Chapter 142 Follow-up vote (first order plus 13)

  Hoffman took a deep breath and said, holding five chubby fingers, "Pre-investment valuation of 50 million US dollars, financing 10 million US dollars."

  "50 million dollars! Still before the vote!"

  Kopeelman was the first to shake his head, “Although the business model is very clear, the current number of users of LinkedIn is a very big problem, and it has not fully demonstrated its potential.

  It is impossible for us to give every user a valuation of nearly $1,000! "

  He added a tone to the word 1,000 dollars.

   Moritz frowned, “Compared with social networking sites like Facebook and Dating.com which already have millions of users and have revenue, LinkedIn is too weak.

  Your first consideration is how to survive in this fiercely competitive market instead of pursuing high valuations.

  The first round of financing we plan to invest in LinkedIn is for you to grow users and stay in the industry.

  As for income and data, I just need to understand it briefly. It is still too early to talk about these things in the A round. "

  Hoffman looked at Xia Jingxing, who smiled and said: “I also think that Kopelman and Mr. Moritz have made a lot of sense. They should talk about survival first, and then seek development.

  The pre-investment valuation of US$50 million is indeed a bit too high. "

   "I remember that Facebook's angel round financing was a post-investment valuation of 5 million U.S. dollars. The financing was 500,000 U.S. dollars, right?"

  Moritz has a certain interest in Facebook and asked Xia Jingxing.

"Yes!"

   "How many users did Facebook have at the time?" Kopelman also came over and asked.

   "100,000 users." Xia Jingxing replied.

Moritz spread his hands, "Hoffman, you heard that, Facebook is only valued at 5 million U.S. dollars for 100,000 users, while LinkedIn’s 60,000 users, although the users are all elites in the workplace, they are not as valuable as those of the Ivy League. The students are ten times, twenty times higher, right?"

  Hoffman shook his head and said with a self-confidence: “We cannot look at the value of a single user, but also evaluate the overall business model.

  In terms of the scarcity of investment targets, LinkedIn is currently the only one for business and social networking.

  I predict that every white-collar worker in the world will register on LinkedIn, which will eventually reach 250-300 million users.

  Gentlemen, you are not investing in the current LinkedIn, a trivial website with only 60,000 users.

  Invest in the future!

  We cannot look at the current LinkedIn from a narrow perspective.

  Good venture capitalists, their eyes can cross the long river of time and see the future..."

  Xia Jingxing secretly applauded the fat man's confidence in his heart.

  Currently there are only 60,000 users, but if you dare to shout the slogan of "reaching 300 million users", you are either a lunatic or a genius.

These "nonsense" have little effect on Moritz. He thought for a moment and said: "In this way, I give LinkedIn a pre-investment valuation of 10 million US dollars. 6 million is considered the value of those 60,000 users, and the other 4 million is optimistic. You and LinkedIn’s business model."

  Hoffman is still dissatisfied with this valuation, but considering the current embarrassment that the number of users is always too small, he wants to obtain a valuation of tens of millions of dollars, but he does lack some heavyweights.

  If he is not under the aura of PayPal's success in starting a business, he will rely on a mere 60,000 users and an estimated valuation of 6 million, and no one will open it to him.

  As for gambling, no one dared to sacrifice this killer if it was not a last resort.

  He is not stunned, he knows how greedy capital is. If the bet fails, you get kicked out of the company, or even go bankrupt.

  All thoughts were at that moment, Hoffman had already decided to give in in his heart, but he still said firmly, "This is too little. We need to raise at least 10 million US dollars, but at most dilute 20% of the shares."

  Kopeelman laughed, "That is the pre-investment valuation is 40 million U.S. dollars, and the post-investment valuation is 50 million U.S. dollars.

  But based on the current data and development situation of LinkedIn, I cannot give this valuation. "

  Moritz followed and sang and said, “Yes, we are currently participating in LinkedIn’s investment, and we are not taking a small risk.

  If you insist on insisting on this quotation, then we can only re-evaluate the value and investment risk of this project. "

  Two veteran venture capitalists cooperated rigorously, and you started bargaining frantically.

  From business analysis to bullying, all kinds of tricks are used.

  Xia Jingxing listened to him. He was looking at his horizons. The top venture capitalists were just like the aunts and grandpas of the vegetable market.

  This is no different from the venture capital he used to meet in China, and even more stingy.

  At the time of the domestic market in 2010, there was a lot of hot money in the market, and venture capital throws were very refreshing.

  A few college students make a beautiful PPT, and it’s not a problem to melt millions of angels.

  But there are only a few years of good opportunities. The market has calmed down, or after the supply-demand relationship has been balanced, it has returned to its usual state.

  He mainly holds a learning attitude today, listening more, speaking less, and learning from experience.

This investment is valued at 50 million or 60 million, and the share he can get is very small. Hoffman has already passed his anger before, and has also communicated with two other investment institutions, agreeing to let Follow behind for a sip of soup.

  There are two old guys charging in front, and he is also happy.

  He also thought that someone would directly give Baoyuan a share of LinkedIn’s A round of financing. The big deal would be a high valuation of 30 to 50 million U.S. dollars to grab food from Sequoia Capital and Copelman.

  But with limited funds in hand, this idea can only be dismissed.

  And Hoffman not only wants money, but also wants to obtain various resources and endorsements of Sequoia Capital in Silicon Valley and in the United States.

  This is something he cannot give, and it is also his biggest shortcoming at present. The foundation is too shallow, and it is quite a loss to grab projects with the same conditions as large venture capital institutions.

  The 5 million US dollar loan provided by First Securities has a term of one year, so it is naturally impossible for him to make equity investment for ten or eight years.

  All he can use is his 2 million US dollars and part of the profitable funds. And part of this part of the funds is still the Amicco stocks purchased in block trades, which have to be locked for one year and cannot be used temporarily.

  Hoffman, Kopelman, and Moritz argued fiercely there, and valuations are very different.

  Xia Jingxing was a quiet spectator on the side, adding a few sentences from time to time to brush up a sense of participation.

  After all, he is also an investor. It's really not justified to be completely Buddhist, just keep it good.

  …………

  …………

  This financing negotiation lasted for three days, with a full six or seven rounds of talks. After constant seesaw, the parties finally reached a consensus on the valuation.

  According to the pre-investment valuation of US$14.1 million, the three investment institutions jointly injected US$4.7 million into LinkedIn, and the post-investment valuation was US$18.8 million.

   LinkedIn management, diluted 25% of the shares to three investment institutions.

  Sequoia Capital took 15% and invested 2.82 million US dollars to act as the lead investor in this round of financing;

  The first round of capital behind Kopelman took 7% and invested 1.316 million US dollars as a follow-up investor;

  Xia Jingxing took up 3% of the shares and invested 564,000 US dollars, making it the smallest co-investor.

  For this result, all parties are generally satisfied.

  Hoffman got the funds he wanted. Although it was only 4.7 million, it was almost the same as the 5 million he wanted.

  This amount of financing is not random, but after careful calculation, he predicts that LinkedIn will need nearly 5 million US dollars to reach the next stage of development goals.

  When this money is used up, LinkedIn's development can enter a new level, and then take advantage of the trend to open B round of financing.

  If the money is raised too much, it will not work if it is not financed. If it is too much, it will be a waste. The shares will be diluted in vain, because it will be able to raise more funds at a higher valuation by the time the B round of financing.

  With less financing, the development has not reached the predetermined goal, and the B round of financing cannot be completed, which is also very embarrassing.

  If the situation is good, we can do another round of A+ round of financing. Use the A round of post-investment valuation or a slightly higher valuation to raise some money, and the dilution of the shares will suffer a little loss.

  But the situation is poor, the development is not as expected, the money has been burned out, shareholders are not willing to invest more, and the new venture capital is not negotiated, then there will be no follow-up directly, and the project is cool...

  This round of financing has diluted a total of 25% of the shares, which makes Hoffman feel more painful, and net work for capitalists is still a little unhappy.

  He originally only wanted to dilute up to 20% of the shares, but the valuation was too low, and the financing amount did not reach his ideal value, which was nearly 5 million US dollars.

  However, when he signed, Hoffman still behaved very sensibly, with a smile on his face and no dissatisfaction. He exchanged documents with the three investors and shook hands one by one.

  Sequoia Capital has eaten the largest share of this round of financing, and LinkedIn’s valuation is not high, what else is Moritz unsatisfied with?

  He smiled and patted Hoffman on the shoulder and encouraged: "Man, it's up to you next. I look forward to the day when you lead LinkedIn to ring the bell!"

  Hoffman smiled with a smile on his face, and Mahler Gobi in his heart.

  Sequoia Capital was brought in by him on his own initiative, mainly thinking about this venture capital brand is hard, and there are many post-investment management support policies. In addition to money, it can also bring many other resources.

  So even if I feel a little unhappy, I have to endure it.

Kopelman also shook hands with Hoffman and said a few words of encouragement.

   When it was Xia Jingxing’s turn to shake hands with Hoffman, the former smiled and said: "Hoffman, congratulations, we are one step ahead of Facebook to open Series A financing."

  "Isn't Facebook about to raise money soon? I can wait."

  Xia Jingxing is purely making soy sauce, and he didn't jump out of bargaining, so Hoffman still has a good impression on him.

   "Haha, I will let you know when I'm coming. I definitely can't lack your support."

  Xia Jingxing has three stakes in LinkedIn. In return, he has to ask Hoffman to invest in Facebook.

  As for whether he can take up three points of shares, he can't guarantee it. It also depends on Hoffman's personal strength and how much money he can spend.

   "Facebook is going to open Series A financing?"

   Moritz heard the news, like a shark smelling blood, and leaned in.

Kopelman also looked at Xia Jingxing with interest.

  Xia Jingxing deliberately said it to them, and generously admitted: "Yes, in a few months, I am currently in talks with various venture capitalists."

  Moritz nodded, his face was as usual, but his heart was analyzing quickly.

  Why put the financing in a few months? Naturally, it will be a showdown with Diaoyou. Moritz is very clear about the doorway.

  Whether the new king replaces the old king or the old king defends the throne, the entire Silicon Valley is watching.

  He is a little interested in Facebook and thinks he can pay more attention to it.

  If Facebook continues to occupy the No. 1 position on the social circuit, then there is nothing to say, you have to vote at any cost.

  If you lose, then vote on Dating.com.

  If there is no winner or loser, then buy the entire social circuit together.

  "Buying the track" is not Shen Nanpeng's original creation, but the first generation of Sequoia Capital's first-generation head Don Valentine first proposed: bet on the track, not the players.

  When Moritz left, he handed Xia Jingxing a business card. He was not overly enthusiastic or indifferent, and his attitude was just right.

   "When Facebook officially raises funds, you can also send a business plan to Sequoia. We are interested in all social networking sites that perform well."

"it is good."

  Xia Jingxing responded with a smile, scolding the old fox in his heart.

  "Good-performing social networking site", this sentence has many meanings, and it is also a reminder to Xia Jingxing.

  Kopeelman also took out his business card, handed one to Xia Jingxing, and talked a few words, which also showed that he has a slight interest in Facebook and hopes to participate in Facebook’s A round of financing negotiations.

After watching the two investors leave, Hoffman stood beside Xia Jingxing and said lightly: "Believe it or not, they will definitely tell the people on Dating.com. This is the case for venture capital. It is only profitable."

  Xia Jingxing smiled and gave Hoffman a glance, guessing that there should be some resentment in his heart.

  But this is the case with capital. There is less charcoal in the snow and more icing on the cake.

  However, Hoffman was able to tell him this. Obviously he was not listed as a venture capitalist. He was still regarded as an entrepreneur.

  In fact, he only occupied three stakes, and he did not even get a seat on the board of directors. This investment is more like a relationship maintenance. It is not surprising that Hoffman sees him in this way.

   "Perhaps, but it doesn't matter, does it?" Xia Jingxing said relaxedly with her hands behind her back.

  He will not dislike capital in two ways, because this is also the rule of survival of others.

   Hoffman shook his head and laughed, feeling that he was not as young as his teenage youth could understand.

  Although the conditions are not particularly ideal, the A round of financing has been completed anyway.

  To entangle these again, it is to get trouble.

  Under Xia Jingxing’s enlightenment, Hoffman felt that his body of more than two hundred catties was a lot more relaxed, and he felt a sense of sudden relief.

  He shrugged, "You are right, the result is the most important!"

  (End of this chapter)