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Crypto Faces More Government Scrutiny

By Adam Sharp on August 6, 2021

There’s a proposal in the infrastructure bill making its way through Congress that could be bad for crypto. CNBC recently covered the issue in an article titled “White House backs senators pushing for stricter crypto reporting rules.” (Vin Narayanan covered this in more detail in his article here.) The White House weighed in — somewhat out of the blue — on a contentious battle…

PayPal Censorship Highlights Bitcoin’s Importance

By Adam Sharp on August 6, 2021

When I talk about bitcoin, I usually focus on its importance as independent, scarce money.  And how it’s a hedge against inflation. What I don’t talk about enough is the importance of bitcoin’s uncensorable nature — the fact that no one…
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Crypto Needs Its Own Bill Clinton

By Vin Narayanan on August 5, 2021

I don’t praise politicians often. And I rarely praise former President Bill Clinton. But in 1998, Clinton fought for and signed into law a 10-year moratorium on taxing internet access. The new law also prevented most e-commerce purchases from being taxed.  Clinton argued at the time…

Startup Origin Story: Univoice

By KingsCrowd on August 4, 2021

Editor’s note: A founder’s origin story is incredibly important. It’s essential to understand why a founder started their company and how they envision the future when you’re considering their company as a potential investment. It also helps you understand the advantages or disadvantages they bring to the table.
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A Public Venture Capital Fund Worth Investigating

By Adam Sharp on August 3, 2021

Draper Esprit — a publicly traded venture capital (VC) firm — is in the news again. TechCrunch just published a piece titled “Why Draper Esprit doubled down on its status as a publicly listed VC.” Here’s a snippet of what Draper…
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Startup Insider: Trade Secrets vs. Patents

By Early Investing on August 2, 2021

A key part of a startup’s success is its defensibility — how it protects itself from the competition. It’s not enough for a company to offer a high-quality product. It needs to provide something that’s valuable and different from anything else out there. And…
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Crypto Market Rallies, Bitcoin Still on Top

By Adam Sharp on July 30, 2021

It’s been very encouraging to watch the crypto rally this week.  Bitcoin has led the way over the past week, rising 20% from the beginning of the week to Friday. Most altcoins are up anywhere from 5% to 15% over the same time period. …

Gold and Bitcoin Are Critical Inflation Hedges

By Adam Sharp on July 30, 2021

The entire U.S. stock market is currently valued at around $53.9 trillion. That’s all the companies on the NYSE, Nasdaq and OTC markets combined.  During the 2008 global financial crisis, the whole stock market was valued at just $11.4…
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New Pick: A Better, Fresher Take on Indoor Gardens

By Andy Gordon on July 29, 2021

Modgarden produces elegantly designed modular gardens so that people can grow fresh produce in their homes. It has garnered awards and a growing number of believers since its founding in 2015. And CEO and founder Aamar Khwaja feels great about what he’s doing. But just as importantly, he…

The Disruptive Force That Shaped My Life

By Vin Narayanan on July 28, 2021

All startups have an origin story. So do all founders. These origin stories are important. They explain why a startup began. Or why we believe particular founders will be persistent, constantly fight for success and never give up on their…
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The health area I’m most excited about for the next 10-plus years is microbiome medicine. A microbiome is the collection of microorganisms in a particular environment, like soil or the human body.  One of the most important microbiomes in our body is our gut microbiome. It’s…
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Startup Insider: Venture Capital Learns From Crowdfunding

By Early Investing on July 26, 2021

Equity crowdfunding is often seen as the balancing force to traditional venture capital. Venture capital is exclusive and focuses on writing large checks to a few companies. Equity crowdfunding prioritizes inclusivity and the power of many small investments added together.  But what if there were a…
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Why We Need Crypto Bears

By Adam Sharp on July 23, 2021

Lately I’ve been watching a crypto YouTube Channel called UpOnly. It’s run by two experienced crypto traders, Ledger and Cobie.  In April, they hosted a show titled Big Brain Crypto Club. It…

My Favorite Financial Thinkers

By Adam Sharp on July 23, 2021

As investors, we live in very interesting times. It’s a challenging environment that’s complicated by actors like the Federal Reserve, which can move markets like nothing else I’ve ever seen. In such a crazy environment, smart, independent thinking is priceless. These are some of the independent…
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Cityzenith Continues to Meet High Expectations

By Andy Gordon on July 22, 2021

I first recommended Cityzenith in August 2019. The company enables users to design, monitor, control, analyze, optimize, predict, and collaborate on physical assets all from one application. In other words, it uses “digital twin” technology — 3D virtual replicas of buildings, infrastructure and other physical assets…

The Inside Scoop on “Outside” Founders

By Andy Gordon on July 21, 2021

Ali Tamaseb has written an interesting book called Super Founders. Super founders are the founders of unicorns — aka startups valued at $1 billion or more.  These days, $1 billion is the price of entry to what used to be a very…