article thumbnail

Free Money for Student Tech Founders

David Teten VC

We have collected a wide range of freebies, contests, accelerators, online communities, and VCs designed for student tech founders. I have been researching this both to support Versatile VC ’s portfolio companies and also as part of research for my new book, To University and Beyond: Launch Your Career in High Gear. 1) Your school.

founder 144
article thumbnail

Mercado Bitcoin, Brazil’s first crypto exchange, raises $200M from SoftBank

TechCrunch

Founded by brothers Gustavo and Mauricio Chamati in 2013, Mercado Bitcoin was the first crypto exchange in Brazil. Between January and May 2021, Mercado Bitcoin says that about 700,000 new customers signed up to use its services, bringing its customer base to 2.8 Today, Mercado Bitcoin has about 500 employees.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

As Populist as it May Feel, 98% of VCs Aren’t Dumb

Both Sides of the Table

But VC is like congress. “This essay is dedicated to the great VC’s on my board who I am lucky to work with: Sameer Gandhi from Accel, Jeremy Liew from Lightspeed, and Kirsten Green from Forerunner. As you can see from the chart their data suggests there are about $25 billion of VC distributions per year in the US.

VC 374
article thumbnail

Fund Investing Versus Fund Management

Haystack

That escalation from $25K back in 2013 took a little over four years. Over the years, that check size grew slowly to $50K, then a few $100Ks, and I followed-on into a few at the $250K level, with two outsized pile-ins at $400K and $600K total exposure, respectively. Fund investing is easy — fund management is not.

investing 137
article thumbnail

What Future for Accelerators?

Both Sides of the Table

Throughout all of these years I was a full-time VC so Launchpad really came out of evenings and weekends for me. Adam had a full time startup and then was doing consulting (he later raised a VC fund). Throughout 2012 & 2013 we funded many companies and then pulled together a second fund. We had a specific goal in mind.

article thumbnail

Why Seed Funds Have Scaled

Haystack

Rather, this short blog is filled only with my own observations from being in the middle of the evolving seed market since 2013. Here, I wanted to step back and consider “why” this has happened from my vantage point. 2/ Financial Consideration s – When investment firms grow, so do fees.

article thumbnail

Asset Management Is a Peculiar Industry Ripe for Disruption

David Teten VC

For example, activist hedge funds, and most private equity and VC funds. A private equity/VC investor can proactively recruit new team members, win clients, or if necessary change management. . After gazing long and thoughtfully at the beautiful boats, the short seller asked wryly, ‘Where are the customers’ yachts?’ ”.