Comments on: Hand Over The Cash Or We’ll Smash The Place Up http://cientifica.eu/blog/2009/02/hand-over-the-cash-or-well-smash-the-place-up/ Taking The Rational View of Nanotechnologies Since 2000 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:55:05 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tim http://cientifica.eu/blog/2009/02/hand-over-the-cash-or-well-smash-the-place-up/#comment-1136 Tim Tue, 17 Feb 2009 13:50:03 +0000 http://cientifica.eu/blog/?p=914#comment-1136 Mark, I thought your name rang a distant bell! I think you have put your finger on the problem with your comment, and making sure that we have the ability to "build a diversified portfolio and avoid being washed out at some point during the path from alpha to omega" is exactly what our new vehicle is all about. Mark,
I thought your name rang a distant bell! I think you have put your finger on the problem with your comment, and making sure that we have the ability to “build a diversified portfolio and avoid being washed out at some point during the path from alpha to omega” is exactly what our new vehicle is all about.

]]> By: Ho Hum http://cientifica.eu/blog/2009/02/hand-over-the-cash-or-well-smash-the-place-up/#comment-1134 Ho Hum Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:33:07 +0000 http://cientifica.eu/blog/?p=914#comment-1134 Tim Good to hear there's something bubbling under. I agree the VC model is far from ideal. Sometimes it feels like the structure of funds (ie the 10 year closed fund model) is the main culprit, a lot of the time it feels more like the fact that we have created a fragmented patchwork of subscale funds that are simply too small to be able to do the basics - build a diversified portfolio and avoid being washed out at some point during the path from alpha to omega. Do let me know when you're ready to show your creation to the world. BTW (and feel free to moderate this out) I might as well confess my past, since we touched tangentially, though as far as I know we never met. I used to be Charlie Hunt's boss at NESTA, so remember Nanosight with fondness. Best wishes Mark Tim

Good to hear there’s something bubbling under. I agree the VC model is far from ideal. Sometimes it feels like the structure of funds (ie the 10 year closed fund model) is the main culprit, a lot of the time it feels more like the fact that we have created a fragmented patchwork of subscale funds that are simply too small to be able to do the basics – build a diversified portfolio and avoid being washed out at some point during the path from alpha to omega.

Do let me know when you’re ready to show your creation to the world.

BTW (and feel free to moderate this out) I might as well confess my past, since we touched tangentially, though as far as I know we never met. I used to be Charlie Hunt’s boss at NESTA, so remember Nanosight with fondness.

Best wishes

Mark

]]> By: Tim http://cientifica.eu/blog/2009/02/hand-over-the-cash-or-well-smash-the-place-up/#comment-1087 Tim Sun, 15 Feb 2009 18:32:28 +0000 http://cientifica.eu/blog/?p=914#comment-1087 Mark, In answer to your first question, yes we do have what we think is a better model and have raised a substantial amount of capital as a result. I'd love to be able to elaborate further but confidentiality agreements etc with our investors mean that our hands are tied for the next few weeks at least. In any case, it is always better to wait until we are able to reveal the iridescent butterfly rather than dangling a swollen but frankly far less impressive chrysalis in front of you. However, once I am able to pop my head above the parapet I'll be more than happy to have our model picked apart. I think we have hit upon <em>a</em> solution, but there may be other models that will emerge that may be better, or to continue to paraphrase Churchill, less worse than ours, and the financial world is something that is a work in eternal progress, as are most technologies. I do have <em>some</em> sympathy with the plight of the UK VC industry, and I do recognise that your hands are also tied as a result of working to rules that haven't changed too much in the past half century - but I would also argue that banging your heads against a wall for fifty years and then demanding an aspirin does not display the sort of creativity that is often demanded of investees. Mark,
In answer to your first question, yes we do have what we think is a better model and have raised a substantial amount of capital as a result. I’d love to be able to elaborate further but confidentiality agreements etc with our investors mean that our hands are tied for the next few weeks at least. In any case, it is always better to wait until we are able to reveal the iridescent butterfly rather than dangling a swollen but frankly far less impressive chrysalis in front of you. However, once I am able to pop my head above the parapet I’ll be more than happy to have our model picked apart. I think we have hit upon a solution, but there may be other models that will emerge that may be better, or to continue to paraphrase Churchill, less worse than ours, and the financial world is something that is a work in eternal progress, as are most technologies.

I do have some sympathy with the plight of the UK VC industry, and I do recognise that your hands are also tied as a result of working to rules that haven’t changed too much in the past half century – but I would also argue that banging your heads against a wall for fifty years and then demanding an aspirin does not display the sort of creativity that is often demanded of investees.

]]> By: Ho Hum http://cientifica.eu/blog/2009/02/hand-over-the-cash-or-well-smash-the-place-up/#comment-1080 Ho Hum Sun, 15 Feb 2009 13:46:22 +0000 http://cientifica.eu/blog/?p=914#comment-1080 I presume you have a better, well thought out model for providing young companies with the necessary resources (financial, strategic and people). Before moaning about what you have in front of you, it's always worth repeating Churchill's comment on democracy ("it's the worst system of government - apart from all the others"), and wondering whether the same might not apply here. It's also worth pointing out that the fees on most venture funds nowadays are not huge. It's the private equity funds that have grown to such sizes that the fees have become the major source of (risk-free) revenue/profit for the managers. Very few UK VC's are in any position to do much more than survive on the back of the fee levels, so the rather snide comment above is rather wide of the mark. Anyway, back to the main point - your proposals, if you will. Thanks for the blog, by the way. Very readable and helpful I presume you have a better, well thought out model for providing young companies with the necessary resources (financial, strategic and people). Before moaning about what you have in front of you, it’s always worth repeating Churchill’s comment on democracy (“it’s the worst system of government – apart from all the others”), and wondering whether the same might not apply here.

It’s also worth pointing out that the fees on most venture funds nowadays are not huge. It’s the private equity funds that have grown to such sizes that the fees have become the major source of (risk-free) revenue/profit for the managers. Very few UK VC’s are in any position to do much more than survive on the back of the fee levels, so the rather snide comment above is rather wide of the mark.

Anyway, back to the main point – your proposals, if you will.

Thanks for the blog, by the way. Very readable and helpful

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