Archive: Early Investing

Beware Hot Tech Stocks

By Adam Sharp on December 11, 2020

As you might have heard, Airbnb had its long-awaited IPO (initial public offering) yesterday. Like a lot of hot public offerings this year, it was pure insanity. Airbnb’s IPO shares were initially priced at $68 — so that’s the price that a small group of well-connected investors paid. But shares opened for trading to everyday investors at $146 — more than double the IPO price. Airbnb closed the day…

Be Ready for Direct Listings

By Vin Narayanan on December 9, 2020

I’m starting to think IPOs — initial public offerings — are overrated. That’s a really weird thing for an early investor to say. Because for early investors, the IPO is the holy grail. It’s why you invest in startups. An IPO is one of the few moments in…
Note: In May, I wrote an article titled “The New Work From Home Economy.” Then in August, I wrote a piece called “Tech Companies Flee California (Finally).” I recommend reading those first if you haven’t.

Diversify Your Crypto Portfolio

By Vin Narayanan on December 2, 2020

Bitcoin cracked the $19,800 mark this week. It’s likely only a matter of time before bitcoin tops $20,000 and sets new all time highs. Who knows? As you read this, bitcoin could already be over $20,000. It’s a terrific time to be a bitcoin investor. In…

Exclusive Video: Bitcoin and the Crypto Market

By Early Investing on November 24, 2020

Bitcoin cracked the $18,000 mark last week. And it’s primed to hit new all-time highs in the near future. So Andy Gordon and Vin Narayanan dusted off their crypto crystal ball for this special video. They let you know (among other things): How long the bull…

Bitcoin: This Bull Run Is Going to be Epic

By Adam Sharp on November 20, 2020

The crypto bull market is heating up. Bitcoin is leading the way — it reached more than $18,000 this week. That’s approaching the all-time high of nearly $20,000. The last time bitcoin was near this price was December of 2017. Bitcoin’s price had risen from $434…

What to Do When a Startup Goes Public

By Andy Gordon on November 18, 2020

Every investor would love to have my dilemma. One of my First Stage Investor portfolio companies will be listing on a public stock market (also known as going public or IPO’ing) in a couple of months.  I first recommended this company back in 2016…

Startup Investing Just Got 5x Better

By Adam Sharp on November 6, 2020

Something monumental happened for startup investors this week. The SEC increased the limit for public startup fundraising rounds from $1.07 million to $5 million (per year, per company).  This is a very big deal. Startups can now raise almost five times…

Brick-and-Mortar Retail Isn’t Dying

By Andy Gordon on November 4, 2020

Thank goodness this isn’t the 80’s. If COVID-19 happened back then, we’d be in a full-blown depression by now. The rolling shutdown of non-essential stores and restaurants across the country would have maimed and crippled the economy. The 80’s had great music but no internet — and no…

Big Tech’s Growing Vulnerability

By Adam Sharp on October 30, 2020

Today we’re going to talk about big tech censorship — and how it makes established social media platforms vulnerable to disruption. I’m going to try my best to avoid the political side of things and focus solely on the investing implications. YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Apple and…
The slow-moving, overly cautious SEC is finally doing the right thing. It’s reportedly raising the limit on Reg CF funding from $1 million to $5 million.  That means when a startup raises money through crowdfunding, they can raise up to $5 million. And that’s a big…

Invest in Technological Disruption

By Adam Sharp on October 23, 2020

These are strange times, economically and socially. The future seems as uncertain as it’s ever been. At first glance, now might not appear to be a good time to invest in startups. But I truly believe it is. The primary reason I’m still investing…

Webinar: The Next Generation of Fintech

By Early Investing on October 21, 2020

Fintech is making an interesting transition — from disrupting big banks to disrupting the disruptors. Companies like Robinhood, Lemonade and Credit Karma grew by addressing consumer needs that banks had ignored. Now a new generation of fintech companies is emerging. And they say their solutions are even better.

Bitcoin is Looking Better Than Ever

By Adam Sharp on October 16, 2020

Long-time readers know I’m always bullish on bitcoin over the long-term. But recently I’ve become extremely bullish over the short- and mid-term. Let me tell you why.  On October 7th, Square — a publicly-traded $82 billion financial giant — announced that they purchased $50…

The American Startup Surge

By Andy Gordon on October 14, 2020

There’s no denying that the economy is weaker than it was pre-pandemic. While industries like gaming and work-from-home tech have soared, many other businesses have struggled to survive. But in the midst of all this economic hardship, something rather fascinating has happened in the U.S.  The…

Why Crowdfunding Is Better Than VC Funds

By Andy Gordon on October 7, 2020

I don’t envy venture capitalists these days. The economics of startup investing are changing. And as of today, crowdfunders like you and me hold a significant edge over VCs.  I know that may seem like a bold claim. Right now, VC investors get all the respect…