When Mark and I started OATV we stopped in NYC for a few fundraising meetings and a get to know you lunch with two people I’d not met previously- Brad Burnham and Fred Wilson. They had just finished successfully raising the first USV fund and I was hoping to pick their brains a bit on the fundraising market. To be honest, I didn’t know much about these guys. But, over the course of our lunch I found two kindred spirits. Since that time, I’ve grown to respect them even more and have found them to some of the most generous and thoughtful investors around.
Last week, I was fortunate to be in NYC for the Web 2.0 Expo event and was really looking forward to Fred’s keynote. Having spent my early years as an investor outside of Silicon Valley, I have a keen interest in seeing how emerging venture markets, like NYC, emerge. I think Fred did a great job weaving together the story and highlighting those attributes unique to NYC that make it an interesting place to build a company and invest.
As I read this NYTimes article and processed Fred’s presentation I wondered whether there is any fallout to from the super prominent role they play as THE early stage investor in NYC. I know at my prior fund, if a company from our region took a trip down Sand Hill Road, they were universally asked why our local fund passed (whether we had or not). It was presumed because we were local, we clearly knew something others didn’t and that if we passed they should too. So to NYC entrepreneurs, does getting a “no” from USV have a negative impact on your overall ability to raise money in or outside of NYC? Is there a USV effect?
