View from Seed

JUNE 11, 2019

Aside from the early commitments, the next most important thing to focus on is nailing down your lead investor. I’ve found that the lead investor will end up doing 90% of the work for a startup (or will cause 90% of the pain if you get the decision wrong). Often one of the leads in the mix is a larger, multi-stage fund.

Syndicate 202

Syndicate Syndication Seed Stage Lead Investor 202

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Lead investors are few. Leads that are true force-multipliers are exceedingly rare. Although seed funding has exploded since we started Nextview, we continue to hear the refrain from founders that there are tons of investors that will pile-in on a round that is coming together, but that lead investors are few and far between.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

David Teten

JANUARY 10, 2012

Howard Lindzon is Co-Founder and CEO of StockTwits, a social network for traders and investors to share real-time ideas and information. With a unique vision for starting and successfully managing innovative companies, he is the Managing Partner of Social Leverage, a holding company that invests in early stage web businesses.

Technical Review 128

Technical Review Technology North Carolina Switzerland 128

View from Seed

JANUARY 11, 2021

Kent Bennett from Bessemer Venture Partners spoke to this initial slow down: “ We couldn’t do anything until we understood the new normal. VCs have sourced from known founders and trusted networks to curb risk. This approach was echoed by investors at Underscore VC, Bloomberg Beta, Lerer Hippeau, and Upfront Ventures. .

Venture Capital 350

Venture Capital Cofounder Early Stage Seed Stage 350

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 17, 2023

I’m going to make the case that early stage venture *firms* who want to lead seed/A Rounds can be generalists (in the sense they have a set of GPs who cover a broad set of areas collectively), but that as a VC you, now more than ever, need some degree of focus. I’m not the only one noticing this change. and finally the FRC transformation.

Early Stage 88

Early Stage Lead Investor Matching Software 88

YoungUpstarts

MAY 1, 2020

by Ash Rust , founder and managing partner of Sterling Road. Most startups will need a viable product and proof of credibility before they can expect early-stage investors to really bite. Ideally, reach out to people from your past who have wealth, influence, or a network. Instead, approach your fundraising in tiers.

Early Stage 165

Early Stage Security Angel Investor Lead Investor 165

reidhoffman.org

NOVEMBER 12, 2013

× At Greylock , my partners and I are driven by one guiding mission: always help entrepreneurs. This gave me an idea: I could help many more entrepreneurs by making the deck available not just to the Greylock network of entrepreneurs, but to everyone. Friendster’s valuation set the tone for the entire social networking space.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Viral Revenue Networking 111

View from Seed

AUGUST 26, 2015

(And although this is written for angel investors, I think entrepreneurs can only benefit by increasing their knowledge around these investors and hope you’ll continue reading if that’s you. And if you just want to learn about different types of angels and what motivates each, my partner David has written about that before here.).

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Angel Investor Software Review Silicon Valley 120

View from Seed

AUGUST 26, 2015

(And although this is written for angel investors, I think entrepreneurs can only benefit by increasing their knowledge around these investors and hope you’ll continue reading if that’s you. And if you just want to learn about different types of angels and what motivates each, my partner David has written about that before here.).

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Angel Investor Software Review Silicon Valley 120

techcrunch.com

APRIL 26, 2013

In December, AngelList , a service that matches early-stage startups with investors, debuted the ability to allow accredited investors to actually invest in startups on the platform with as little as $1,000. AngelList also partnered with SecondMarket to create an investment vehicle for these investments. HTC One Review.

SEC 61

SEC Accredited Investor San Diego New York City 61

A Crowded Space

OCTOBER 3, 2018

Very shortly after I joined, Greg Gretsch (now my partner at Jackson Square Ventures) co-led oDesk’s Series A along with Venky Ganesan (partner at Menlo Ventures and lead investor in Rev.com). The correct answer is to closely manage the overall network – promote the good people and kick out the bad people.

San Francisco 60

San Francisco Bangladesh Ukraine Philippines 60

mashable.com

NOVEMBER 2, 2011

Look for Your Lead Investor. First you’ll want to find a lead investor — someone many other investors will recognize and respect. This list of top angel investors is a good start. Many angel investors will be significantly more comfortable if they know another respected investor has blessed the deal.

Social Media 80

Social Media Startup Angel Investor RSS 80

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 18, 2017

The opening keynote session will define directions on Aligning the Role of Government Policymakers, Incumbent Banks, FinTech Innovators, Investors, Multilateral Agencies, MNOs and the Private Sector to Create a Dynamic Ecosystem for FinTech in Africa.

Africa 62

Africa Ethiopia Elevator Pitch Technical Review 62

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2015

She had so much insight to share that we broke the interview into two parts, 1) Corporate Venture Capital and more broadly, 2) How the Fortune 500 Can Buy, Invest and Partner with the Innovation Economy (coming soon). . At Virgin Mobile USA, Mari led early initiatives in mobile commerce, social networking and advertising.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Balance Sheet Technical Review Portfolio 60

Hearpreneur

AUGUST 27, 2023

This person conducts regular one-on-one meetings with the chairman and lead investor. This method allows us to delve deep into the intricacies of our operations and the ergonomic industry, leading to well-informed decisions and a competitive edge in the market. #6-

Entrepreneur 118

Entrepreneur Australia Lead Investor Management 118

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 29, 2016

Just like professional investors wait for friends and family to go first, friends will wait for you to show “skin in the game.” A startup founder that is not the “lead investor” in time and money should not expect anyone else to jump in front and lead the way. Demonstrate your own financial commitment and progress.

Elevator Pitch 151

Elevator Pitch Exit Strategy Angel Investor Equity 151

View from Seed

OCTOBER 22, 2015

We’ve written before on how to research partners , how to pitch the right investor at a given firm, and how to raise seed capital , generally speaking. But it’s also useful to try and understand where exactly you are in the process with a particular investor. I’m going to discuss with our team here and then get back to you.”

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Due Diligence Seed Stage Seed Capital 120

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 10, 2022

What we were really building was the first professional network for all of the $10T construction industry. and we also had a great relationship with the partner. I can’t say we have major regrets here though — Susa has been a great partner. The needs of the lead investor for ownership? Pretty cool!

Cofounder 93

Cofounder Founder Acquisition Startup 93

Genuine VC

JULY 10, 2012

There are essentially two distinct basic strategies for startup entrepreneurs to raise a seed round of capital: Subscription approach – An entrepreneur sets a structure (usually a convertible note) and recruits individual angel investors who subscribe to the round, all without a term-driving lead investor.

Syndicate 207

Syndicate Syndication Seed Stage Portfolio 207

David Teten

JULY 12, 2017

First, a formal definition: According to Capital Dynamics , “Co-investments are direct investments in a company made alongside and on the same terms as a lead [General Partner]. We see our potential coinvestors in four primary buckets: 1) HOF Capital ’s own limited partners. 2) Investors with very specific value-add.

Syndicate 60

Syndicate Syndication Institutional Investors LP 60

Austin Startup

MAY 8, 2012

Silverton Partners was the lead investor and is joined by a group of new venture and corporate investors including Webb Investment Network, the investment fund of former eBay COO Maynard Webb, and several private investors including Asana executive Kenny Van Zant; bringing total financing to $4.1M.

Lead Investor 67

Lead Investor Analytics Cloud Finance 67

www.readwriteweb.com

MARCH 7, 2011

Before AngelList, investment dealflow was private and networks revolved around a few connected angels and VC?s. Since the angel network was created, transparent angel investing has exploded and entrepreneurs from any background can get funded. Bryce Roberts , a partner at O?Reilly To my surprise, VC? AngelList is a community.

Technical Review 50

Technical Review Due Diligence Startup Angel Investor 50

VC Adventure

MAY 21, 2014

A few months ago AngelList announced Syndicates - enabling investors on AngelList to create fund-like groups of investors to invest together in AngelList companies (following a single lead investor). We were the first formal venture fund to do this. And they do look at terms so structuring a fair deal is important.

Syndicate 93

Syndicate Syndication Technical Review Due Diligence 93

VC Adventure

MAY 21, 2014

A few months ago AngelList announced Syndicates – enabling investors on AngelList to create fund-like groups of investors to invest together in AngelList companies (following a single lead investor). We were the first formal venture fund to do this. If you don’t have these, ask for them.

Syndicate 48

Syndicate Syndication Technical Review Due Diligence 48

Rob Go

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

Find a lead investor: These are funds that are willing to stick their neck out and be the first “yes” and issue a term sheet. There are ways to do this without a lead, but I’ll ignore that for now. There are tons of seed funds, but way fewer than you would think actually lead. Some thoughts. Triage appropriately.

Term Sheet 73

Term Sheet Due Diligence Valuation Seed Stage 73

Austin Startup

OCTOBER 13, 2010

StoredIQ , a leading provider of Intelligent Information Management solutions for eDiscovery, records and compliance management, today announced that it has closed $10 million in new investment financing and expanded its management team in preparation for accelerated growth. CrunchBase Information. S3 Ventures.

Vertical 59

Vertical Early Stage Cofounder Channel 59

Reid Hoffman

JANUARY 26, 2021

One of the things a financing round brings is an opportunity to strengthen the startup’s overall network. This is one of the reasons why the best practice for a startup is to raise investment rounds from different lead investors rather than simply doing internal rounds, even if an internal round requires less work.

Startup 36

Startup Equity Early Stage Green 36

BeyondVC

JULY 7, 2010

Little do people know that when Dawntreader first funded Dali Media along with Impact Venture Partners and Primedia Ventures that the company was called Dali Media and then Metapa, standing for media to all places. We bought that company in 2003 and invested some more capital. This is also when we had to stare at the abyss for the third time.

Portfolio 109

Portfolio Architecture Open Source Database 109

BeyondVC

JULY 7, 2010

Little do people know that when Dawntreader first funded Dali Media along with Impact Venture Partners and Primedia Ventures that the company was called Dali Media and then Metapa, standing for media to all places. We bought that company in 2003 and invested some more capital. This is also when we had to stare at the abyss for the third time.

Portfolio 109

Portfolio Open Source Architecture Database 109

David Teten

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

But in practice, these phenomena create a tremendous volume of startups, which investors then have to filter. Most investors rely on their network of colleagues and service providers to source investments. The funds with more traditional origination are primarily focused on their local venture center network.

Private Equity 114

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Equity 114

Rob Go

JANUARY 9, 2012

Typically, we meet companies through our network of entrepreneurs and co-investors. But one investment this year originated from a cold email regarding a post on one of our partners’ blogs (we invested after getting to know the founders over several months). Our main requirement is that there is a strong lead.

Portfolio 46

Portfolio Syndicate Syndication Cofounder 46

Rob Go

AUGUST 9, 2016

Entrepreneurs are typically only choosing one lead investor and board member per round. Leverage your own network to the extent you are able to get a decent picture of what it’s like to work with a potential investor. The stakes are a lot higher, so you’d think the referencing effort would be greater.

Term Sheet 28

Term Sheet Due Diligence Lead Investor Portfolio 28

Professor VC

JANUARY 20, 2009

million from Lighthouse Capital Partners , which ultimately became critical to our balance sheet and they turned out to be a great partner as we worked through the equity financing process. Some were also dealing with issues of limited partners struggles with capital calls and asset allocations. We drew $1.5 ► January. (1).

Venture Capital 28

Venture Capital Silicon Valley San Jose Bootstrapping 28

David Teten

JUNE 12, 2014

I will continue to work closely with the group, while continuing to serve as a Partner at ff Venture Capital. Following a lead investor is valuable education, as it gives the coinvestors access to the deal documents and some of the process used by the lead. 2) Intellectual ambition. 4) Inclusion.

New York 114

New York Angel Groups Connecticut Florida 114

Austin Startup

MARCH 4, 2019

Steve Kelly, Lead Investor; Godfrey Nazareth, President & CEO; and Matthew Maltese PhD, co-founder and Chief Innovation Officer The Forrest Four-Cast: March 3, 2019 Fifty diverse startups will aim to impress a panel of judges and a live audience with their skills, creativity and innovation at SXSW Pitch Presented by Cyndx.

Startup 79

Startup Philadelphia Cofounder Distribution 79