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You’re facing an angel investor’s dilemma. You’ve looked at proposal after proposal from early stage startups and finally, you found one. You feel it in your gut; after spending countless hours reviewing the deal, you believe that this company is on solid ground, and you want in. So where’s the dilemma? This startup needs more [...]

One reader asked via email: What exactly is a “seed” company? What about “seed” capital? Startups, Philosophers and Seeds Go figure – it took a 19th century poet and philosopher to capture the thought process of a 21st century angel investor making a financial commitment at the seed stage of a technology startup. Henry David [...]

One reader asked via email: I am interested in becoming a full-time investor and am learning the ropes. What are the differences between an angel investor and a venture capitalist? It seems like they are doing the same thing, more or less …

One of my favorite scenes of the 1983 Monty Python classic “The Meaning of Life” comes in the very beginning. In fact, the scene is technically a whole separate mini-movie unto itself. It’s about the Permanent Assurance Company, which is depicted as a boardroom full of very old, crotchety men. The gist of the story [...]

Ceding control to an entrepreneur only when pigs fly or when hell freezes over? In that case, drive-by deals aren’t for you. In a drive-by deal, venture investors fund at the mezzanine / late stage of a company. They’re interested in a quick exit and take little to no role in managing and monitoring the [...]

Last Updated: April, 2011 Angel Investor (“Angel”): An individual who invests money in other people’s businesses, usually at the early stage. Acquisition: Through acquisition, the acquiring company (buyer) obtain control of another company by purchasing its assets, or by purchasing all or a majority of its outstanding shares. Adventure Capitalist: You belong to this category [...]

Metrics are all about each individual startup. They can vary by industry and by business plan. You need to know what will drive the success of this particular new business, and how you can measure to make sure that “what” is happening. That what could involve cash on hand, income, burn rate, customers, revenues … like I said, it can vary investment to investment.

Who’s cooler, the old-fashioned adventure capitalists, or today’s lot? In the old days, adventure capitalists were rich investors who funded adventures. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were perhaps the greatest adventure capitalists of their time, of all time. They funded Christopher Columbus‘ remarkable adventure of 1492. Supposedly, Columbus was on his way to Asia via a [...]

Thousands of new businesses are launched every year. A handful goes on to become hugely successful, earning vast profits for their original investors. Many more struggle to survive, barely keeping afloat. And many others, unfortunately, fail completely, losing money for their investors and never living up to their initial promise. This is the second in [...]

Angel investors are crucial for these burgeoning businesses. Heck, angel investors are critical for whole economies to thrive. Yes, angel investors are that important. They fuel innovation with seed capital. They stimulate markets and economies by growing companies that can compete on the local, then the global, stage.