"Your site offers a unique window of information for us." - Jeffrey A. Reals, Managing Director, Performance Equity Management, LLC (former private equity team of GM Pension)
"Your site is a must-have . . . Who else boast
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"Your site has a wealth of
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Institutional Venture Partners (IVP)
"In my bussiness [sic] we don't know all the answers so knowing who to ask is key. I knew that for anything Venture Capital related, InsiderVC would be the place to go."
- Gordon Jackson, Partner & Technology Practice Leader, Lonergan Richards (retained executive search firm, previously with Heidrick and Struggles)
"I manage the private equity
portfolio for Verizon Communications. We have a portfolio with a
reported value of $4.5 billion, about 65% in buyouts and the rest in
venture. We are the result of mergers between NYNEX, Bell
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Management Corp. (VIMCO)
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on point than what I'm able to get through SDC Platinum. I am working
on an internal project to review deals done by other specific firms.
Based on what I saw while I was a parasite, I can clearly see how
membership would have its rewards." - Jeff Bullock, VP of Finance, Francisco Partners
"The industry's most insightful
analysis." - Tom Stein, Investment Dealers' Digest (IDD),
Thomson Financial Investment Banking/Capital Markets (the group
includes IFR, Venture Economics, Thomson Financial Municipals Group
and Thomson Financial Securities Data)
"You’d gotta be the most
informative and most sought-after subscription site around in the
whole industry. Come to think of it, I’d vote it as the best
globally." - Richard Mok, Director, Ulmus Investment Limited,
Hong Kong; previously with DSE Investment Services (private equity arm of the
Dah Sing Financial Group)
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deserves to be protected vigorously." -
Joshua C. Glaser, Director, Forum Capital Partners
"I have found your site useful
for finding return data as well as interesting insights into specific
firms. Thank you. It has been a great help." - Alex Leykikh,
Atlantic-Pacific Capital, Inc.
"I heard about your site through
fellow VCs who were saying they enjoyed the material and content . . .
interesting for us to know which firms are valuing certain companies
that we have also invested in." - George Bischof, Focus
Ventures
"I love the stuff on your site." - Bill Tai,
General Partner, Charles River Ventures (CRV); formerly
general partner, Institutional Venture Partners (IVP)
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intelligent." - Tom Lynch, Managing Director, Private Markets
Group, Wilshire Associates
"Spot on." - Paresh Patel,
Sparta Group LLC (private investment firm in Boston representing
wealthy families)
"Awesome." - Lawrence
Aragon, Editor, Venture Capital Journal / Private Equity Week,
formerly Venture Capital Editor, The Red Herring
"Entertaining reading and very on
target." - Michael W. Taylor, HarbourVest Partners, LLC
"I fully understand your being
guarded about the information you possess . . . You are pretty
thorough in your analysis. This is good info from my perspective as
our firm represents at least half of the funds I've seen you analyze.
The attorneys normally do not get to see candid, objective reporting
like this." - Sean Caplice, Gunderson Dettmer
"Candid and original commentary
on our peers and the industry." - Errik B. Anderson, Lehman
Brothers Venture Capital Group
"Impressive . . . a strange brew
of FuckedCompany for VCs and Cambridge Associates." - Jamie
Hale, Oak Hill Venture Partners
"I would like to subscribe."
- Kevin R. Kresnicka, Bank of America Capital Corporation
"We manage a series of private
equity funds of funds (NEA 10, TA IX, VPVP IV, Crescendo IV, DFJ VII,
DCM III, Prism III, De Novo I, Blackstone IV, Castle Harlan IV). I
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"I need to complete a
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"We should be subscribing."
- Graeme Gunn, Investment Director, Standard Life Investments Group
Limited (Private Equity)
"How do I stop being a parasite?"
- B. James Ford, Managing Director, Oaktree Capital Management, LLC
"As a wise man (on your homepage)
once said: Where do I send the check?" - Brooke Coburn, Managing
Director, The Carlyle Group
"Having consulted to, taken money
from and now investing in GPs (cumulatively for the last 7-8 years
now), I have a distinct appreciation for the points of view InsiderVC
champions." - James Sperans, Morgan Stanley AIP (joint venture
between Morgan Stanley and the Weyerhaeuser Corporation managing $7
billion in alternative assets, including the $4 billion Weyerhaeuser
pension fund)
"I love this site . . . was
referred to me by a friend and after browsing it, I wanted to stop
being a parasite." - Brian Hiestand, Director, Alternative
Investments, Indiana University Foundation
"Your site was highly
recommended, and the content didn't disappoint. The objective,
'no-nonsense' nature of your analysis represents a refreshing break
from the norm." - Craig J. Lewis, CFA, Senior Research Analyst -
Private Investment, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
"Any time I cited your stuff, I
garnered upmost respect." - Matt Marshall, Venture Capital
Reporter, San Jose Mercury News
"You inspired me to talk to [Kleiner
Perkins Caufield & Byers' Vinod] Khosla about the fear and greed
idea." - Russ Mitchell, Fortune (Too Much Ventured Nothing
Gained. VCs are a hurting bunch. New companies feel their pain)
"Your comments, as always, were
spot-on." - Sree Bhaktavatsalam, Reporter, Private Equity,
Alternative Investor / Asset Alternatives, The Private Equity
Analyst newsletter, covering private equity fundraising and
investment
"Amazing . . . When I pressure
people they confess your numbers are right, which is great. As
you've long maintained: few VCs are to be trusted when it comes to
talking about their own returns." - Beth Healy, venture capital
reporter, The Boston Globe
"As an investment banker to many
private equity shops, it has been my experience that oftentimes these
shops are disingenuous (and that's being kind) when presenting their
portfolio returns/valuation to their LPs. Transparency and disclosure
is much needed in the private equity world. I've been a banker to this
world for close to 15 years. It's very interesting to compare the
returns you have on your site with the verbal diarrhea I sometimes get
from these guys." - Jed Duncan, Managing Director, BMO Nesbitt
Burns
"This is a great site! Good
insight and strips away the puffery that is common in VC
presentations. The praise that is heaped upon the site seems very well
deserved." - Edward E. (Jay) Butler Jr., Assistant Vice
President, Alternative Investments, Merrill Lynch (responsible for
placement of private equity with institutional level investors)
"Wow. Nice to see someone calling
things as they are." - Meredith S. Pasquesi, Managing Director,
The Investment Fund for Foundations (TIFF)
"Compelling . . . especially the
objective perspective on performance. I need more objectivity, less
spin, these days." - Mark A. O'Connor, Executive Director, CIBC
Capital Partners
"The site everyone
reads." - The inside scoop on VCs, Upside (emphasis in
original)
"Your tone is certainly
non-traditional -- a bit like James Ellroy without the
vulgarity." - David L. Witherow, President and CEO, VentureOne
Corporation
"I appreciate your style." -
Caitlyn MacDonald, Schroder Ventures (Boston) Inc., subsidiary of
Schroder Ventures International Investment Trust
"I appreciate your humor." -
William S. (Bill) Trainor, Managing Director, C&T Access Ventures
(venture fund sponsored by Christian & Timbers)
"I appreciate your sense of
humor!" - Randy Rodgers,
Commonfund Capital (institutional fund of funds with over $5 billion
in assets under management)
"The best data out there about
venture capital, and often the most interesting things to say about
it." - Behind the VC Music, Fortune
"Very cool. You must be
loved!" - William B. Petersen, Vice President and Chief
Investment Officer, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
"I think what you're doing is
fantastic. It's silly how sheltered and unaccountable the firms /
people in this industry have been in the past." - Frode Eilertsen,
Flagship Ventures (OneLiberty
Funds, AGTC Funds and NewcoGen Group)
"A better sense of the relative
performance of VC funds than what Venture Economics can provide."
- Wee-Lee Lim, Private Equity Group, DBS Bank (largest banking group
in Southeast Asia)
"'Unbiased' perspective on the VC
community." - Wendy Roberts, Cisco Systems
"Keeping up with changes in the
performance at the VCs is part of due diligence. InsiderVC.com has the
best and most dis-interested VC evaluation around; it's the common
wisdom." - Pat Martin, Sr. VP, CommVest
"Knowing the inside on VCs is necessary for my role here, and
your no-bullshit approach is a refreshing alternative . . . an
invaluable resource." - John M. Mecklenburg, Vice President,
Syndication, Rutberg & Company, LLC
"A fresh and non-BS perspective
to the world of VC investing... helps us keep abreast of what's going
on in the industry and sizing up the competition better." -
Joshua A. Lewis, Early Stage Investments Team, Bank of America's
Strategic Alliances and Investments group
"This is great stuff!" -
Edward G. Sim, Managing Director, Wit SoundView Ventures
"Unbiased information about
venture firms and the industry in general." - Mark T. Regal, CFA,
Credit Suisse First Boston Private Equity (fund investment group of
CSFB, specializing in VC fund investments with groups such as Summit,
Foundation, Interwest, Polaris, Austin, etc.)
"Love your stuff -- great,
no-holds-barred, and very, very necessary." - Paul Kedrosky,
Faculty of Commerce, University of British Columbia
"An
excellent way for us to keep track of the industry outside of the
traditional research resources." - Samuel Hendler, Quellos
Private Capital Markets (recently formed private equity fund-of-funds,
part of The Quellos Group, a $6BN+ alternative asset/wealth manager,
previously with Broadview doing M&A for tech companies)
"I have enjoyed your insights
over the last few years." - Carlo Pirzio Biroli, Director,
Private Equity Fund of Funds, DB Capital Partners - Deutsche Bank AG
(previously CEO of CDB Web Tech)
"VCs we have invested in have
access on this site and seem very happy with your services." -
Stephane Verhulst, Nortel Networks
"All I have to say is
'Wow'!" - Barry Shisgal, New York Venture Capital Association
"I hear a lot of bitching and
moaning about you from the VCs, though they all reference your site
when they're ragging on their competitors. You know the industry cold
and you're controversial. What more could a paper ask for in a
source?" - Jeff Miller, venture reporter, Mass High Tech
"Thanks for providing this
terrific service." - Matt McIlwain, Partner, Madrona Venture
Group
"Once again, my congratulations
to the great piece of work you have done." - Florent Wolff, A.T.
Kearney (management consulting subsidiary of EDS)
"I manage the VC LP portfolio (Redpoint,
Sigma, TH Lee, Foundation, etc.) for a good conservative financial
institution. I like your tone." - Greg Staples, V.P., Private
Equity/VC portfolio manager, The MONY Group
"We certainly have enjoyed your
candidness." - Imtiaz Khan, Venture Capital Group, Ontario
Teachers' Pension Plan
"Very helpful." -
Suzanne McGee and Lisa Bransten, Staff Reporters, Wall Street
Journal (on more than one occassion)
"Your candid articles and reports
are a 'must have'." - Rebecca Connolly, Partner, Everest Ventures
"Great stuff." - Dhruv
Bajpai, Updata Venture Partners
"I love your
site." - Bill Gossman, investor in venture capital funds
including Olympic Venture Partners and Mohr Davidow Ventures
"Keep up the well
regarded work." - Todd M. Haedrich, BancBoston Ventures
"Holy cow, I can't believe you
have this stuff on us.'' - Geoff Yang, Founding Partner, Redpoint
Ventures
"Take it as a badge of honor.
VC's are afraid of you. The Truth hurts. No one has called BS on them
because most of them have not had to answer to a soul." - Bryce
Williams, eHealthInsurance, previously an M&A and securities
lawyer at Jones Day Reavis and Pogue.
"The US web site InsiderVC.com
provides data for the venture capital industry, such as profit and
loss allocations between the general partner and the investors (the
carry), the exact rate of management fees, and exact investments and
valuations for portfolio companies at the various financing rounds. Of
course, the site also includes derivative data, such as the internal
rate of return (IRR) and the realization ratio. In other words, it
provides the tools needed to compare various organizations and even
different funds within the same organization, information you will not
get from your local venture capital management partner. You won’t
find better material on the web." - Financial investors? Us? Globes,
Israel's Business Arena
"I like the content." -
Stewart Alsop, General Partner, New Enterprise Associates
"I like the screening." -
Jay Ward, Counsel, Reed Smith Crosby Heafey LLP
"I like your writing style.
Additionally, your website has inside news as opposed to merely
regurgitating press releases put out by private equity funds. Much
more interesting than Private Equity Week." - Michael
Belsley, Kirkland & Ellis
"After reading 'Debunking Myths',
I am stunned. Your critique of the VC industry's reliance on marketing
as an apparatus for mythology building was not only cogent but also
effective in its unmasking of the arrogance and unwarranted
self-promotion inherent to the VC industry. It is rare for business
writers to engage a topic that is from all angles polemical, but that
is just what you have done. Your project is noble, and your ambition
well directed." - Jason
Anderson, SI Ventures
"I LOVE this stuff!" -
George Deriso, Managing Vice President, Gartner Consulting, a unit of
Gartner, Inc. (emphasis in original)
"The information that you provide
gives much needed transparency to the market." - Benjamin Liou,
J. Paul Getty Trust, formerly with Global Capital Markets
"Real performance data." -
Jeffrey G. Toler, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
"The preeminent data on venture
capital fund performance." - Tim Petersen, Wolverine Venture Fund
and Managing Director, Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie, Institute for
Entrepreneurial Studies, University of Michigan Business School
"While there are plenty of sources that give a broad understanding of the US and UK
markets, there are few that do much in the way of analysis of each market,
and many that are, frankly, sycophantic and short-sighted in their
reporting (I'm thinking specifically of Red Herring, but the same thing can
be said about sites such as privateequitycentral.net). The other sites
are typically driven by the latest "flavour of the month" investment or
by moves in the public markets, i.e., they do not take a long term
investor's perspective but focus on a more sensationalist approach.
Insider VC offer[s] much better depth of analysis than any other competing
sites that I have seen." - Douglas Cook, Investment Analyst,
Colonial First State Private Equity
"Insightful...closely followed by
the VC industry." - Li-Chung Anthony Lin, Associate - Technology
Private Equity, Investment Banking, Merrill Lynch & Co.
"My coworker Brian Best showed me
your site and I love it." - Maurice Werdegar, Western Technology
Investment (venture debt firm), co-founder of Flynn Ventures (an
angels group), and a limited partner in over 10 venture funds
"As a long-time technology
investment banker and as a VC LP, I cross paths with/work with VCs on
a regular basis and have an interest in keeping current with trends in
the VC community. I like your irreverent style." - William
A. (Bill) Lamkin, Managing Director, Technology Investment Banking
Group, ABN AMRO
"Good." - Susan Mahan Fasig,
CFA, Vice President, Fund Evaluation Group
"Very good." - Jade C.
Rarang, Merrill Lynch & Co., Technology Investment Banking
"Really good." - Arbel
Eichbaum, founder, Bay Harbor Partners
"Great." - Bush Helzberg,
Lehman Brothers
'Interesting." - Charles E.
Hudson III, In-Q-Tel, Inc. (VC arm of the CIA)
"Interesting." - Yadin
Kaufmann, Veritas Venture Partners (oldest VC firm in Israel)
"Very, very interesting." -
Bart Shirley, Private Equity Manager, Nationwide Insurance
"Juicy." - Kimberly Davis
King, General Partner, IDG Venture
"Useful." - Ann Grimes,
Staff Reporter, The Wall Street Journal
"Useful." - James McGovern,
CFA, Franklin Park (private equity consultant and manager, recently
spun out from Hamilton Lane).
"Useful." - Chris Siew-Kee
Loh, GIC Special Investments (LP in Charles River, Walden
International, Sevin Rosen, etc).
"Well-known."- Steven G.
Dickman, tvm Techno Venture Management
"Entertaining." - John Hull,
Director, Intel Communications Fund, Intel Capital
"Eccentric." - Carol Emert, San
Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer
"Wonderful." - Joseph L.
Bonavita, Lehman Brothers Private Equity
"Wonderful." - Khalil
Maalouf, CFA, Partner, XPV Capital (new communications technology fund
based in Canada, formerly Director with VenGrowth Capital Management)
"Amazing." - Adil Haque,
Associate, Apax Partners, Inc.
"Fascinating."
- Jonathan Axelrad, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
"Fascinating."
- Scott M. Schwartz, Vice President, American Industrial Partners
"Provocative." - Mike Smith,
Hewitt Associates LLC
"Marvelous!" - Ben
Rotenberg, Financial Analyst, National Fiduciary Advisors
"Dangerous." - Joe Aragona,
General Partner, Austin Ventures
"Splendid." - Adalsteinn
Johannsson, Chief Investment Officer, The Icelandic Software Fund
"Most exclusive." - James F.
Lewis, CFA, Vice President, Trust Company of the West (The TCW Group)
"Very interesting and helpful to
us in our work." - Timothy J. Crowe, CFA, Vice President &
Chief Investment Officer, John S. & James L. Knight Foundation
"You are keeping us honest and
challenging the established perceptions. That is always a good
thing." - Todd M. Jaquez-Fissori, Boulder Ventures
"The most helpful and accurate
resource on our industry." - Alexander F. Hern, SVIC
"A great tool." - Zhike
Zhou, Director of Strategy, IBM VC Group
"Highly recommended." - Jay
Andre, Heidrick & Struggles
"I want it!" - Dan Levitan,
Managing Partner, Maveron LLC
"How nicely do I have to ask?"
- Matthew M. Smith, Investment Associate, Abbott Capital Management,
LLC
"Thank you. Much enjoyed. Very
clever. Very tantalizing." - Katharine Campbell, Private Equity
Reporter, Financial Times
"How do I sign up?" - Chris
Winship, FT Ventures
"Source of fund performance data
is the Web site InsiderVC.com, whose founder has received both
brickbats and bouquets from venture capitalists for his analysis of
performance data and his provocative commentary. His Web site provides
performance data of hundreds of venture capital and private equity
funds including those managed by. . ." - NVCA (National Venture
Capital Association) Advocates More Confidentiality on Returns, Private
Equity Analyst Weekly
"I would like to subscribe to
your site. How do I do it?" - Fred Berkowitz, Horsley
Bridge Partners, Inc.
"I know country clubs that are
easier to get into." - Charles G. Froeb, Private Fund Group,
Credit Suisse First Boston
"Your information and analysis is
definitely for 'insiders', so to speak, and, since the private equity
world has traditionally been very discreet, I agree that InsiderVC's
information should remain semi-private. No need for bratty wannabes to
use your site as a disposable resource." - Norman Lieu, Venture
Banking Associate, Imperial Bank, Emerging Growth Division
"How do I subscribe?" -
Julia F. Selvig, Chief Financial Officer, Berkshire Partners
"I appreciate the value of what
you are doing and its sensitive nature." - Tom Litle, Managing
Director, Industry Ventures
"The Private Equity practice of
McKinsey & Company would like to apply for access." -
Sebastien Gault, McKinsey & Co.
"Please let us in." - Jeff
Kearl, vSpring Capital
"I have been accepted into the
New York Yacht Club with greater ease than it takes to join your droll
crew. Keep up the good. . ." - Mark Masur, Partner, Silver Creek
Technology Investors
"Virtually every firm claims 'top
quartile' performance, and the numbers they give out are suspect.
InsiderVC.com is the only independent source for venture firms and
buyout artists returns." - Calpers posts funds' record on Web
site, The Boston Globe
"I've lived long enough as a
parasite, please help me!" - Christopher Franzek, KPMG LLP
"So how does one become an
honoured and valued member? Would a secret handshake, or perhaps
leather underpants, be of help?" - Andrew M. Bell, Arthur
Andersen U.K.
"I'd like to have access." -
Prof. Philip J. Ferneau, Executive Director, Foster Center for Private
Equity, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
"Well done. This sort of
information, besides being an entertaining read, gives highly valuable
perspective regarding veracity of VC's claims. You must be pretty
unpopular up on Sand Hill Road. I like your site's material as a
reality check to the information put out by the VC's and VentureSource
type sites. I was introduced to the site by my brother (Kelley
Williams), an angel invester and avid reader of your site." -
Cliff Williams, Chevron Technology Ventures, a corporate VC within
Chevron (looking to increase our investments in outside VC's)
"The email address, 'I.do.not.want.to.be.a.parasite@InsiderVC.com',
said it all!!!" - Dr. Donald G. Basile, Managing Director, Raza
Foundries, Inc.