A discussion and Q&A with venture capitalist and partner at Benchmark, Peter Fenton. In this discussion Peter talks about his investment strategy and his thinking when choosing to invest. Peter also talks about venture capital more broadly and the current areas that interest him.
Video Segments:
0:00 Introduction
2:05 How do you pick an investment
7:56 Doing Venture Capital differently
11:17 Is big data a focus of yours
16:58 Why are open source companies attractive
22:07 Thoughts on business models
27:34 Interesting areas
32:33 Nuclear Winter
38:42 Start of Q&A
38:54 Have you given any thought to blockchain?
41:16 Do you talk to your start ups differently because of the unicorn overhang?
45:44 Amazon the biggest threat & is there a return of “bullshit” artists that pitch mediocre companies?
Interview Date: 16th March, 2016
Event: FirstMark’s Data Driven NYC
Original Image Source:http://bit.ly/PFentonPic
Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist
This is the highly anticipated third edition of the best-selling book which has become the definitive resource for understanding venture capital fundraising. Whether you are an entrepreneur, lawyer, student or just have an interest in the venture capital ecosystem, Venture Deals is for you. The book dives deeply into how deals are constructed, why certain terms matter (and others don’t), and more importantly, what motivates venture capitalists to propose certain outcomes. You’ll see the process of negotiating from the eyes of two seasoned venture capitalists who have over 40 years of investing experience as VCs, LPs, angels, and founders. They will teach you how to develop a fundraising strategy that will be a win for all parties involved.
This book is designed to bring transparency to the venture capital funding process and includes such topics as:
How to raise money;
What terms matter and which ones don’t;
How to negotiate a fair deal for everyone;
What makes venture capitalists tick, including how they are compensated and motivated;
How companies are valued by venture capitalists;
How all current structures of funding work, including convertible debt, crowdfunding, pre-sales and other non-traditional methods;
How these particular issues change through different stages of financing (seed, early, mid and late); and
How to avoid business and legal pitfalls that many entrepreneurs make.
And as in the previous editions, this book isn’t just a one-sided opinion from venture capitalists, but also has helpful commentary throughout from a veteran CEO who has raised many rounds of financing from many different investors.
If you are ready to learn all the secrets and ins and outs of fundraising, Venture Deals is an essential read.
