Tag: deal flow

Take these 8 steps to become an all-star startup investor

Take these 8 steps to become an all-star startup investor

Oct 28, 2014 | , ,

Show of hands: Who here doesn’t want to invest in the next Facebook or Google? Didn’t think so. The people who invest in startups have supplanted hedge fund managers as the investment rock stars of our age. What makes startup investing so thrilling is that unlike the passive investing common in the stock market (see our Ultimate Stock Market Investor’s Guide to Investing in Startups), angel investors have the opportunity to provide ongoing value with their experience… and Rolodexes. Whether you’re just kicking off your career as a venture capitalist or starting out in angel investing after making your money in other businesses, investing in startups can be a very lucrative activity. In fact, the data show that well-positioned angel portfolios can return 2.5X over a 4-year period. Returns like these easily trounce stock market returns (and historical returns of most other asset classes). However, investing in startups can be tricky. For example, it’s very likely that some of the startups you invest in will end up folding (less than 50% of startups never reach their 5th birthday). What are...

Read More
The ultimate stock market investor’s guide to investing in startups

The ultimate stock market investor’s guide to investing in startups

Oct 1, 2014 | , ,

Most investors ‘come of age’ learning the mechanics and strategy of investing through their involvement in stock markets. That makes sense: stock markets are typically comprised of the largest and most stable companies within a geography, with enough interest that investors can relatively easily buy and sell shares. Individual shares and mutual funds populate many long-terms investors’ retirement portfolios. And it’s the stock market, we’ve always been told, that deserves investors’ dollars and attention. But as new technology enables investing in newer, different types of assets, stock market investors are beginning to look beyond just investing in the stock market and more towards investing in alternative assets: like real estate, commodities, and more often, startups. For the sake of this article, we’re going to focus on investing in small, growth-oriented private companies (startups). Small companies are the lifeblood of the US economy, driving growth and providing new jobs to the workforce. It’s the allure of large, outsized returns by investing in the next Google, Facebook and Apple that is captivating investors right now. How stock market investors evolve to...

Read More
40 Epic Resources for Investing in Startups

40 Epic Resources for Investing in Startups

Jul 1, 2014 | ,

When Sequoia Capital invested in Whatsapp, the venture capital firm didn’t know that within a short couple of years, the company would be sold for $19 billion (!). What they did know is that the firm employs a repeatable process to screen, diligence, and invest in high-powered startup companies in order to invest in what portend to be future billion dollar companies. There’s no doubt that this process has made the investment team — and its investors — very rich over the past couple decades. And now, as equity crowdfunding platforms like OurCrowd are proliferating, individual investors are getting the opportunity to make their own investments in the next Google, Facebook, and Apple. There’s a lot to understand about the angel investment process: from how it works to understanding terms sheets to exiting your investments successfully. With this end in mind, I put together a list of some of the best resources to learn more about investing in startups. Getting Started: How to be an angel investor: Paul Graham’s 2009 essay is as relevant now as it was when he wrote it. He...

Read More
What Israeli entrepreneurs are working on now

What Israeli entrepreneurs are working on now

Feb 28, 2013 | ,

After opening our doors last fall, we’ve gotten to know so many of you: thousands of investors, entrepreneurs, and partners. Particularly, we’re seeing an incredible number of really high-quality startups. A huge percentage of these are companies founded by serial entrepreneurs with differentiated technologies and real tractions (with serious users, customers, revenues, etc.). An incredibly high number fit our investment methodology and criteria. I thought it would be interesting to break down what our deal flow looks like (thanks to our resident geniuses, David S, David C, and Jeremy for pulling this data). What Israeli entrepreneurs are working on now So far, OurCrowd has seen: Total deals 175 deals since Jan 1, 2013 (100+ deals per month)  350 deals (received actual materials) since Nov 1, 2012 Maturity of deal flow deal flow has ranged from seed investments to Series C, with sweetspot in the Series A range Internationality of deals while the vast majority of our deal flow comes from Israel, we have looked at deals from 9 countries Sector breakdown of deals  We’re seeing the most activity in...

Read More