Category: News

Sequoia VC: West Is In Denial Over Shift In Tech Power To China

It’s interesting to see Sequoia Capital venture investor Mike Moritz contending that Silicon Valley tech is over-inflated while China startup investing is still going strong — and stronger. Here’s an excerpt from an interview with Moritz in an article at Fortune. Moritz argued that money splashed on Silicon Valley companies could probably be put to better use...

PCH Fills Out Tech Ecosystem For Hardware Startups With Fab Deal

There’s a China connection in the recent deal that PCH made to buy the once high-rising and well-funded e-commerce startup, Fab, which crashed last year. The product development and supply chain firm PCH has a major manufacturing and logistics base in Shenzhen, where its operations assemble, package and get products ready to ship for major multinational companies as well as small to medium-sized...

Alibaba, Tencent, Qihoo 360 Driving Up Valuations

Late stage valuations are being driven by corporate venture capitalists seeking access to innovation so they are willing to pay more, pointed out VC Mark Suster at the PreMoney conference in Miami. These new investors include China’s tech titans Alibaba, Renren, Tencent, Fosun and Qihoo 360. It’s the theme of Silicon Dragon San Francisco 2015, March 25. In fact,...

Are Chinese Tech Startups Overvalued?

Technology startups in China are raising cash at a record pace from private investors, prompting concerns about potential overvaluation. The latest hot deal is an $800 million-plus round for Shanghai-based Dianping, an online-review site similar to Yelp Inc., as the WSJ’s Rick Carew and Juro Osawa report. Late demand from new investors increased the fundraising, pushing Dianping’s...

Why Asia’s Tech Titans Are Investing In U.S. Startups

Asia’s wealthiest technology companies are leading a wave of investment in U.S. startups with the hope of gaining a toehold in Silicon Valley and taking some hot new products home. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., China’s largest online retailer, recently invested $200 million in Snapchat Inc. The investment pushed the Venice, Calif., mobile-messaging company’s value up to...

Huawei’s Leaps Ahead In Mobile With Wearable Smartwatch

Huawei has introduced a 7-inch tablet with cellular voice capabilities alongside its Android Wear smartwatch that was leaked before the Mobile World Congress event. Huawei already sells a large phone direct to consumers in the U.S.: You can buy the Ascend Mate2 with its 6.1-inch display for $299.99 off contract. The new MediaPad X2 brings the screen...

Gov. Christie Confidante Bob Grady Joins Private Equity Firm

Bob Grady, a close confidant of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former chairman of the $81 billion New Jersey Investment Council, has agreed to join mid-market private equity firm Gryphon Investors as a partner, according to Fortune.  He also will lead Gryphon’s general industries group, which is one of the San Francisco-based firm’s four areas of...

Investors Beware: Today’s $100M+ Late-stage Private Rounds Differ from an IPO

Every successful technology company raises money throughout its lifecycle, perhaps starting with a seed investment and progressing through Series A, B, C, late-stage investments, and, for the most successful companies, an IPO. Historically, different financial institutions specialized in different stages, because the assessment of risk and opportunity was considered unique at each stage — for example,...

Tech E-Trade Route Between The UK And China Opens Up

Struggling to think of any strong startup connections between the UK and China?  Think again. Incubators, accelerators, tech delegations, stock exchanges, and U.K.-based business leaders are eyeing growth and profits by leveraging opportunities in the Far East. Trade flows have always been strong, but not for tech innovation and venture investment. Now that’s changing as more and more...

Valuation game: India’s Micromax Nowhere Close To China’s Xiaomi

Home-grown mobile handset maker Micromax Informatics, which sold as many or even more smartphones in the past couple of quarters than global smartphone leader Samsung in India, is reportedly seeking a valuation of $3-3.5 billion for a potential stake sale. The valuation, which is close to three times its annual sales, is too low compared to its...

Read This Book: The Creator’s Code

“The Creators Code: The Six Essential Skills of Extraordinary Entrepreneurs” recently launched and is getting rave reviews. The book is written by Amy Wilkinson, a strategic adviser and lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Read what Walter Isaacson had to say about the book: “Based on 200 interviews with entrepreneurs, this book helps explain the...