By Tom Gara
Few things excite and inspire a technology reporter as much as talking to entrepreneurs.Big companies may have the reach and the resources to take on the biggest of challenges, but it is start-ups that change the world, and we all know it.But in the Middle East, full of energy and possibility and wealth, there are few things more disheartening than the lack of investment into this most exciting breed of businesses.
Speak to enough technology entrepreneurs in the region and it quickly becomes clear that almost no one in the Middle Eastern financial world is taking investment in start-up technology very seriously. Most entrepreneurs in the Middle East get their early funding from family and friends. If they are lucky, they find a wealthy businessman willing to put a roof over their heads.Surely this situation must change. In agreement with this sentiment are, among others, a Jordanian princess, an American president and some of the brightest young minds in the Arab world.
All are saying the same thing: that investments in property, stock markets and heavy industry, while strategic and profitable, need to be supplemented by another economic pillar of growth. (more)
Showing posts with label Venture Capital. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Venture Capital. Show all posts
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Venture Beat: Shocker: Study shows VCs plan to invest in fewer companies
By Anthony Ha
A new survey of more than 700 venture capitalists confirms that VCs’ plans for dealing with the economy are pretty much what you’d expect. (And by you, I mean me.) Most of them say they will invest in fewer companies, but many also plan to increase their funding for cleantech companies.
That’s from the 2009 Global Venture Capital Survey by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and the National Venture Capital Association. Like I said, the results are less-than-revelatory, but still worth noting for what they tell us about the mindset of hundreds in the venture capital industry. To start with, 51 percent of respondents said they planned to decrease the amount of companies they invest in, while only 13 percent said they plan to invest in more. It’s worse if you’re a young company looking for funding, with 36 percent of VCs saying they intend to move towards later-stage investments, and 6 percent saying they want to go in the other direction. (more)
A new survey of more than 700 venture capitalists confirms that VCs’ plans for dealing with the economy are pretty much what you’d expect. (And by you, I mean me.) Most of them say they will invest in fewer companies, but many also plan to increase their funding for cleantech companies.
That’s from the 2009 Global Venture Capital Survey by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and the National Venture Capital Association. Like I said, the results are less-than-revelatory, but still worth noting for what they tell us about the mindset of hundreds in the venture capital industry. To start with, 51 percent of respondents said they planned to decrease the amount of companies they invest in, while only 13 percent said they plan to invest in more. It’s worse if you’re a young company looking for funding, with 36 percent of VCs saying they intend to move towards later-stage investments, and 6 percent saying they want to go in the other direction. (more)
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Venture Beat: The incredible shrinking venture capital industry
By Anthony Ha
The venture capital industry is still shrinking, and not just in terms of the amount of money it’s investing or raising — there are fewer firms in the business, according to new data compiled by Dow Jones VentureSource and published in the Wall Street Journal.
In 2008, the number of active firms (those that made at least one investment in the United States) fell 5.6 percent to 868. And that number has been declining steadily since 2000, when there were 1,229 active investors. Earlier this year, the National Venture Capital Association released numbers looking at the problem from a different angle, but finding the same result: (more)
The venture capital industry is still shrinking, and not just in terms of the amount of money it’s investing or raising — there are fewer firms in the business, according to new data compiled by Dow Jones VentureSource and published in the Wall Street Journal.
In 2008, the number of active firms (those that made at least one investment in the United States) fell 5.6 percent to 868. And that number has been declining steadily since 2000, when there were 1,229 active investors. Earlier this year, the National Venture Capital Association released numbers looking at the problem from a different angle, but finding the same result: (more)
Thursday, June 4, 2009
The National: New Funds for Mobile Technology
By Tom Gara
The backer of the Middle East’s largest internet venture capital firm is establishing a company to fund investment in mobile technology in the region.
Accelerator Technology Holdings, a Jordanian firm, aims to complete an initial US$10 million (Dh36.7m) fundraising drive next week, after which it will hire a management team.
Accelerator has funded a number of the Arab world’s highest-profile internet startups through its venture fund, IV Holdings. (more)
The backer of the Middle East’s largest internet venture capital firm is establishing a company to fund investment in mobile technology in the region.
Accelerator Technology Holdings, a Jordanian firm, aims to complete an initial US$10 million (Dh36.7m) fundraising drive next week, after which it will hire a management team.
Accelerator has funded a number of the Arab world’s highest-profile internet startups through its venture fund, IV Holdings. (more)
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Business Week: 'Super Angels' Shake Up Venture Capital
By Spencer E. Ante
As large VC firms cut back, a hungry bunch of seed-stage investors are helping entrepreneurs get their ideas off the ground
Earlier this year, as the stock market plunged, most bankers and other financiers hoarded capital and throttled back on new deals. But not Josh Kopelman. Even in the bleakest months, the co-founder of the venture capital firm First Round Capital hustled after startups to write them checks.
Take one sunny morning in February. Kopelman sits in the San Francisco loft of First Round's West Coast office across a table from Gary Briggs. A veteran entrepreneur, Briggs just took over as CEO at Plastic Jungle, a startup building an online marketplace where consumers can buy, sell, or trade gift cards. "There's about $40 billion of unused gift cards on retailers' balance sheets," says Briggs, so focused he doesn't touch the salad ordered in for his lunch. (more)
As large VC firms cut back, a hungry bunch of seed-stage investors are helping entrepreneurs get their ideas off the ground
Earlier this year, as the stock market plunged, most bankers and other financiers hoarded capital and throttled back on new deals. But not Josh Kopelman. Even in the bleakest months, the co-founder of the venture capital firm First Round Capital hustled after startups to write them checks.
Take one sunny morning in February. Kopelman sits in the San Francisco loft of First Round's West Coast office across a table from Gary Briggs. A veteran entrepreneur, Briggs just took over as CEO at Plastic Jungle, a startup building an online marketplace where consumers can buy, sell, or trade gift cards. "There's about $40 billion of unused gift cards on retailers' balance sheets," says Briggs, so focused he doesn't touch the salad ordered in for his lunch. (more)
Monday, May 25, 2009
Young Entrepreneur: SproutBox Invest in Entrepreneurs
By Matthew Toren
SproutBox came to my attention the other day because of the really great work it is doing investing in startup companies. But as it helps out entrepreneurs, not to be overlooked is how entrepreneurial it is in offering a new approach to venture capital.
When the SproutBox founders established the entrepreneur investment firm, they knew they didn’t want to be just another venture capitalist that simply wrote a check. So they set out to redefine the term by actually investing their expertise into the company’s success. (more)
SproutBox came to my attention the other day because of the really great work it is doing investing in startup companies. But as it helps out entrepreneurs, not to be overlooked is how entrepreneurial it is in offering a new approach to venture capital.
When the SproutBox founders established the entrepreneur investment firm, they knew they didn’t want to be just another venture capitalist that simply wrote a check. So they set out to redefine the term by actually investing their expertise into the company’s success. (more)
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Venture Beat: Venture capitalists worry: Are we stunting companies?
By Matt Marshall
Chris Shipley and I hosted a breakfast last week with 16 leading Silicon Valley investors about the state of the start-up community. It was frank and engaging.
Some participants requested their comments remain off the record. Below are summaries of some of the remarks of participants who agreed to be referenced. (more)
Chris Shipley and I hosted a breakfast last week with 16 leading Silicon Valley investors about the state of the start-up community. It was frank and engaging.
Some participants requested their comments remain off the record. Below are summaries of some of the remarks of participants who agreed to be referenced. (more)
Sunday, May 17, 2009
The Entrepreneurial Mind: VC Firms Adapt to New Reality
By Jeff Cornwall
More start-up web entrepreneurs are realizing that they can bootstrap their new ventures and really don't need venture capital, according to a paper by Robert Hendershott in the next issue of the International Review of Entrepreneurship.
Writing about this new study in the New York Times, Claire Cain Miller notes that venture capitalists are beginning to adapt to this new reality: (more)
More start-up web entrepreneurs are realizing that they can bootstrap their new ventures and really don't need venture capital, according to a paper by Robert Hendershott in the next issue of the International Review of Entrepreneurship.
Writing about this new study in the New York Times, Claire Cain Miller notes that venture capitalists are beginning to adapt to this new reality: (more)
Thursday, May 14, 2009
WSJ: Firm Lets Others Choose Start-Ups
By JESSICA E. VASCELLARO
In the latest example of investors trying new approaches during the downturn, a venture-capital firm that was an early backer of Facebook Inc. is devising a plan to outsource early investing decisions to hand-picked entrepreneurs and technology executives.
The Silicon Valley firm Founders Fund plans to give at least 12 "fellows" $25,000 to invest in an early-stage company of their choosing. Founders Fund will invest $25,000 alongside those initial investments and request the right to invest an additional $250,000 when the companies raise their next round, according to Sean Parker, managing partner at Founders Fund, which announced it raised a $220 million fund in late 2007. The firm expects to devote roughly $3.6 million to the new program. (more)
In the latest example of investors trying new approaches during the downturn, a venture-capital firm that was an early backer of Facebook Inc. is devising a plan to outsource early investing decisions to hand-picked entrepreneurs and technology executives.
The Silicon Valley firm Founders Fund plans to give at least 12 "fellows" $25,000 to invest in an early-stage company of their choosing. Founders Fund will invest $25,000 alongside those initial investments and request the right to invest an additional $250,000 when the companies raise their next round, according to Sean Parker, managing partner at Founders Fund, which announced it raised a $220 million fund in late 2007. The firm expects to devote roughly $3.6 million to the new program. (more)
Forbes: The Small-Business Balancing Act
By Dileep Rao, Ph.D
It's hard to keep an eye on operations while trying to raise capital. Here's how to strike the right balance.
Are you in business to make money or to raise it?
For aspiring entrepreneurs, the answer is often a little of both. But many fall on tough times because they strike a poor balance between these two critical functions. Mind the store without corralling enough capital, and you could go broke; spend every day wooing investors, and the store falls apart. (more)
It's hard to keep an eye on operations while trying to raise capital. Here's how to strike the right balance.
Are you in business to make money or to raise it?
For aspiring entrepreneurs, the answer is often a little of both. But many fall on tough times because they strike a poor balance between these two critical functions. Mind the store without corralling enough capital, and you could go broke; spend every day wooing investors, and the store falls apart. (more)
CNET: Contrarian Google launches investment fund
by Stephen Shankland
As expected, Google launched Google Ventures on Monday, following other Silicon Valley firms with a division to invest in promising start-ups.
"This is Google's effort to take advantage of our resources to support innovation and encourage promising new technology companies," said Google Ventures managing partners Rich Miner and Bill Maris in a blog post announcing the effort. "By borrowing the best practices of top-tier, financially focused venture capital firms and bringing to bear Google's unique technical expertise and brand, we think we can find young companies with truly awesome potential and encourage their development into successful businesses." (more)
As expected, Google launched Google Ventures on Monday, following other Silicon Valley firms with a division to invest in promising start-ups.
"This is Google's effort to take advantage of our resources to support innovation and encourage promising new technology companies," said Google Ventures managing partners Rich Miner and Bill Maris in a blog post announcing the effort. "By borrowing the best practices of top-tier, financially focused venture capital firms and bringing to bear Google's unique technical expertise and brand, we think we can find young companies with truly awesome potential and encourage their development into successful businesses." (more)
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