Five-minute general counsel: when should I consider a convertible bridge?

By Rick Colosimo / September 5, 2010 / Comments Off on Five-minute general counsel: when should I consider a convertible bridge?

I have more than one client currently considering convertible bridge notes as a parallel angel/seed round funding technique, and I have one who recently closed a small convertible note that will convert in the upcoming seed round. What’s a convertible bridge note? A convertible bridge note is a not-uncommon financing instrument in venture capital. This…

Read More

Five-minute general counsel: What is due diligence?

By Rick Colosimo / August 9, 2010 / Comments Off on Five-minute general counsel: What is due diligence?

Due diligence is the catchall phrase used to describe both the amorphous investigative process that prospective investors and acquirors go through before, during, and after their initial decision to proceed with a transaction with your company as well as the materials (paper, electronic, and Q&A) that they and their advisors receive in response to their…

Read More

Why you should back away from reverse mergers

By Rick Colosimo / June 18, 2010 / Comments Off on Why you should back away from reverse mergers

This LinkedIn question asking about reverse mergers is a question I’ve answered for a lot of entrepreneurs who get pitched by these folks and are invariably misled confused about where, how, and whether this deal brings money into the company. “What is a reverse merger or reverse IPO?” Short answer: “reverse merger” is almost always…

Read More

Getting crowdfunding wrong

By Rick Colosimo / May 28, 2010 / Comments Off on Getting crowdfunding wrong

Here’s a link to a brief article about crowdsourcing as applied to startups. Grade for this article? Nominally 80% for 4 out of 5 right, but the wrong answer on financing can kill a company. This one gets a #FAIL from me. Hearkening back (or forward, since I don’t know if I’ve posted it yet)…

Read More