEO.

entrepreneurs 306

entrepreneurs strategy sustainability financing 306