Raising Angel & Venture Capital Finance – An Entrepreneur’s Guide To Securing Venture Finance

Dr. Tom McKaskill Raising Angel & Venture Capital Finance An entrepreneur’s guide to securing venture finance Angels and Venture Capital firms are in the business of generating a high rate of return on their investment, not in creating or building businesses. To be successful, the investor needs to achieve an exit of their investment within three to five years and that means planning the exit strategy from day one. The strategic trade sale is the preferred investment exit method. The business plan sets out the operational detail of how the firm will create the necessary conditions for achieving the exit for the investor. If you can’t create the necessary platform for an Initial Public Offering, you are going to have to sell your business. The author hereby gives permission for any recipient of this publication to reproduce, store in a retrieval system, transmit in any form or distribute by any means for personal use of any recipient. This publication may not be sold or resold for any fee, price or charge without the permission of the copyright owner. Raising Angel & Venture Capital Finance ii Testimonials ‘Many entrepreneurs have achieved great success by partnering with Angel investors but they need to have the right business venture and the right approach to external investment to attract investors. This book provides the essential guide for anyone contemplating seeking Angel investment.’  – John Mactaggart,
Chairman
Australian Association of Angel Investors  ‘Through his experiences as a successful startup entrepreneur, business school professor, advisor and author, Dr. McKaskill provides some great insights and a comprehensive game plan for companies seeking Angel and VC funding. Raising Angel & Venture Capital Finance is a great read for founders and entrepreneurs— whether they’re raising outside capital or just trying to understand the fundraising process—and just made our jobs as investors a lot easier.’ – Joe Platnick, Partner iGlobe Treasury Management Ltd. and Director Pasadena Angels ‘Tom is one of those unique individuals who has lived both a life of a successful entrepreneur and spent time understanding what makes them successful.  This book is a synthesis of decades of this experience and is a must read for anyone who wishes to understand how to raise capital from the venture capital managers and angel investor.’ – Richard Palmer, Investment Director, New Zealand Venture Investment Fund Limited ‘An entrepreneur only gets a few chances to pitch a venture capital group.  This book will prepare you and significantly enhance your opportunity to receive funding.’ – Patrick Thean, President, Leadline Group, Inc., Charlotte, NC Raising Angel & Venture Capital Finance iii Testimonials ‘Early-stage investing is all about finding and nurturing a nugget of value with the goal of presenting the improved value for acquisition by a company in whose hands that value can continue to grow and reward. Investors need entrepreneurs who want to build and sell such companies. While they often share the same goal, investors and entrepreneurs frequently struggle to understand each others’ perspective. These are the myriad deals that don’t fail, they never happen because of a basic failure to communicate. With his usual clarity, Tom explains the investor’s thinking to an entrepreneur and offers a practical guide to preparing for and pursuing such investors.’ – Jordan Green, Angel Investor and Deputy Chairman, Australian Association of Angel Investors Limited ‘Venture Capital is a highly specialised form of both business finance and partnership that relatively few people understand. Dr. McKaskill has provided a very useful introduction to the topic for aspiring entrepreneurs searching for the best ways to accelerate their business growth.’ – Doron Ben-Meir, Executive Director & CEO, Pre