2018 was a historically good year for venture capital in the United States in terms of dollars invested by VC funds in U.S.
companies, dollars raised by VC funds and dollar value of exits by VC-backed companies, according to the Venture Monitor for Q4 2018 published by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. VC
What Can’t be Cured, Must be Endured: Delaware Limits Defective Corporate Act Ratification
A recent Delaware Chancery Court decision provides important guidance on what types of defective corporate acts may be ratified under Section 204 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), and what types may not. Paul Nguyen v. View, Inc. also underscores the importance of focusing on whether to opt out of the class vote
Good Choice: Important Capital Formation Reforms in Financial CHOICE Act of 2017 Passed by House
On June 8, 2017, the House of Representatives passed the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017 on a vote of 233-186. Congress loves acronyms, and here “CHOICE” stands for Creating Hope and Opportunity for Investors, Consumers and 
Entrepreneurs. Although the thrust of the bill is focused on repeal or modification of significant portions of the Dodd-Frank
Irredeemable: Delaware Case Will Make Redemption Rights Tougher to Enforce
Venture capital funds routinely negotiate for a right of redemption – the right to require the company to buy out their shares after a certain period of time if an exit has not occurred – as a key element of their exit strategy. But according to a recent case in Delaware, the VCs and the
The JOBS Act at Five: Congressional Hearing Highlights Need for Further Reform
On March 22, the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investment of the Financial Services Committee conducted a hearing entitled “The JOBS Act at Five: Examining Its Impact and Ensuring the Competitiveness of the U.S. Capital Markets”, focusing on the impact of the JOBS Act on the U.S. capital markets and its effect on capital
Valuation Disconnect Leads to 2016 IPO Drought
2016 turned out to be a terrible year for IPOs, both in terms of number of deals and aggregate proceeds.
According to Renaissance Capital’s U.S. IPO Market 2016 Annual Review, only 105 companies went public on U.S. exchanges in 2016, raising only $19 billion in aggregate proceeds. The deal count of 105 IPOs was
How Corporate Venture Capital Differs
Earlier this year, Union Square Ventures Managing Partner Fred Wilson famously referred to corporate VCs as “The Devil”, when he asserted that companies should not be investing in other companies, that they should be buying other companies but not taking minority positions in them, that the “access” rationale for corporate venture is a reason
Are VCs incentivized to lose money?
Are VCs incentivized to lose money? This is the provocative assertion made recently (and again) by Kaufman Foundation Senior Fellow Diane Mulcahy in the Harvard Business Review. Some of us who are interested in this issue probably recall the equally incendiary piece she co-authored in 2012 for KF boldly entitled “We Have