The State of Wisconsin’s Qualified New Business Venture (QNBV) was launched in 2005 to incentivize investments in early-stage businesses in the state. These businesses must first register with the state, after which any entity investing in the QNBV-certified businesses are eligible to receive a tax credit equal to 25 percent of the amount of the equity investment.
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board, or SWIB, is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. This alliance of policymakers and union officials works together to ensure a bright financial future for trust fund beneficiaries.
SWIB is responsible for running the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS), the State Investment fund and a few smaller funds based in Wisconsin.
Here’s a look at how SWIB was formed and its private equity program.
The annual Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium takes place Nov. 3-4 at the Monona Terrace in Madison. As mentioned in a Wisconsin State Journal article, the conference will see several WVCA members, including Tim Keane of Golden Angels Investors, Michael Thorson of Inventure Capital and Brad Bodden of Wisconsin Investment Partners, moderate or participate in the sessions.
The Milwaukee Business Journal reported that startups in Wisconsin raised a record $436 million through the first three quarters of 2021. Many of the startups, including Rentable and Fiveable, have received funding from WVCA members.
Wisconsin is home to national food and beverage brands such as Hillshire Farm, Sargento and Schoep’s Ice Cream. The state also features several aspiring startups that produce f&b products or service their industries. Here’s a look at a few that have been making the news recently.
Athletes are no strangers to the world of venture capital. Across the country, we have seen the likes of Serena Williams, Kevin Durant and Joe Montana make investments.
Wisconsin has seen its share of VC involvement in the world of sports. Most recently, former Milwaukee Bucks guard Michael Redd teamed up with a lawyer to form TwentyTwo. It provides angel investments and mentorship but has not yet provided details on its first fund. Redd also is available as a guest speaker.
Despite the pandemic, the United States venture capital liquidity market exceeded expectations last year, according to a report by PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. In fact, aggregate exits gained most of their value later in the year, with $138.2 billion of the total $290.1 billion achieved in Q4 2020.
That momentum has carried into 2021 across the country, including in Wisconsin. Here’s a look at a few startups in Wisconsin that have seen recent exits.
Private companies today have the option to go public by merging with a SPAC, or Special Purpose Acquisition Corporation. This involves a group of investors who have a common acquisition in mind, but they do not reveal their target to avoid disclosures (hence why they are referred to as “blank check companies”), according to Investopedia.com.
Typically, when people think about top places to establish a financial tech startup, they think of Los Angeles, New York or Silicon Valley. However, there is one place being overlooked: Wisconsin. According to WisBusiness, Wisconsin is quickly becoming a leader in the fintech industry.
WisBusiness also reported that the COVID-19 pandemic provided a boost to many new fintech companies, as many payment systems became primarily virtual. For instance, Fiserv Inc., a global financial technology and services company based in Brookfield, saw its 2020 revenue increase 46% to $14.85 billion.
Rentable, a Madison-based online rental and property management platform, recently raised $22.5 million in Series B funding.
Read more: https://therealdeal.com/2021/08/03/proptech-startup-rentable-secures-22m-in-series-b-funding/