I believe the current credit crunch can actually help venture returns. Why? Because it will help build momentum for the technology IPO market, which is what really drives venture returns. Investors have finally demonstrated a willingness to buy technology IPOs. There were some 36 technology IPOs in 2006. I expect to see that number roughly […]
These are turbulent times for investors in private equity. The Dow can be down 300 points by lunch only to rebound an hour before the close of market. Debt markets, which once showed an insatiable appetite for risk, are becoming more conservative by the day. Spreads on announced public-to-private transactions have widened as investors question […]
There’s a new VC-entrepreneur newsletter that has been getting a lot of attention lately called TheFunded.com. The Wall Street Journal had a profile of it last week and I find more and more entrepreneurs and VCs talking about it. The concept is quite simple. It’s a bit like what TripAdvisor is to travelers – entrepreneurs […]
Dan asked me to blog a long time ago. I could claim being busy, ignorant or uninformed. Some in the industry would say all of the above. In fact, I was concerned about my confidentiality in the food chain. I talk to a lot of venture capitalists daily about their portfolios, potential investments and, more […]
Typical Blackstone, which finally closed on its mega $21.7 billion dollar fund, the same week Barry Bonds broke the most coveted record in American sports. (Did Goldman send a taped video message congratulating them?). Hats of to them and the fact that it is pretty amazing that Blackstone has been able to raise close to $67 […]
I just read this news: The Carlyle Group and Onex Partners have completed their acquisition of Allison Transmission from General Motors Corp., for $5.575 billion. The $1.5 billion equity tranchewas split evenly between Carlyle and Onex, while current Allison president Lawrence Dewey has become CEO of the newly-independent company. It led me to wonder whether […]
In their inevitable search for more tax revenue, some in Congress have latched onto an idea that would irreparably damage the most effective growth engine of the American economy: Private equity funds. Convinced that they can have their cake and eat it too, they want to change tax treatment of long-term “carried interest” rights held […]
If you at all follow the start-up industry, you have heard the taxing news: Congress wants to raise taxes on VCs and private equity executives. Blackstone’s IPO and the perceived excessive economics reaped by the firm’s principals appears to have been the impetus for the new legislation proposed by representatives Charles Rangel (D-NY) and Barney Frank […]
The goal: obtain information about M&A etc. Current target: “30% aimed at chief investment officers” (sic) More compelling target: you How they are doing it: Research using general search and even systems like LinkedIn/MySpace/Facebook, craft personalized phishing e-mails (that appear to come from friends) with links that point to malicious sites (that probably look like familiar […]
Now this is a transaction that was bound to happen months ago. Although the valuation is certinly on the upper part of the scale, given consolidation and specialization of leading and medium sized hotel conglomerates, this question (topic of this message) posted by WSJ is certainly one worth taking a look at. Given the equity […]