By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: Right. Do you see any issues in the angel ecosystem? Is there anything that can be improved? Ray: I think the key thing is, investors like us have to get involved, to educate entrepreneurs. For example, Silicon Valley is the best ecosystem in the whole wide world. And for
By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: What do you think is the most important thing that angel-backed founders can do to increase their chances of success? Ray: The execution. It means you have to work with partners — work with partners like us, work with the team, and execute the plan. They also be able
By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: What do you do when you get incomplete business teams? Ray: We go in there and help. I especially love to work together with the entrepreneurs. We do what they don’t want to do or what they don’t know that they need to do.
By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: What is a typical valuation of a company when you are investing? Ray: We don’t touch anything more than $4 million. Irina: Do you think in terms of equity, and how much equity do you usually seek? Ray: In terms of equity, it depends. We don’t have the percentage
By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: Let me ask you, are there any charges to entrepreneurs at any stage as they are going through the process of presenting to TCA? Ray: No, we don’t believe in charging because we see them as our customers; they are our partners. I don’t think its right to charge
By guest author Irina Patterson Irina: What are your current sources of deal flow? Ray: It’s an interesting question. About three months ago we actually redid our website, making it more entrepreneur-friendly, so that people can just apply with a very simple application. On top of that, I designed a new marketing program. In the