Early stage or growth, raising capital has been tough for almost all companies since last October. Declining venture capital and private equity investment numbers over the last several months are evidence — see the latest Grant Thornton report here. For startups, especially, raising venture capital is a challenge even in fair weather. Each stage, from seed through Series A and B, comes along with its own unique hurdles. “There are investment and operational issues at each stage, both for the entrepreneur and the investor. We need to engage in a dialogue on those issues,” says Sateesh Andra, venture partner, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, flagging off the underlying theme for TiE-ISB Connect 2009, scheduled for October 22 and 23 in Hyderabad.
The forum, in its main theme, is asking ‘The Crisis Will Pass…Will You?’ It is a pertinent question. Before the current economic downturn is out, several startups as well as a few venture capital firms, will bite the dust. And going by the rumblings that one is beginning to hear more and more in venture capital circles, the dust is going to kick up quite a storm (more on that in a later post).
Interestingly, the organizers have decided to address funding issues not only at the seed and early stages but also at the growth stage. Read the full story
