Today, Material Change of Control Clauses Really Matter
With all of the M&A activity flaring up in the software space, some customers are scouring their license contracts to see what rights they’ll have (or not). Did you do a material change of control clause?
Ariba, Stock Run Ups and Equity Research
I continue to be surprised at the run-up in certain tech stocks, driven in part by many analyst reports. This suggest to me that at least some of the so-called experts covering various markets really don’t have much knowledge of t…
SEC Defines Venture Capital
The SEC fulfilled their obligation under the Frank-Dodd financial reform bill and defined what venture capital is. Represents itself to investors as being a venture capital fund. Only invests in equity securities of private operating companies to provide primarily operating or business expansion capital (not to buy out other investors), U.S. Treasury securities with a [...]
The 2010 Trident Capital Investment Strategy Session
couple of weeks ago, our partnership met to discuss our investment strategy for the next 12 months. We hold this session every year. But this year’s meeting was particularly important because we discussed the overall investment strategy for our new fund (Fund 7). We also reviewed the market conditions in the sectors where we invest, [...]
Location, Location, Location
A few days ago I was walking down an otherwise uninteresting street and I see this sign soliciting investment. Nothing out of the ordinary but the “don’t ask me…” warning was a little odd, as well as the NDA before the person will tell you anything about it… but no, the most interesting aspect of [...]
The Public Markets and Venture Capital
Last week I wrote about the “VC shakeup” in response to a piece in HBR by the same name, in my response to a comment left by my friend Jason Lemkin I wrote: A big problem here is that the state of public markets makes IPOs extremely difficult and with M&A among already public companies [...]
The VC Shakeout
This piece in HBR is must read, it details why there will be a lot fewer VC funds in the future. The sky is falling on the venture capital rainmakers. Over the past 10 years their quarterly internal rate of return (IRR)—the primary measure of VC success—was dismal, hovering in the single percentage points and [...]
Is Fashion Stake Legal? Fashion Stake Crowdsources Haute Couture
A major problem in the fashion industry is that it is very difficult for a new designer to “break the code” that enables a distribution capability, so as a result we have few brands dominating the retail landscape and a couture business that while garnering headlines actually generates very little in the way of actual [...]
A Well Intentioned Bad Idea That Should Not be Stopped
Like everyone who has looked at the issue of immigration, I came to the conclusion long ago that it is a broken and outdated system. Just consider that every H1-B visa is snapped up within 12 hours of becoming available and you see how not only demand outstrips supply but an industry has grown up [...]
