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Venture Capital This Week for August 3 - 9

Thursday, August 9, 2012 9:20:00 AM PDT | VentureDeal

It's always an interesting week in venture capital. Discover the best stories, blog posts and other information inside the VC ecosystem here in the US and in happening places around the world. Onward dear reader…

 

VC FUNDRAISING PREDICTORS

Redpoint VC Tom Tunguz’ has a third post in a series looking at public and private financing trends:

TechCrunch: Predictors of the Fundraising Market

He unequivocally states that the number of IPOs is the best leading indicator for venture capital dollars raised from limited partners.

 

SAAS METRICS

Matt Fates of Ascent Venture Partners has a post up about the tension between software as a service (SaaS) metrics used by operating companies and the metrics that are used by acquiring companies to value SaaS companies.

GigaOm: The Problem with SaaS Metrics

Fates goes into some detail about the effects on company valuation of a subscription-oriented business model.

 

IPO FINGER POINTING

IPO market blues got you down? Alexander Haislip thinks it's the VCs that you should blame.

Seeking Alpha: Who to Blame for Failed IPOs

I just don't buy it. There are too many structural problems with the public markets to blame the VCs, which are generally bringing out much more mature companies with significant revenues and quality management teams.

 

CROWDFUNDING TIPS AND TRAPS

Two boosters of crowdfunding have a post up on TechCrunch that provides some do’s and don'ts for companies seeking to tap the debt and equity-based crowdfund markets.

TechCrunchCrowdfunding How to’s

Most of the article can be boiled down to one phrase: Prepare to communicate with your investors.

 

BE TRUE TO YOUR VC

It's not often I read a post about honesty, but highly regarded Internet VC Brad Feld has a good one.

Brad Feld: The Importance of Being Honest

Brad is a big proponent of being "transparent about your business".

 

IPO ACTIVITY REPORT

Every 6 months VentureDeal publishes its venture capital-backed technology company IPO report.

VentureDealVenture Capital IPO Report – 1st Half 2012 (PDF)

Tech company IPO activity generally improved during the first half of 2012 vs. the previous six-month period, even when removing the gargantuan Facebook IPO from the figures.

 

SOUTHEAST VC ENTREPRENEUR SERIES

North Carolina-based Southern Capitol Ventures held its entrepreneur day of seminars and panel discussions on startup financing issues.

ExitEvent: Entrepreneur Series

The event included panels on Accelerators, how to deal with Angels and founder issues.

 

COMPANY-SPONSORED ONLINE COMMUNITIES

Many companies have started consumer-centered social networks or communities online. So have any of these efforts resulted in any sales?

Research Paper: Social Dollars

Researchers at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business attempted to gauge the impact of such community building. Among their discoveries, "We find that 19% of the post-launch revenue from community customers can be attributed to their joining the community."

 

CalPERS CUTBACKS?

CalPERS, the largest pension fund in the US, is preparing to cut its investment allocation to the venture capital industry.

PE HubCalPERS Appears Ready To Abandon Most VCs

The $239 billion pension fund cites the difficulty in placing large enough amounts of money with the relatively few performing venture capital firms.

 

SAUDI ARAMCO MAKES A MOVE

The world's largest crude oil exporter, the Saudi Arabian Oil Co., plans to invest up to $120 million per year in European oil and gas technology startup companies.

Bloomberg Businessweek: Aramco Gets into Venture

The oil industry heavyweight will invest through a Norwegian investment manager, Energy Capital Management.

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