Private Equity
Earlier this month, Bob Flanagan joined Raymond James Financial as head of the firm's hardware technology banking group. He focuses on semiconductors, optical devices, communications equipment and electronics. Prior to Raymond James, Flanagan managed Oppenheimer & Co.'s Silicon Valley office. He actually joined Oppenheimer in 2007 when it was CIBC (Oppenheimer acquired CIBC in November 2007). Flanagan was also a senior tech banker at Cowen & Co. and Thomas Weisel but began his career at Salomon Brothers. Flanagan currently works out of Raymond James' San Francisco office but the IB plans to open a Silicon Valley satellite location later this year. Flanagan spoke to me by phone earlier today.
4 min read · 09 September 2011
Jeff Stibel: The key to a jobs plan that works. Her Side: Carol Bartz, who was ousted as Yahoo's CEO, says the company "f---ed" her over. And, Third Point, a hedge fund, buys up 5.2% of shares and demands that the board resigns. Not Leaving Quietly: Paul Carr says he'll resign from TechCrunch unless Arrington gets to choose his successor. Grow More: Inside Gawker Media's first company-wide meeting. Public Enemy: Goldman Sachs should consider its own breakup, says BreakingViews. Live Long & Prosper: Forty five years ago today the first episode of Star Trek aired.
1 min read · 08 September 2011
Regrets: Steve Jobs' biological Dad yearns to meet his son. And here's Jobs' Stanford commencement speech at Stanford from 2005. Pretty Obvious: What is America's Largest Candidate for Bankruptcy? Just guess. Womenon Top: The most powerful mompreneurs, according to Forbes. Irreplaceable: What happens to 10 tech companies when they lost their founders. Poor Frank: This rock star banker is still dogged by a dot.com lawsuit. Reversal: HP may resurrect TouchPad while it weighs spinoff of PC unit.
1 min read · 30 August 2011
Sean Oggle: The Road Less Traveled comes with its own set of problems. Apple Rumors: iPhone 5 supposedly will have a panel size less than 4 inches. After Irene: Wall Street goes back to work while New York commuters hunt for wifi access. Irene-related damage estimated at $2.6 bln. Stocks: Dow closes up 2.3% on relief hurricane Irene wasn't worse. No comment: How Sprint is fending off iPhone rumors. Venus Love: The top 10 female entrepreneurs. First Close: A Bob Geldof fund that will invest in Africa nears a $200 mln first close.u The New Normal: Are hurricanes, earthquakes and natural disasters becoming part of everyday conversations? Bust Up: AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile invest $100 million in a Google wallet competitor. Once in a Lifetime: Felix Salmon actually defends Dealbook. El Oucho! Twitter feed, @ElBloombito, caricatures NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg's efforts to speak spanish (it's really funny). Video: MSFT has put out a spoof video making fun of VMware.
1 min read · 29 August 2011
Hail Mary? Blackrock, which owns iShares, wants to get into indexing. Up for Sale: Softbank is selling most of its Yahoo stake. Run! New York Mayor orders people to evacuate Zone A and the Rockaways. How will cell phone networks weather (pun intended) Hurricane Irene. After Steve: The 25 best magazine covers featuring Steve Jobs. And Jobs career compressed into a 2 minute cartoon. Letting Go: Max Levchin to leave Google as Slide is dissolved. We Can't Wait: Fox News is attacking Gawker for some reason that will come next week. Good Advice: Why Saleforce's CEO gave Apple the "App Store" trademark. Gotcha: How we found the file that was used to hack RSA. Because it's Friday: Video of Jedi kittens!!
1 min read · 26 August 2011
Prepping for Irene: 180 flights are cancelled ahead of Hurrican Irene's landfall in the U.S. And, some areas of NYC may get evacuated. After Steve Jobs: Apple shares pare losses as investors get comfy with new CEO Tim Cook. Felix Salmon says we shouldn't ignore Cook's sexuality. And, 10 iconic Steve Jobs moments. Deal: Bids for Hulu aren't expected until the end of the week Going Public: Angie's List files for a $75 mln IPO. No Love: Most junior bankers hate their jobs and want to work in private equity. Still Up for Sale: AOL's hired Allen & Co. again but there's still no deal. E-Readers are So Venus: Women love e-readers while guys prefer tablets, according to a study.
1 min read · 25 August 2011
Not Done Yet: The FCC wants more info on AT&T's buy of T-Mobile. Ben Horowitz: How to correctly fire an executive. Going Public: Jive Software files for a $100 mln IPO. BofA: Meredith Whitney says Bank of America doesn't urgently need to raise capital. After the Bell: Gold plunges plunges $104 while Dow ends up 142.51 points to 11,319.27 Looking Like George Costanza Doesn't Matter: Three reasons why speed networking is better than speed dating. Record Breaker: Facebook hit a trillion page views in June. I'll Drink To That: Beer, but only the nonalcoholic kind, helps marathon runners recover. Harold Feld: Forget the 1st Amendment argument. BART messed with the phone system. Finally: Fed researchers conclude that Barney Frank didn't cause the housing crisis. Setting It Straight: Samsung says it's not buying HP's PC unit. Too Late: "The Godfather" is no longer available for free on YouTube.
1 min read · 24 August 2011
Apple Rumors: Sprint will begin selling the iPhone 5 in mid-October. And, a cheaper iPhone 4, with only 8 GB of memory, is coming out. Fail Forward: Four lessons from a serial entrepreneur. Shake, Rattle & Run: Earthquakes hit the East Coast while Virginia gets hit with a 5.8 quake. And, homeowners may have to pay for the quake damage themselves. Stocks Up: Investors aren't rattled by the quake and Dow ends up 322.11 points while S&P 500 rises 38.53 points. Scape Goat: BofA tried to blame its falling stock price on Business Insider's Henry Blodget. Possible Deal: Netspend is undervalued less than a year after going public. So will they get bought out? More Privacy: Facebook is making it easier for people to know who can see what they post.
1 min read · 23 August 2011
Looking Out for No. 1: Ten ways to lose your job. Frivolous Lawsuit: Eliot Spitzer sued for $60 million in libel suit over a column he wrote for Slate. Against the Grain: John Locke (not the "Lost" character), the author who publishes e-books, has a traditional publishing deal to come out with physical books. Macs are Back: Cerberus and Chatham Lodging kill their $1.1 bln deal to buy 64 Innskeeper hotels. Guilty? Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman's CEO, is apparently taking the DOJ inquiry seriously and has hired a high power lawyer, Reid Weingarten. Deadlines: Fifteen ways to stop procrastinating. The Unthinkable May Be Happening: Is Oracle considering buying HP? Phone Matters: HTC plans to unveil several Windows phone Mango devices at their Sept. 1 event. C Corp It: What corporate structure works best for startups considering VC funding? Felix Salmon: What happened to the billions of dollars dropped onto a country like Haiti?
1 min read · 22 August 2011
Warning: Greece's recession could be deeper than anyone originally thought. Announcement: Apple is working on its next generation iPad. And, the iPhone 5 is now coming in October. Bad Timing: One day after HP announced a biz revamp, HP shares tank 20%. And, Dow ends down 172.93 points to 10817.65 while the S&P 500 fell 17.12 points to 1123.53. Layoffs: BofA plans to cut 3,500 jobs this quarter. Possible Deals: Who will buy Motorola's handset business? Deliverance: The U.S. Postal Service must make lavish changes if it's to survive. Hacker: How the FBI investigates the hacktivities of Anonymous. Changing The World: Meet the 8 finalists for the Startups for Good Challenge.
1 min read · 19 August 2011
