SEC Broadens the Definition of Accredited Investor to Permit Greater Access to Fund and Other Private Offerings
On August 26, 2020, after over a year’s worth of work examining how it may better simplify, harmonize and improve the framework and rules around exempt offerings under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and heighten protections for investors participating in such offerings, the Securities and […]
Primer: Handling LP Defaults
Historically, the incidence of “serious” defaults (“serious” meaning contribution failures that persist to a point in time at which consideration of enforcement action is necessary) in institutional venture capital funds is quite low. This article is being written half a year into the 2020 pandemic, during a time at which […]
Q2 2020 Quarterly VC Update: Michael Lints on Navigating Through the Storm
In conjunction with our Q2 Venture Financing Report, I sat down with Michael Lints of Golden Gate Ventures to get his take on the state of venture capital investing. Key Insights On executing deals in the pandemic: The venture capital market is very connected. Although, for instance, Vietnam has managed COVID really well, it’s still […]
Let the Spigot Open: Volcker Rule Relaxed to Allow More Bank Investments in VC Funds
Prior to the effectiveness of the Volcker Rule in April, 2014, we more regularly saw banks participating as limited partners in venture capital funds. The rule placed significant limitations on banks’ ability to make investments in private funds, and over the last 6 years the frequency of investment and capital […]
Primer: U.S. Tax Considerations for Venture Capital Funds
We are frequently asked by our fund manager clients about what tax issues they should consider when forming a new venture capital fund or investing in portfolio companies. In this post, we outline a few key considerations for fund managers, highlighting changes included in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act […]
Primer: Why Trademark Protection is Important for Venture Capital Firms
We’re a VC firm – we don’t sell consumer products – why do we need to care about trademarks? For any business, one’s good name is one of its most essential assets. That is especially true in venture capital, where, according to a 2004 study[1], firms with high reputations are […]
Primer: Selecting the Domicile for your Venture Capital Fund
We are often asked, by both new and established managers, “where should I form my next venture capital fund”? We will hold the short list for purposes of this article at the discussion of Delaware versus Cayman, those being far and away the most prominent places for venture capital funds […]
Q1 + April 2020 Quarterly VC Update: Tip of the Iceberg?
With the onset of the COVID-19 crisis in March, we decided to include April data in our first 2020 report to better illustrate any early indicators of effects of the pandemic on the financing environment. Additionally, we have broken out specific statistics by month and industry (technology/life sciences/other) to offer […]