Random Ramblings
A bunch of thoughts with in particular order, for the 183 of you actually working today…
*** The prospects for KKR portfolio company IPOs are not related to KKR’s inability to price its own IPO. Apples and oranges. A more legitimate question, however, is if a rush of PE-backed IPOs would be welcomed or viewed as too much too fast (the “glut” scenario)…
*** Was on the phone last week with a fund-of-funds partner who is in a bunch of brand-name buyout funds. I asked about Q2 marks, and if portfolio valuations had jumped in line with the public markets. After all, mark-to-market should cut both ways.
What he said, however, was that most of his GPs had only written their portfolios up modestly in the quarter. Five or six percent, compared to the DJIA increase of nearly 9 percent. Not sure if this reflects conservative accounting or was a byproduct of this LP’s particular portfolio…
*** Is it possible that gene sequencing startups require even more cash than pharma startups? Complete Genomics today announced $45m in new funding, bringing its three-year total to around $90m. This comes just about a week after Pacific Bioscience raised $68m, bringing its total to over $180 million since just last summer. Looks like cleantech project companies have some competition…
*** Do any buyout pros use Twitter? I know tons of VCs who do – there’s even a directory called VentureMaven – but know of just two or three LBO folks. If you’re out there, let me know.
*** I didn’t finish Josh Lerner’s new book over the weekend, but made good progress (I blame good biking weather and some time spent with the Inglourious Basterds). But, basic points so far are twofold: (a) Major innovation centers like Silicon Valley were made possible by government action and (b) Most government action aimed at entrepreneurial ecosystem development is poorly designed and/or implemented.
*** Scott Kirsner has a great blog post this morning about how the Boston-area venture nexus has shifted from Waltham to Cambridge/Boston. One explanation he may have missed, however, is one I’ve harped on for a while: There are no restaurants/bars/coffee shops within walking distance of the Waltham office parks. And almost none within a five minute drive.
Never understood why some young VCs didn’t open up a nearby watering hole, kind of like the cops in Homicide…
*** The Blackstone Group recently sold some bonds. Would seem the relevant question, therefore, is: What does Blackstone want to buy? Another GSO-type deal? Another PE firm? Some sort of I-bank/capital markets group?
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