Angel Insights Blog

By: Dror Futter, Legal and Business Adviser to Startups, Venture Capital Firms and Technology Companies

Remember all those articles about whether venture was overvalued?  With blinding speed, they now seem quaint.

Bluntly stated, most venture-backed companies are in a fight for survival.  Although certain areas of life sciences may do somewhat better, I think the impact will be widely felt.  Complicating the fight is the fact that no one can predict how long it will last and what the immediate post-Corona economy will look like. 

David Gardner, Founder and Managing Partner of Cofounders Capital

Editor’s Note – David Gardner shares a note to portfolio companies with gudiance to navigate the impact of COVID-19.

Founders and CEO’s:

I hope that each of you and your families are healthy and safe during this difficult time. We have spoken with most of you and I know you are all facing difficult and high-risk decisions this week. We thought it might be helpful to provide you with some guidance and suggestions as you face these current unprecedented challenges. We draw these suggestions from our own experiences running early-stage companies during economic hard times and from the advice of other fund managers, our venture partners and advisors.

By: Brent Gleeson, Founder & CEO at TakingPoint™ Leadership, Navy SEAL

One of the many acronyms we live by in the United States military is VUCA – referring to the volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous environments that the battlefield provides. That acronym is now widely used in the global business community and rightfully so. Especially as it relates to our current reality - the spread of the coronavirus and its impact on lives, health, small and large businesses and the global economy. 

By: Gwendolyn Jaramillo, Partner at Foley Hoag LLP and Anna Annino, Associate at Foley Hoag LLP

Editor’s Note – ACA extends a huge thank you to ACA Gold Partner, Foley Hoag LLP for creating this timely article to educate the angel community on the recent changes related to the expansion of the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).  Thank you for your work on behalf of angels and the startup ecosystem!

On February 13, 2020, the final regulations went into effect which implement the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (FIRRMA) and expand the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The new rules will have a significant impact on the angel investing community, especially for investments in certain industries as described further below. 

By: Pat Gouhin, Chief Executive Officer

The Paycheck Protection Program under the recently passed CARES Act provides forgivable loans for businesses with less than 500 employees, but included a huge hurdle for many startups, the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) “Affiliation Rules”. 

Christopher Mirabile, ACA Chair Emeritus, Managing Director at Launchpad Venture Group and Co-Founder of Seraf-investor.com

We are all dealing with a lot right now - health, family, work, economic concerns. Angel community leaders have the additional challenges of adapting their processes to work over video, and assessing the damage spreading through the portfolio of startups in their flock. Given how much people are dealing with I thought it might be useful to give folks some important reminders. 

By: Pat Gouhin, Chief Executive Officer

As part of America’s startup community, ACA was among many organizations that responded this weekend to address an issue of concern regarding a needed clarification that otherwise excludes small businesses with equity investors from the 7(a) loan program under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.  

By: Pat Gouhin, Chief Executive Officer

The U.S. House of Representative has just passed the historic $2.2 trillion dollar COVID-19 emergency relief bill, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to speed recovery across the U.S. economy.  These funds will be distributed to individuals, businesses and states in response to the coronavirus pandemic under H.R. 748. 

Dan Rosen, Alliance of Angels

Editor’s Note – Dan Rosen shares a note to Alliance of Angels members and his portfolio companies with his thoughts on the financial impact of COVID-19 on startups. 

By: Pat Gouhin, Chief Executive Officer

As the devastation of COVID-19 continues to leave small businesses and non-profit organizations in its wake, Senator Marco Rubio, Senator Collins, and the Rubio-Collins Small Business Recovery Plan task force have been working around the clock to develop a non-partisan package to protect organizations.  The goal of the bill is to empower current infrastructure at the Small Business Administration for the Keeping Workers Paid and Employed Act.  Senators Rubio and Collins are calling for banks and credit unions to scale up their processes to meet the extraordinary needs we are currently facing.