Thank goodness people know the “correct ways” to structure early-stage investments. Just in our feed today we’ve enjoyed: You have got to be kidding me with participating preferred. Who else has seen it recently? This makes me really angry. There is a special place in VC hell for VCs who demand board seats at pre-seed. Founders, they do not need this. It’s great how confident (some) people are in an asset class filled with such uncertainty and complexity! Perhaps participating preferred equity is abhorrent; or perhaps this is one deal term among many in the overall structuring of an early ..read more

Durham, N.C. – VentureSouth, one of the country’s largest early stage investment firms, is pleased to announce that Jonathan Heigel, a longstanding member of the group, will now serve as the director for VentureSouth Triangle in Durham. After graduating from Duke University with a B.A. in economics and political science and an M.B.A. from the Fuqua School of Business, Jonathan worked for the US Navy and several consulting companies across the US, before forming his own business consulting and advisory firms. “VentureSouth is thrilled to continue working with Jonathan, now in his role of direct ..read more

We have debated on the Venture In The South podcast whether startup founders are “accredited investors.” My answer, which might surprise you, is “probably.” Here are some ways founders could be. Number three will shock you, as all good clickbait says. First, obviously if a founder meets one of the “regular” accreditation criteria – net worth, annual income, or holding a Series 7, 65, or 82 license, as outlined by the SEC – the founder is accredited like anyone else. Second, for your own company or investment fund, you are accredited. The SEC says that “Directors, executive officers, or general ..read more

Venture Carolina Contact: Charlie Banks | 803-414-6702 | charlie@venturecarolina.org Newberry, S.C. – Venture Carolina, a nonprofit dedicated to bridging the funding gap between investors and entrepreneurs has once again partnered with the South Carolina Department of Commerce’s Office of Innovation, VentureSouth, and the South Carolina Jobs-Economic Development Authority (JEDA) to launch the 2023 Palmetto Venture Fellowship, a program designed to create more local accredited investors and expand risk-capital accessibility for early-stage startups in South Carolina. Following its highly succes ..read more

While we were grinding through the winter months, our VentureSouth investors and staff enjoyed a delightful early taste of spring last month at our annual VentureSouth Summit. For the first time since we started the event in 2016, we ventured out from Greenville and hosted the event at the Francis Marion hotel in beautiful Charleston SC.   The Summit was a hit! We enjoyed the company of 150 angel investors, 25 portfolio company CEOs, 20 sponsors and supporters, and 12 of the VentureSouth team (and two babies!) for the 2023 Summit.  We were delighted that so many of our investors conv ..read more

If you have ever considered making investments outside of public markets (like stocks and bonds) in alternative investments (like private equity, real estate, startups), you may have been asked if you are an “accredited investor.” So what is an accredited investor and why does it matter? The short answer is that an accredited investor is someone who the federal government deems capable of taking on the risks associated with private investments.  Therefore, companies and institutions raising capital outside the public markets focus on accredited investors. While issuers of publicly traded ..read more

Atlanta, G.A. – VentureSouth, one of the largest angel investment groups in the United States, is announcing new leadership for its Atlanta group. Matthew May and Kenji Kuramoto, Atlanta-based entrepreneurs and angel investors, will serve as the Market Directors of VentureSouth Atlanta. May has served the last three years as the President of the Atlanta Technology Angels and 12 years as an Advisory Board Member at Venture Atlanta. Kuramoto is a long-time member and previous board member of Entrepreneurs Organization. Along with their impactful service within the entrepreneurship ecosystem, the ..read more

Greenville, S.C. – VentureSouth, one of the United States’ largest angel investment groups, is excited to announce new leadership for its Midlands group, which serves investors in Columbia, S.C., and surrounding areas. Effective September 1, 2022, VentureSouth Midlands will be under the direction of Austin Rhodes and Thomas Rhodes, both of Columbia, S.C. Austin and Thomas, who are brothers, are partners in several businesses in the southeast. With their experience as angel investors and business owners, along with their years of involvement in local and state nonprofits, the Rhodes have earned ..read more

A convertible note learning lesson From our earlier blog post on convertible notes, you can probably tell that we are not big fans of them, though we concede that as a “bridge” to an imminent “event” (like a new round of financing, or an exit) they are a useful financing tool. (AVC agrees.) VentureSouth members have made several angel investments in this kind of bridge note, including several lucrative “bridges to exit” – one being our investment with our best IRR, over 2800%. Recently, though, we learned a tough lesson about converting convertible notes that we might be instructive to share ..read more

VentureSouth Launching Angel Investment Group in Chattanooga Greenville, S.C. – VentureSouth, one of the largest angel investment groups in the United States, is announcing its newest market expansion, VentureSouth Chattanooga.  Chattanooga, TN will become the 18th community throughout the Southeast with a VentureSouth angel group, which brings resources of a professionally led early-stage venture capital firm to local investors. VentureSouth, with nearly 500 members and $70M invested in 90+ early stage companies, has been consistently recognized by the Angel Capital Association as o ..read more