Allen Latta's Thoughts on Private Equity, Etc.
  • Allen's Blog
  • Glossary of Private Equity Terms
  • Resources and Links
  • About / Contact

Facing Up to America's Pension Woes: WSJ Opinion Piece by David Skeel

7/25/2013

0 Comments

 
There's an interesting opinion piece in today's The Wall Street Journal "David Skeel: Facing Up to America's Pension Woes" that explores the argument that Chapter 9 federal bankruptcy law does not permit any changes to pension benefits.  The author concludes that this argument is most likely wrong, and spells out the legal case made in support and opposed to the argument.  The author David Skeel teaches bankruptcy law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Link:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324110404578625904218607438.html?
0 Comments

Corporate Venture Capital Efforts in Silicon Valley - WSJ Article

7/25/2013

0 Comments

 
The Wall Street Journal yesterday had a good article on corporate venture capital in Silicon Valley.  "Mining Silicon Valley's Culture" discusses the efforts by a number of corporations to establish offices in Silicon Valley to tap into the new ideas and technologies being developed there.  The article discusses some of the successful efforts, namely BMW and Wal-Mart, and some of the efforts that haven't been as successful.  It's a good article, and worth a read.

Link:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323610704578626123357642626.html?

0 Comments

The Coming IPO Parade - Term Sheet

7/20/2013

0 Comments

 
Dan Primack, Senior Editor of Fortune, yesterday posted an interesting article "The Coming IPO Parade" on Fortune Term Sheet that shows that there are 11 companies set for their initial public offerings next week.  Included in these 11 companies are several venture-backed biotech companies: Agios Pharmaceuticals, Cellular Dynamics, Conatus Pharmaceuticals, Heat Biologics and Onconova Therapeutics.  There's also a video with Dan prNext week should be a good barometer for the interest in life science IPOs.  

Here's the link for the article:  
http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/07/19/the-coming-ipo-parade/

0 Comments

Marc Andreessen Interview on CNBC

7/11/2013

0 Comments

 
CNBC has posted an article and video of an interesting interview with Marc Andreessen, co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.  While the article covers the main points, I recommend watching the video as it provides a fuller sense of Andreessen's thoughts.  In the video, Mr. Andreessen discusses the following:
  • Tech Bubble or Boom?  Andreesen thinks its a tech boom.  The internet has entered prime time.  Consumers love the internet.  E-commerce and advertising are moving online.  A lot of things we've been talking about for 15 years are happening in a big way now.
  • The IPO market is deeply broken.  It's becoming a two class market: public companies and private companies. In general, the private companies are growin very fast and doing very well and delaying their IPOs much longer than they used to.  There is a small number of public tech companies doing well, but a much larger number of companies that should be public but aren't.  We're at an all-time low in tech IPOs and it's regulations like Sarbanes-Oxley and Reg FD that need reform.
  • Andressesn Horowitz like to work with entrepreneurs who want to build big independent long-term companies, and its' these companies that will ultimately go public.  They tell these companies to build a fortress before going public,   make sure the business is well established, have a lot of predictability, there's a strong patent portfolio, etc.
  • Insider trading.  He's glad to see the crackdown on insider trading.  The market manipulation has become a problem for young public tech companies that see their stocks get whipped around by hedge funds.
  • Immigration reform needs to happen.  2/3 of Silicon Valley companies are co-founded by immigrants and those companies over the last 40 years have created millions of jobs.  If one wants more high tech success stories, having more highly skilled immigrants is something easy to do.
  • Looking forward over a 5-10-15 year basis, he is bullish on the economy.
  • An area they like is crowd funding.  The feel there's a whole phenomenon around how the economy would work if one can uncover signals and know in advance if consumers will want the product before it's built.  Another is collaborative consumption.  This includes companies like AirBnB and Lyft, which involve resource sharing where people are sharing their cars and homes.  They think this is a powerful trend.


Link to the article and video:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/100880994?

0 Comments
    About this Blog

    This Blog is a collection of thoughts on a variety of topics of interest to me, including:
    • Venture Capital
    • Private Equity
    • Technology
    • Corporate Finance
    • Investment Banking
    • IPOs
    • M&A
    • Economics
    • Law
    • Politics
    I hope you find this blog of interest.

    Find me on LinkedIn
    Find me on Twitter

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Copyright Notice:

    ​All original works on this site are 
    © 2011-2018 Allen J. Latta. All rights reserved.  Neither this website nor any portion thereof may be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
    without the express prior written permission of Allen J. Latta.

    Categories

    All
    Berlin
    Board Of Directors
    Brazil
    Buyouts
    California
    China
    Cleantech
    Corporate Finance
    Corporate Venture Capital
    Crowdfunding
    Dividend Recap
    Economics
    Emerging Managers
    Endowments
    Entrepreneurship
    Europe
    General
    Growth Equity
    Healthcare
    India
    Innovation
    Investment Banking
    Ipo
    Israel
    Law
    Legal
    Libor
    Life Sciences
    Listed Private Equity
    London
    Los Angeles
    LP Corner
    M&A
    Mexico
    New York
    Pensions
    Politics
    Private Equity
    Public Stocks
    San Francisco
    Secondaries
    Secondary Exchanges
    Silicon Valley
    South America
    Speaking
    Stock Market
    Tax
    Technology
    Travel
    United Kingdom
    Valuation
    Venture Capital


    Archives

    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011


Photo used under Creative Commons from Donnaphoto
✕