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| The equity IPO market may be all but dead at the moment, but the pipeline is actually in pretty good shape, according to a new Ernst & Young report. Seventy-nine U.S. companies were in the IPO pipeline at the end of September. |
| (Source: CFO.com, 2008-10-28) |
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| In a closely watched case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has restricted business method patents. The 9-3 en banc ruling holds that a business method cannot be patented unless it is tied to a machine or involves a physical transformation. |
| (Source: ABA Journal, 2008-10-31) |
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| Months before a blizzard of bad news put a freeze on Wall Street, the venture capital industry was seeing a steep downward skid in its investment returns. Now it may be headed for negative territory for the first time since 2002, the doldrums of the tech crash. |
| (Source: SiliconValley.com (free reg. req'd), 2008-10-27) |
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| Private equity firms embarked on one of the biggest spending sprees in corporate history for nearly three years, using borrowed money to gobble up huge swaths of industries and some of the biggest names -- Neiman Marcus, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Toys "R" Us, but now many of the loans and bonds sold to finance the deals are about to come due at the worst possible time. So, like homeowners with an adjustable rate mortgage that just went up, some of private equity's titans are facing a huge squeeze. |
| (Source: The New York Times (free reg. req'd), 2008-11-02) |
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| Large institutional investors that provided much of the capital that put some of America's best-known companies into private hands are starting to cool on the investment strategy, suggesting that the lifeline for private equity is eroding. Public pension funds and endowments are turning down invitations to make private-equity investments. |
| (Source: The Wall Street Journal, 2008-11-04) |
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| A House committee hearing on the help small businesses need to survive the credit crunch offers many suggestions, but little indication of quick action. |
| (Source: CNNMoney.com, 2008-10-29) |
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| Wild market gyrations, frozen credit markets and an overall sour economy herald a new round of corporate belt-tightening. Foremost on the target list is anything inefficient. That's bad news for corporate innovation, and it could spell trouble for years to come, even after the economy turns around. |
| (Source: The New York Times (free reg. req'd), 2008-11-01) |
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| Private equity firms, battered by the financial meltdown, are now thankful for deals that were cushioned with looser loan covenants and debt restructuring terms as they steer acquired companies through stormy seas. But while the new wriggle room allows temporary relief to PE-owned companies it isn't clear whether the softer covenants introduced during the recent boom will resolve underlying problems in the investments or just delay them. |
| (Source: Reuters, 2008-10-29) |
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| The green movement has become increasingly mainstream in the small business world in recent years as small consumer companies have embraced environmental principles to address shoppers' concerns about climate change. Now small manufacturers are also betting on growth in green industries. |
| (Source: BusinessWeek, 2008-10-31) |
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| The Government Accountability Office is continuing to investigate fraud in small-business programs and has established an e-mail address to receive tips about instances of abuse. The officials in GAO's Forensic Audits and Special Investigations unit set up smallbizfraud@gao.gov for people to submit legitimate examples of fraud. |
| (Source: FCW.com, 2008-10-29) |
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| As fallout from the financial crisis rains down on Silicon Valley, some investors and entrepreneurs compare themselves to battlefield surgeons facing difficult decisions to enhance the chance for survival. Start-up founders described the "heartbreaking" pressures of laying off workers in anticipation of a profound, prolonged recession. |
| (Source: SiliconValley.com (free reg. req'd), 2008-10-29) |
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| A record level of venture capital is pouring into cleantech despite a global economic downtown and credit crunch that's hitting more established players in the industry. U.S. venture capital investment in cleantech climbed to a record $1.6 billion in the third quarter of 2008, a 55 percent jump from the $979.3 million spent during the third quarter of 2007, according to an Ernst & Young report. |
| (Source: Portfolio.com, 2008-10-30) |
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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) recently handed down its long-awaited decision in In re Bilski, which clarifies the standard to be applied when analyzing the eligibility of process or method inventions for patenting under U.S. law. The CAFC determined that the "machine-or-transformation" test should be that standard.
Read the entire blog about this decision.
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| Steve Humke |
John Thornburgh |
New Import Rules
Last week's Venture Briefing Weekly featured an article titled, "New Laws Impose New Obligations for U.S. Importers." There was a lot of interest surrounding this article so we asked Dale Stackhouse, chairman of Ice Miller's International Practice Group, to weigh in on the new import rules.
"I expect that these new rules will catch a lot of importers by surprise, either because they are not aware of the new requirements, or because they mistakenly believe that the rules don't apply to their products. In many cases, the certifications that U.S. importers will be asked to provide will require the importers to obtain information from foreign manufacturers, and by the time a product arrives in the U.S., it may be too late to gather that information or to conduct the inspection or testing that would be necessary to certify the product. Anyone involved in importing consumer products or goods made from plants should become familiar with the new rules immediately, and make sure that their foreign suppliers are taking the necessary steps to ensure compliance before the goods are shipped."
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Global Private Equity Conference Found Alternative Energy Sector Popular Among Investors
An Oct. 3, 2008 Global Private Equity Conference held at the University of Michigan found that even with the current credit crisis, the alternative energy sector continues to garner the interest of the investor community. According to Jon Koch, managing director of U.S. Renewables Group, while some investments fail, there continues to be a lot of innovation in the industry.
Fabricio Soares, the CFO of New Gas Concepts believes there is still a misalignment of capital in the sector with too much emphasis on growth capital and not enough attention given to early-stage capital.
Kristine Danz, a partner in the Firm's private equity/venture services group, participated in the conference.
Learn more about the event.
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November
November 5 - Council for Resource Development's 2008 Annual Conference
November 6 - Indiana Chamber of Commerce's 19th Annual Awards Dinner with Newt Gingrich
November 7 - IBJ's Influential Women Event
November 13 - Keep Indianapolis Beautiful's 2008 A Monumental Affair
November 13 - The State of Agribusiness with U.S. Senator Richard Lugar
November 19 - Ice Miller Labor Seminar: Re-Engineering Indiana's Workforce
November 24- Ice Miller Seminar: IRS Revises 2008 Tax Return
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Ice Miller has been active in the private equity industry for over 25 years, representing both management teams building great companies and the private equity firms and individuals that invest in them. We have extensive experience with all types of funds (formations and operations); mezzanine and senior secured financings; leveraged buyouts, roll-ups, build-ups, and consolidations; divestitures and exits; and complex litigation on behalf of investors and privately financed companies.
Read the complete profile of the Private Equity and Venture Services Practice Group.
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