By: Marianne Hudson, ACA Executive Director

Angel group valuations and deal sizes are on a huge growth trajectory according to the HALO Report through the third quarter of 2015.  The report, released today by the Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University, shows the median seed stage valuation at an all-time high of $4 million, a 33 percent increase over 2014.  Some of this is reflected in median round sizes, which more than doubled in one year - $350,000 in Q3 2014 to $725,000 in Q3 2015.

These increases are a really big deal for the angel group community, and I hope that these trends reverse themselves soon.  As ARI’s Vice Chairman of Research Rob Wiltbank said, “This report reinforces the trends that we have been reporting on for the past several quarters, particularly the rise in all round sizes and pre-money valuations. These trends have a significant impact on the way that angels and entrepreneurs plan for the future when raising capital.”

By: Marianne Hudson, ACA Executive Director

Yesterday I took a call from an accelerator managing partner who wanted to educate some of his investors on how to get started in angel investing.  As I put together a list of resources for him, it occurred to me that lots of angel investors and others are interested in this information, so let me share my list here!

This is also a chance to mention that the Angel Capital Association is now starting our new monthly “Best Practice” Webinar series aimed at providing education on the key things new investors need to know:  having a portfolio strategy to begin with, valuation, due diligence, term sheets, sourcing deals, etc.  If you like these, you can also download the decks from the main webinar page.  This program is in partnership with The Rising Tide Fund, Kauffman Foundation, Go Beyond Investing, Portfolia and Next Wave Ventures.  We’ll have more information about this exciting program soon.