Articles by Anjana Vivek

Valuation is thought to be a science by many. Just because a number is put out and there are detailed calculations and forecasts and projections of scenarios, it is assumed that valuation is rational, objective, data driven and sensible. When was Valuation ever just a number that one arrived at? And.. the WhatsApp deal with Facebook.. again demonstrates how little valuation is about science and how much more it is about belief.. of the future and what one wants to make of the future. While only Mark Zuckerberg can give us his true reason for this acquisition.. typically any deal…

Dear Reader, Entrepreneur’s Corner is pleased to feature this interview of Srikanth Muralidhara, Co-Founder of the Bangalore-based Decision Sciences Company, Flutura Solutions, that focuses on M2M (machine to machine) and Big Data analytics. The company, started by Krishnan Raman, Srikanth Muralidhara and Derick Jose has recently made news, by being the first company to be invested in by The Hive India. This is a Fund anchored by the siblings Amit and Arihant of the Patni family, set up to invest in the area of data analytics. Srikanth is the managing partner and the Head of Customer Success at Flutura. He…

redBus, the ticket booking business, headquartered in Bengaluru and funded by VCs in this city, is to be acquired by the South Africa-based multinational media group, Nasper, according to some media reports.  Many points are being raised on whether the founders (Phani et. al) and other stakeholders should remain invested instead of exiting. One never knows, what could happen if they wait. Yes, there could be a possibility of a higher exit at a greater value, but there is also a possibility of a value fall. It is for the promoters and other key stakeholders to think through options and take…

SZE, the company founded by Sheena and Zeena, was 2 years old.  SZE provided special technical inputs and services to colleges. The founders now wanted to expand and bring more colleges into their client base. For this they would need to invest more money into the company. They were unclear about a) the quantum of funding that they should raise and b) about the process for fund raising.They met Gyan, who was known to be somewhat of an expert in the funding scenario.Gyan asked them what the money would be required for. This could broadly be split into two buckets,…

Sigma started a new company, he and his father were the initial Directors. He had saved some money in his career and invested some of his savings in the startup. Equity for advisorsSigma knew a couple of experts, Pie and Rho, who had a good reputation in the industry. He decided to get them on board as advisors. He spoke to them and they also agreed in principle to associate with Sigma. Sigma then started thinking about the compensation that he could pay to Pi and Rho and other professionals that he wanted to employ. He realized that their normal…

Bengaluru is seeing churn and activity in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Recently, I have come across a couple of mid-size and small companies seriously looking at options to merge. The world is changing rapidly and entrepreneurs want to seize the moment. M&A is seen as one option for the smaller companies to consolidate and address the challenges ahead. Some deals work and some do not succeed. Here is a quick first-cut of the framework that I have put together when looking at any investment/M&A planned; the PBRT framework. It is so named, because of the memory tag... PBT (profit before tax)…

This year has seen some great moments for India and Indians.. and some really low times. Through much of the year, predictions were being made about how we have some of the best years of growth ahead. However ... the last few months have left us with a sour taste, we have seen one scam after another being reported and discussed. These have touched almost all of us in some way or another. Many names that we held in high esteem have been dragged into this. Media persons, politicians, corporate czars, bureaucrats... trusts, NGOs, the list of individuals and groups…

Today, mentors, investors and angel investors are available in plenty in Bengaluru. There is a lot of energy and excitement in the air. While a great mentor and investor can do wonders to take your company from one orbit to the next, a bad one can deplete your energy and dilute company value. Here are some thoughts from Gyan, the super-mentor on the current scenario.. "to trigger thinking":•·        Think through the long term impact of the investors/mentors/advisors on your business when you decide to give away equity, both positive and not so positive•·        If there is a mix of investors/mentors…

Getset and Go decided that they did want to sell a stake to Zing.  They went back to Gyan and asked him for his advice on how they should proceed.Gyan, "While you have Zing Group interested in your company, you need to make sure that this interest is not lost by carelessness on your side or due to lack of proper preparation. Many entrepreneurs lose out on deals or on valuation, due to issues, which could be easily addressed. In fact, at a recent workshop in Bangalore, a couple of entrepreneurs mentioned that they should have planned their sale of…

Getset and Go decided that they did, after all, want to sell a stake in their company to the Zing Group. They went back to Gyan, their advisor.Gyan, "Looking at this in a lighter vein, you have now moved to Level 2, in this game of selling your business. Level 1 has been completed; the result - you have decided to go ahead with the possible sale. As you move on to Level 2... you need to answer the next set of questions and get into this game in much more depth." Getset, "Oh Gyan, not again... more questions?"Gyan, "…