Venture Capital in the U.S. and Europe Compared

Venture Capital in the U.S. and Europe Compared

Following up on the European second quarter tech funding data we reported earlier in the week, we have had a look at the comparable data for the U.S. and some interesting, and stark, comparisons emerge.

While inevitably Europe does not compare favorably with the U.S. in a like-for-like comparison, there are signs that things are getting better in Europe, as we reported. Unfortunately, as the data show, while Europe is improving, the gap between Europe and the U.S. is widening.

Once again, while Dow Jones VentureSource reports on all industrial sectors, in this report we have just looked at three sectors that are the most tech heavy: business and finance, information technology and consumer services.

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Arrested analyst allegedly tipped off hedge fund to Microsoft deal

Arrested analyst allegedly tipped off hedge fund to Microsoft deal

Federal authorities have arrested a financial analyst who shared inside information about a 2009 advertising deal between Microsoft and Yahoo. He allegedly got the tip from a Microsoft executive.

NEW YORK — A financial analyst provided inside information about a blockbuster deal between Microsoft and Yahoo to a portfolio manager at a hedge fund that’s become the target of a sweeping investigation, authorities said Tuesday.

Federal prosecutors in New York announced the securities-fraud charges against Sandeep Aggarwal a day after he was arrested in San Jose, Calif. There was no immediate response to a phone message left Tuesday with his attorney.

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Recent SEC ‘Bad Actor’ Provisions For Hedge Funds, Private Equity Funds, Could Unearth Unethical Backgrounds Of Executives: Securities Lawyers

Recent SEC ‘Bad Actor’ Provisions For Hedge Funds, Private Equity Funds, Could Unearth Unethical Backgrounds Of Executives: Securities Lawyers

Recent regulations unearthing the legal backgrounds of those who sell private securities could lead to nervousness and layoffs among hedge fund and private equity executives, according to securities lawyers.

The major 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reforms required the Securities and Exchange Commission to adopt so-called “bad actor” provisions, which bar those convicted of financial crimes from selling private securities. The commission adopted these rules earlier in July.

Although only crimes committed after September 2013 will automatically disqualify private fundraisers, the provision still requires investment executives to at least disclose past convictions to investors.

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Grosvenor poised to buy private equity unit from Credit Suisse

Grosvenor poised to buy private equity unit from Credit Suisse

Chicago-based Grosvenor Capital Management LP is in advanced talks to buy a private equity unit from Credit Suisse Group AG, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

The deal, to be valued at more than $200 million in cash and other considerations, could be announced as early as this week, the Wall Street Journal earlier reported.  The transaction, if completed, could roughly double Grosvenor’s size by assets, the Journal said.

Grosvenor’s chief executive is Michael Sacks, who is also vice chairman of World Business Chicago and the closest business advisor to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

A Credit Suisse spokeswoman declined to comment while a Grosvenor representative was not immediately available for a comment.

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Why NY Venture Capitalists Should Pay Attention To Foreign Tech Startups

Why NY Venture Capitalists Should Pay Attention To Foreign Tech Startups

I’ve written about the Series A Crunch, and why entrepreneurs can and should consider alternative sources of funding – with a big focus on investment crowdfundingto kickstart the startup’s growth. Securing funding is a constant challenge that many entrepreneurs in the US face these days. Yet, the challenge for foreign tech entrepreneurs is even greater. As innovation becomes a global phenomenon with accelerators, incubators, micro-VCs and seed funds popping up all over the world to jumpstart entrepreneurship, one would expect the distribution of capital to reflect that. However, this is not the case.

Historically, many international entrepreneurs and startups have expanded their operations to Silicon Valley. Being a mature ecosystem, the focus in the Valley is on creating great companies, no matter their origin. This is one of the reasons it’s such a unique place. In fact, the experience and network created in the Valley is so great that it made countries like Canada, Britain and Australia offer incentives for entrepreneurs willing to “pivot” and bring this culture and their startups “home”, so they can create their own versions of Silicon Valley.

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Mizuho Global Sees $2 Billion as Japan Pensions Seek Hedge Funds

 

Mizuho Global Sees $2 Billion as Japan Pensions Seek Hedge Funds

Mizuho Global Alternative Investments Ltd., which introduces hedge funds to Japanese investors, expects assets to reach $2 billion by the end of the business year, reflecting demand from local pensions.

The unit of Japan’s third-largest bank by market value raised $1.7 billion by the end June that it placed with global alternative asset managers that offer funds that invest in bank loans and multistrategy hedge funds, Chief Executive Office Manabu Ando said in an interview in Tokyo. It plans to offer other alternative investments such as private-equity and infrastructure funds by the end of this fiscal year in March 2014, he said.

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Big Hedge Funds to Swoop on Start-Up Talent

Big Hedge Funds to Swoop on Start-Up Talent

Some of the world’s biggest hedge funds, including Marshall Wace, Millennium Management, CQS and BlueCrest Capital Management, are among firms that are capitalizing on a difficult environment for start-ups, hiring potential managers who might once have considered setting up on their own.

Marshall Wace, which has seen its assets grow 60% in the past 12 months to $10.7 billion, is planning a recruitment drive in the U.S., which will be spearheaded by partners Daniel Roberts and Nick Nielsen, who are relocating to New York. The firm plans to hire about a dozen staff, including portfolio managers in the next couple of years and is moving its U.S. office from Connecticut to midtown Manhattan, according to a person familiar with the matter.

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Hedge Fund’s Suit on Fannie and Freddie May Spell Trouble for U.S.

Hedge Fund’s Suit on Fannie and Freddie May Spell Trouble for U.S.

The lawsuit brought by the hedge fund Perry Capital against the federal government over the Fannie Maeand Freddie Mac bailout may be the case that finally subjects the government’s bailout practices to closer outside scrutiny.

The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bailouts were two of the biggest and earliest of the financial crisis. In September 2008, a government team led by the Treasury secretary at the time, Henry M. Paulson Jr., placed the companies into a conservatorship and provided them with hundreds of billions of dollars in backstop financing. In return, the government required the companies to issue super-preferred stock to the Treasury Department, stock that would pay the government before all other creditors, at a 10 percent rate.Read more

Hedge Funds Raise Gold Bets as Goldman Sees Decline: Commodities

Hedge Funds Raise Gold Bets as Goldman Sees Decline: Commodities

Hedge funds raised wagers on a gold rally as speculation that the Federal Reserve will hold off on curbing stimulus drove prices toward the biggest gain in 18 months. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. expects the rally to reverse.

Money managers increased their net-long position by 26 percent to 70,067 futures and options as of July 23, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show. The fourth consecutive weekly gain is the longest streak since October. Bullish wagers across 18 U.S.-traded commodities gained 7.4 percent to 615,140. Investors more than doubled bets on lower corn prices to a record net-short holding.

Gold futures rose 8.6 percent in July, heading for the largest monthly gain since January 2012, as Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke damped speculation that a cut in bond purchases is imminent. The metal remains in a bear market reached in April and is heading for the first annual loss in 13 years after some investors lost faith in bullion as a store of value. Goldman said July 22 that prices are likely to decline.

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The Daily Startup: Fashion Wholesale Site Joor to Expand

The Daily Startup: Fashion Wholesale Site Joor to Expand

Joor Inc. has closed $15 million in Series B funding to bolster its platform that connects fashion brands and retailers and expand its wholesale marketplace worldwide. The infusion was done at a valuation around $80 million and brings in new investor Canaan Partners as the lead backer along with Advance Publications Inc., the parent company of Condé Nast.

Veteran developers of enterprise technology for hotels have formed a new startup,StayNTouch Inc., and raised $1.6 million in seed funding for it. Concur Technologies Inc.’s CNQR +0.49% Perfect Trip Fund led the seed investment. The Maryland startup plans to use its funding to develop and launch an enterprise property-management system and a consumer-facing app by the second quarter of 2014.

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