Archive: Pre-IPO Profits
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Be a Value-Add Investor
One of my favorite things about early-stage investing is that the companies are small enough that investors actually have a chance to make a meaningful impact. In the VC/angel world, this is known as being a “value-add investor.” As online startup investors, we can certainly add value as well. But we have to realize that we can’t help every company in our portfolio. So it’s best to focus on the ones where our expertise can truly…
Big Tech Censorship Creating Startup Opportunities
By Adam Sharp on February 23, 2021
Back in October, I wrote a piece titled Big Tech’s Growing Vulnerability. In it, I discussed the rapidly increasing amount of censorship on sites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. No matter how you view the big tech controversy, I think…
How to Handle Silicon Valley’s Rising Valuations
By Adam Sharp on February 16, 2021
It’s getting a little crazy out there in some pockets of the startup investing world. All the Series A deals I’ve seen lately have been much more expensive than they were even a year ago. I recently saw a fast-growing software company raising a Series A with just…
Patience Pays in Startup Investing
By Adam Sharp on February 9, 2021
I recently had my first startup investment go public. But don’t get too excited yet. The company, Plurilock Security, just listed on the Toronto Venture Exchange at quite a tiny valuation — around $15 million. I took the opportunity to add to my position. I really…
Robert Downey Jr. Starts an AngelList Fund
By Adam Sharp on February 2, 2021
Well, this is somewhat unexpected — actor Robert Downey Jr. just launched an AngelList rolling fund. The fund — called Footprint Coalition Ventures — will invest in sustainability and environmentally-focused startups. Here’s an excerpt from…
Pay Attention to Reg CF Deals
By Adam Sharp on January 26, 2021
On March 15th, the fundraising limit on Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF) campaigns will go from $1.07 million to $5 million. Startups that raise capital using Reg CF are the deals that non-accredited investors can access. With the $1 million limit, Reg CF just wasn’t worth it…
Later Stage Startup Valuations are Rising
By Adam Sharp on January 19, 2021
Most of the deals I get invited to online are early-stage ones — pre-seed, seed, and Series A. But I do see a fair number of Series B and C deals as well. And I’ve noticed that the later the deal is, the higher the valuation tends to…
A Unique Startup Investment Opportunity
By Vin Narayanan on January 12, 2021
As many of you know, the Early Investing team joined forces with KingCrowd last year. KingsCrowd is a startup whose goal is to provide all investors with institutional grade ratings and analytics for the startup space. In essence, it…
The Strength of Early-Stage Companies
By Adam Sharp on January 5, 2021
We live in a remarkably disruptive time. New technologies are changing the way almost every industry operates. There’s a lot of opportunity for innovative companies to make a big impact. But we also live in a very unique time when it comes to finance and monetary…
Investing in Startups Without Traction
By Adam Sharp on December 22, 2020
As a general rule, I prefer to invest in companies that are growing quickly. That means startups with plenty of traction. However, sometimes I do break that rule — and doing so recently produced a great outcome. Back in 2016, I invested in a…
Rolling Funds Transforming AngelList
By Adam Sharp on December 15, 2020
Rolling funds on AngelList are continuing to pick up steam. And I’ve been thinking about what the long-term impact of these funds could be for a while now. I believe that — like I said back in September…
Look Beyond the Lockdowns for the Best Deals
By Adam Sharp on December 8, 2020
At the beginning of the pandemic, I thought startup investing volumes would drop dramatically throughout its duration. I was wrong. Venture capitalists and angel investors seem to be funding more companies than ever. And much of that funding is going to startups that are benefiting from…
The Truth About Investment Sizes
By Adam Sharp on December 1, 2020
I’ve made well over 100 startup investments since 2014. Looking back, there are some mistakes I made early on that I wish I had avoided. One big one is I would get way too excited about some of the startups. I invested too much in my first 10…
The Trick to Evaluating Market Size
By Adam Sharp on November 17, 2020
One of the most important (and trickiest) factors to evaluate in startup investing is the size of the opportunity. How big can a startup become? How big is the market it sells into — and how fast is it growing? Before investing in any startup, you…
Big Changes for Non-Accredited Investors
By Adam Sharp on November 10, 2020
Last week the SEC announced that it was increasing the limit on Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF) deals from $1.07 million to $5 million. In case you weren’t aware, anyone can invest in Reg CF deals. You don’t have to be an accredited investor like you do…
Don’t Miss Out on Startup Deals Like I Did
By Adam Sharp on October 27, 2020
A few years back, I was invited to invest in Calm.com — a meditation app. “Meditation app?!” I thought. And then I quickly dismissed the deal. It’s gone on to be an absolutely massive winner. The company has grown incredibly — it’s now reportedly raising at…