5280 Angel

I recently had a deal fall through that was really starting to chap my hide. Finally, last week we decided to pull the plug and walk away because it was painfully clear that we would be unable to work with this management team going forward.
We had been looking at this company for months. […]

If you recall, I tried a little Wallstrip experiment this past May wherein I purchased $1,000 worth of every stock featured on the show during the month of May. I ended up purchasing 14 different stocks, 6 of which stopped out at around a 20% loss.
All in all it was a successful experiment netting […]

David Cohen wrote a great piece the other day about his experience at an East-West angel conference. He covered several topics that I thought were worthy of comment, but the one that was particularly poignant at the moment was the part on milestones. Luis Villalobos, founder of Tech Coast Angels in California, has […]

People are always a little amazed at how much time is required to raise capital for their company. Whether you are looking for 500k or 10 million, you are typically looking at a longer road than expected. Call it due diligence, call it dragging feet, but here are some of the things that […]

As part of my due diligence process in evaluating an investment I will frequently run background checks on one or more of the founders. It’s more of a peace-of-mind thing than actually expecting to uncover some blatant fraud attempt, but it also feels plain prudent.
I have an ex-FBI acquaintance who runs the checks for […]

Yes folks, the summer is winding down and the Denver/Boulder investment scene is about to heat up. The 10 selected TechStars companies have (hopefully) decided on business plans, built demos and financial projections, organized or incorporated their businesses, and will be primped and pretty for the big event this week…INVESTOR DAY! Duh, Duh, […]

More and more I am running into these online sites that are attempting to connect entrepreneurs looking for capital with investors looking to spend capital. I don’t really know how to classify these sites, but I have listed a bunch of the ones I have found, and I doubt it is exhaustive. Does […]

Today was the last day for purchasing the Wallstrip stocks for my little experiment. Read about it here. Now I will hold the stocks for 6 months then compare the performance to various indexes.
I purchased 14 stocks throughout the month in my 401k account.  My total cost basis is $14,000, and I spent […]

I had the pleasure of attending the monthly Keiretsu Forum meeting this morning at the Grand Hyatt downtown. For those of you unfamiliar with the organization, you can find out more information here. I am excited to see the growth of these groups where investors can pool resources and knowledge with others in […]

The other day I met with a company that deemed itself a “social business” with an idea that would help charities and non-profit organizations raise funds more efficiently. Seems like a worthy endeavor, right? I think so, but how do I really know? How is this endeavor more socially responsible than any other […]