Archive: First Stage Investor
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12 Things We’re Grateful For
By Early Investing on December 23, 2021
It’s been a heck of a year. We saw Congress propose using crypto to fund a $1 trillion infrastructure bill… ProShares launch the first bitcoin ETF… and NFTs take the world by storm. We’ve also talked to a lot of founders, vetted dozens of startups and researched countless crypto topics. And through it all, we’ve had reasons to celebrate.
New Pick: A Life Preserver for a Planet Drowning in Plastic
By Andy Gordon on December 20, 2021
We’re drowning in plastics. The problem is monumental and global. It’s threatening to slowly but surely kill the planet. It’s also getting worse. And what’s really worrisome is that the biggest companies in the world can’t figure out how to stop it. They’ve been…
Crypto Insider: Don’t Trust Visa
By Early Investing on December 16, 2021
Visa – which controls around 80% of the global card payments market – is moving into crypto consulting. The company plans to advise clients who want to navigate the world of crypto. And it already has a bank signed up – UMB Bank in Kansas City. Most bafflingly,…
Startup Insider: The 2021 Holiday Gift Guide
By Early Investing on December 13, 2021
The holiday season is upon us. And that means it’s time to do some shopping. If you’re in need of some quality gift ideas, look no further. In this episode of Startup Insider, Vin Narayanan and Andy Gordon provide gift recommendations from some of…
New Pick: Repairing the Broken Relationship Between Pharmaceutical Companies and Patients
By Andy Gordon on December 9, 2021
Deal Details Startup: Responsum Health Security type: Crowd SAFE* Valuation (cap): $4.5 million Discount: 0% Minimum investment: $100 Where to invest: Republic Deadline: January 2, 2022…
Crypto Insider: Explaining the NFT Explosion
By Early Investing on December 6, 2021
NFTs (non-fungible tokens) have officially taken the world by storm. Collins Dictionary named “NFT” 2021’s word of the year. The use of the term increased 11,000% this year. In basic terms, an NFT is a piece of digital content linked to the blockchain. NFTs are also…
Aavrani Grows Sales and Sets Its Sights on Expansion
By Andy Gordon on December 2, 2021
I just got off the phone with Justin Silver, the co-founder and COO of Aavrani. He reported significant progress on several fronts. We introduced Aavrani — a beauty company rooted in Indian tradition and rituals — to First Stage Investor…
Startup Insider: Grammarly Raises $200 Million at a $13 Billion Valuation
By Early Investing on November 29, 2021
Grammarly is on a roll. The popular auto-editing software tool has raised $200 million from Baillie Gifford and other investors at a $13 billion valuation. Grammarly is not a particularly exciting company. It helps delete unnecessary prepositional phrases and other grammatical errors — not exactly earth-shattering…
New Pick: A Legal Services Marketplace Brimming With Upside Potential
By Andy Gordon on November 22, 2021
Deal Details Startup: UpCounsel Security type: SAFE Valuation (cap): $28 million Minimum investment: $250 Where to invest: Wefunder Deadline: December 9,…
Crypto Insider: A New Crypto Investor’s Perspective
By Early Investing on November 18, 2021
If you’re new to crypto investing, you’re not alone. Crypto adoption is growing steadily, but it’s far from being a mainstream asset class. Crypto is still a nascent industry that has a lot of maturing ahead of it. Some investors still see crypto as an exciting…
Startup Insider: Why U.S. Venture Capitalists Are Targeting European Startups
By Early Investing on November 15, 2021
In the first three quarters of this year, U.S. venture capitalists (VCs) invested around $59 billion in European startups. And European VCs aren’t worried about it — as long as their startup ecosystem keeps growing. This has a lot of implications for startup investors in the…
New Pick: Connecting Student Athletes and Brands for a Win-Win Video Ad Experience
By Andy Gordon on November 11, 2021
Deal Details Startup: Curastory Security type: Crowd SAFE* Discount: 0% Valuation (cap): $9 million Minimum investment: $250 Where to invest: Republic Deadline: January 28, 2022…
Crypto Insider: Regulators Set Their Sights on DeFi
By Early Investing on November 8, 2021
DeFi — or decentralized finance — is a hot topic in the crypto world these days. And regulators have their sights set on DeFi. In part, regulators are worried about potential fraud and scams. But, interestingly enough, they’re also focusing on what they think are centralized…
Slow Governments Won’t Stop This Startup From Saving the Planet
By Andy Gordon on November 4, 2021
“We need decarbonization now, across every sector in every country,” U.N. Secretary General António Guterres tweeted earlier this week. Don’t kill the messenger here, but he’s spitting in the wind. A plea for governments to pick up the pace of decarbonization will do little good. Not…
Startup Insider: What Makes a Bad Founder
By Early Investing on November 1, 2021
At First Stage Investor, we spend a lot of time talking about founders. We usually focus on what makes a good founder — the qualities that investors should look for before they sink money into a startup. But since we just celebrated…
KingsCrowd Is a Very Unique Investment Opportunity
By Andy Gordon on October 28, 2021
It’s hard to believe, but I’ve presented nearly 100 startup investment opportunities to First Stage Investors. All of these companies impressed the hell out of me. But there’s one startup that stands apart from all the rest. It’s the only one I’ve…