Dan Primack

The Times of London this morning is reporting that Microsoft is in talks to acquire Yahoo’s online search business for approximately $20 billion. peHUB normally wouldn’t care too much, except that the report also claims that venture capitalists Jon Miller and Ross Levinsohn “have been lined up to lead the new management team.” Miller is the former CEO […]

I typed that headline two months ago, and chose to hold it until it became absolutely necessary to publish. It’s not that I like to hide things from you, dear reader, but it was really for our own good. The longer I delayed, the longer it would be before venture capitalists and their portfolio companies […]

What follows are ten VC deals culled from recent Regulation D filings with the SEC. They have not been otherwise disclosed: Cogentus Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Menlo Park, Calif.-based developer of antiplatelet therapies for cardiovascular disease, has secured $7.5 million of a $22.5 million Series C round, according to a regulatory filing. Listed backers include Keffi Group, Prospect Venture Partners and Ridgeback Capital. The company had previously raised over $62 million. www.cogentus.net KickApps, a New York-based developer of social networking tools for existing websites, has raised

It’s tough times for older VC-backed drug companies, with a closed IPO market and dwindling cash reserves. But there is a small bit of good news today, which might encourage some existing shareholders to keep fishing instead of cutting bait. According to In Vivo Blog, the FDA appears poised to make 2008 the best year for new drug approvals since 2004. Twenty new molecules have gotten the a-ok so far, and eight more applications could be acted

The University of Michigan is the latest institutional investor to bust through their target allocation to private equity, according to new information released as part of today's monthly Regents meeting. The system's November investment report shows 14.2% exposure to private equity, compared to a 12.5% target allocation. Venture capital is also past plan, at 6.9% compared to 6 percent. Part of this is the so-called denominator effect, whereby falling public equity prices have artificially boosted the portfolio weighting of illiquid assets like private equity. But part of it also seems to be that the Michigan Regents keep committing to new funds, whereas certain other institutional investors have gone cold turkey. For example, the system today disclosed $69 million in new commitments to funds managed by

Cleantech may ultimately save the venture capital industry, but many investors now acknowledge three related problems that could stop such salvation in its tracks: (1) VCs have invested too many dollars into production/manufacturing companies that will require project financing; (2) Most VCs don’t really understand project financing, let alone production/manufacturing; and (3) Even if they did understand project financing, it wouldn’t matter because there is so little of it available. Some of the smart cleantech money, therefore, is beginning to go toward companies that want to sell or license their technologies to existing – and experienced – industry. An example of that came this morning, when Qteros announced that it had raised $25 million in Series B funding. Venrock led the round

It’s that time of year, when young MBA candidates’ thoughts turn to flights of summer internships. So let’s help them out, through our 6th Annual Internship Rodeo. Today I am asking private equity firms to contact me via email if you’re looking for a summer intern from the current crop of first-year MBA candidates. All types of firms need apply — VC, LBO, I-banks, Mezzanine, Consulting, Funds-of-Funds, etc. Ditto for geography. In your emails, please include your firm name, job location and type of business (i.e., VC/LBO/etc.). You also may include any additional information you would like posted, including a contact email address for applicants. If you would prefer me to create an anonymous email account for you, just let me know. Your firm name will be kept confidential, unless you specifically request it to be disclosed (which about 50% of firms requested last year). Once compiled, the listings will be posted

There has been an extraordinary amount of digital ink spent on Sequoia Capital’s “graveyard” deck, but it seems that the stuff is infinite. So here’s a litle bit more, in notes form: 1. Sequoia has gotten a lot of credit for “telling it like it is,” but shouldn’t it also get some blame for being behind the eight-ball? Specifically, how did Sequoia seemingly allow so many of its companies to become so bloated – particularly the young ones – that they can shed jobs with relative ease? It's one thing to kill off a non-core auto or financial services vertical, but quite another to slash within the main biz. Smart CEOs were beginning to cut burn rate quarters ago, and smart VCs were telling the

Who says that venture capitalists have soured on Web 2.0 companies? Not Nathanial McNamara, who just left his H.I.G. Ventures to form Yasnap, a company that leverages Facebook Connect to help users create social media applications. McNamara isn’t talking much about the new venture yet, except to say that it plans to launch in early 2009. Its beta is currently accessible, however, and includes such user-generated apps as: Pass a green beer, kick the can and pass the hot potato.

Kodiak Venture Partners isn’t quite yet on my list of “walking dead” VC firms, but it’s getting close. Reminds me of the teenage girl who runs upstairs during a horror movie, and locks her door so the beastie can’t get her. Odds are pretty good that the door won’t hold, but every now and then […]