Article in Boston Business Journal Stresses the Importance of Efficient Deal Structure for Angels

A recent article in the Boston Business Journal landed in our email box here at the NAO and we thought it was well worth sharing. The article was featured in the November 9-15 issue of the Boston Business Journal, and was written by Bill Contente, Managing Parter at Gesmer Updegrove LLP (Boston).

Some of Bill’s observations include the following:

- Angels look for convertible preferred stock, an accruing dividend and anti-dilution protection. These rights have become the norm in Angel deals, and should be retained.

- In an effort to simplify things, he suggests sweeping away some of the structures (registration rights, redemption rights, co-sale rights, etc.) and replacing them with a simple statement that, should any of these low-probability problems arise, the preferred stockholders get a seat at the table to resolve them.

For the full article, simply click on the link below for a PDF copy.

Angel financing could do with a little streamlining
Boston Business Journal – Bill Contente
November 9-15, 2007 Vol. 27, No. 41

Northern Ontario Business Magazine Features NAO in December Issue

The December 2007 issue of Northern Ontario Business features the recent exploits of the NAO in Northern Ontario in the article “Approaching angel investors”. NAO President, W. Daniel Mothersill was interviewed for the article and shares some his wisdom on the subject of Angel investors and how it affects entrepreneurs in Northern Ontario.

The entire article can be found through the following link (the article is on page 3):

http://www.northernontariobusiness.com/pdfedition/2007/Dec07.pdf

An Interview with Bob Chaworth-Musters, NAO Board Member

Recently, NAO board member Bob Chaworth-Musters was interviewed by the VC/PE interviews blog, Western Headquarters. Bob is currently one of two NAO board members from British Columbia and he shares some of his insights and Angel investing tips through the interview.

For the full interview please click the link below:

An Interview with Bob Chaworth-Musters, Founder of the Angel Forum – Vancouver
October 16th, 2007

Dan Mothersill Hosts Workshop at NSERC’s Innovation Challenge

October 29, Ottawa: Daniel Mothersill, NAO President, conducted a half-day workshop for NSERC’s Innovation Challenge Awards finalists on pitching to Angel Investors. The session focused on best practices in presenting companies to capture first round seed capital. 11 post-doctoral researchers and entrepreneurs from universities across Canada attended the session.

Established in 2004, the Innovation Challenge Awards are funded primarily by NSERC (National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada) and by Growthworks Capital Ltd. The awards invite graduate students in the natural sciences, engineering or computer sciences to take a fresh look at their thesis work and to identify potential precuts or services that could be developed from their research results.

Angel Investor Groups Profiled in This Month’s PROFIT

Jeff Dennis, both a contributor to PROFIT magazine, and a member of Toronto’s Maple Leaf Angels, has profiled Angel Groups in his article entitled “HEAVENLY BODIES”. This article is featured in the DECEMBER-JANUARY 2008 issue of PROFIT which is now available at newsstands.

For other articles by Jeff please visit www.canadianbusiness.com.

For more information on Maple Leaf Angels, please visit their website here.