 Headlines
Reverse
Chronological Order - Detailed articles below
How
to be an Angel
Time Magazine, August 25, 2003 (Click
Here for article)
eFiltro
New Idea Center Announces South Florida Angel Investors Start
Fund with $1M Committed
Business Wire, Sun-Sentinel, TechWire, Daily Business Review
& Various Press - Feb. 5, 2003
New
venture capital fund seeks to raise $5M to investment in early-stage
Florida companies
February 07, 2003 By: Daily Business Review staff and wire services
South
Florida Angel Network Expands
Business
Wire News Alert, November 6, 2002
InternetCoast
Committee Drives Entrepreneurship & Capital in South Florida
South Florida Business Journal , August , 2002
Ready
for an Americas Rebound
South Florida Business Journal , January 17, 2002
Internet:
Holes in the Net
Investors are returning slowly; in the meantime,
cuts and consolidation rule.
Florida Trend Magazine, January 2002
Miami
Herald, November 12, 2001 by Bea Garcia
Sun-Sentinel, November 11, 2001
EFiltro Press Release, November 1, 2001
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), October 15, 2001 by
Christine Winter
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), August 27, 2001 by Christine
Winter
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), August 6, 2001 by Christine
Winter
Business News America, July 3, 2001
EFiltro Press Release, June 15, 2001
The Miami Herald, June 4, 2001, by Bea Garcia
South Florida Business Journal, May 25, 2001
The Miami Herald, April 8, 2001, by Bea Garcia
The Sun-Sentinnel, March 16, 2001, by Doreen Hemlock
LocalBusiness.com, March 14, 2001
Boca Raton News, March 2001
Business News America, November 17, 2000
Various articles from Expansion, Reforma and El Economista also
available in Spanish
Buenos Aires Economico, October 5, 2000
La Nación (Argentina), September 20, 2000 plus numerous
other articles from Clarín, InfoMail, Mercado, Ambito Financiero,
LatinAmerican.com, et. al. Also available in Spanish.
Internet.com · September 13, 2000 · by Joe Gose
Business News America, September 6, 2000
The
Miami Herald, August 28, 2000, by Bea Garcia
Full
Articles
Reverse
Chronological Order
How
to be an Angel - With many stocks til lpricey, investing in start-ups
offer the most bang ( and potential risk) for the buck
Daniel
Kadlec - TIME MAGAZINE - August 25, 2003
Click
Here for Full Article
eFiltro
New Idea Center Announces South Florida Angel Investors Start
Fund with $1M Committed
BUSINESS WIRE & Various Press - Feb. 5, 2003
--New
Idea Center announced that it has $1M in commitments for an angel
investor fund focused on early-stage venture capital in South
Florida. Over twenty individuals have committed at least $10,000
per year for five years to the first "pledge fund" of
its type in the region.
In order for the fund to be effective, it must raise at least
$2.5M and enlist the support of investors and local universities
such as FIU, FAU, Nova and Miami. During New Idea Center's venture
capital investors' events in February, the remaining commitments
must be secured to enter into a binding agreement. These events
are exclusively for accredited investors, individuals that meet
the SEC's minimum wealth requirements, to network and share their
deal flow. Dr. Alan Carsrud, from FIU's Center for Entrepreneurship
and Family Business, and recently arrived from UCLA, will be this
month's keynote speaker.
Zach
Bell, co-founder of the angel fund and Professor of Entrepreneurship
at the University of Miami, stated: "Entrepreneurship is
the critical force behind innovation and new wealth creation.
By creating a managed fund that addresses the early-stage funding
gap inherent in new ventures, we can significantly 'raise the
bar' for local commercialization opportunities by focusing our
efforts on the creation and expansion of promising young firms."
"After
the venture capitalists in Florida migrated to larger sized deals
over the past two years, there is a great funding gap for early
stage companies. We are willing to coordinate, without compensation,
a structured fund for these first-round opportunities, as they
are now attractively priced," stated Mick Lopez, CEO of New
Idea Center. "Any interested investors that want to participate
in this national trend can request an invitation via http://www.NewIdeaCenter.com
or call (305) 913 3185 ext 2462."
New
venture capital fund seeks to raise $5M to investment in early-stage
Florida companies
February 07, 2003 By: Daily Business Review staff and wire services
A newly formed South Florida investment fund has received commitments
totaling $1 million for investments in early-stage companies and
is hoping to raise $1.5 million more, according to Mick Lopez,
CEO of New Idea Center, a venture capital consulting firm in Coral
Gables. More than 20 individuals have committed at least $10,000
per year for five years to what's known in the venture capital
industry as an angel fund. This money is raised from individuals
and invested in companies that are still developing products and
services. The angel fund is looking for more individual investors
who meet the SEC's minimum wealth requirements for putting personal
funds at risk. Zach Bell, a fund co-founder and professor of entrepreneurship
at the University of Miami, said the fund is seeking $5 million
from 100 investors. To start, it must raise at least $2.5 million.
The angel fund plans to provide $200,000 to $300,000 to each early-stage
company it invests in, said Bell, who is also a partner with Langley
Group, a business consulting and investment banking firm. The
fund plans to focus on Florida companies with particular interest
in firms based in South Florida, Lopez said. "After the venture
capitalists in Florida migrated to larger-sized deals over the
past two years, there was a great funding gap for early-stage
companies," Lopez said. As a result, young companies could
not attract capital to pay for operations until they either grew
large enough or generated enough revenue to attract institutional
investors. The fund will be modeled after other angel funds in
the country such as Dinner Club in Virginia and the Band of Angels
in Silicon Valley. Dinner Club is an early-stage venture fund
that makes investments in high-tech companies. The Band of Angels
is a formal group of 150 former and current tech executives and
entrepreneurs who provide capital to start-up companies. The Band
of Angels invests across all high technology categories. In contrast
to those angel funds, Lopez said this the New Idea fund would
be open to ventures in any industry. Once $2.5 million is raised,
an executive committee of six to 12 individuals would be elected.
"There would not be a managing partner per se," Lopez
said. Bell said committee members would screen business plans,
track investments and perform background checks among other duties.
Lawyer Charles Pearlman, a shareholder in the Fort Lauderdale
office of Adorno & Yoss, helped set up the fund. The fund
is trying to enlist the support of local universities such as
Florida International University, Florida Atlantic University,
Nova Southeastern University and University of Miami. Fund organizers
want the universities to provide ideas and concepts and students
who would work with angel investors to evaluate investment candidates
and track companies that receive funds. Fun organizers also hope
to tap professors' knowledge and experience. "By creating
a managed fund that addressed the early-stage funding gap inherent
in new ventures, we can significantly raise the bar for local
commercialization opportunities by focusing our efforts on the
creation and expansion of promising young firms," Bell said.
South
Florida Angel Network Expands
Business
Wire News Alert, November 6, 2002
eFiltro
NewIdeaCenter announced speakers from Softbank, Nova University,
Crossbow and Cenetec for its early-stage venture capital events
for the Fall. The popular events are exclusively for accredited
investors, individuals that meet the SEC's minimum wealth requirements,
to network and share their deal flow. Softbank Venture Capital's
Luis Valdich will be the main speaker on November 13th at the
Miami meeting. Dr. Randy Pohlman, Dean of Nova University's Huizenga
School of Business and Entrepreneurship will speak on November
19th at Fort Lauderdale's event, which is co-sponsored with The
Langley Group. Leandro Testa, partner at Crossbow Ventures, and
Scott Adams, founder of Cenetec Ventures, will address the Boca
Raton audience on December 10th.
"After
sponsoring fifteen investor events in the last two years, we recognize
angel investors' needs: quality speakers, privacy, screened deal
flow and premiere locales close to their homes," stated Mick
Lopez, CEO of New Idea Center. "We currently have a database
of over 200 high net worth individuals. Any interested investors
can request an invitation via http://www.NewIdeaCenter.com or
(305)913 3185 ext 2461. A few select entrepreneurs may attend
after they submit their business plans for consideration."
eFiltro
New Idea Center is a venture capital consulting firm that serves
entrepreneurs and investors through its high integrity and intellectual
capital. It facilitates the development and funding of new and
established businesses via a network of over 400 investors, core
competence in business plan methodology, and technology industry
alliances. Since 2000, its experienced management team has established
presence in Florida and Latin America, with offices in Miami,
Boca Raton and Buenos Aires, to provide business development and
venture capital consulting services.
InternetCoast
Committee Drives Entrepreneurship & Capital in South Florida
South Florida Business Journal , August , 2002
The
InternetCoast's Entrepreneurship and Capital committee continues
to support and encourage the entrepreneurial spirit and facilitate
capital for new enterprises. The team, co-chaired by Scott Adams
(Cenetec) and Mick Lopez (eFiltro NewIdeaCenter) has focused on
bringing together the resources from various organizations that
are dedicated to developing new ventures in South Florida. Through
their following activities in the past quarter, the entrepreneurial
spirit and capital challenge is kept going in these difficult
economic times.
.....
EFiltro
NewIdeaCenter (www.NewIdeaCenter.com) - There were over five angel
investor networking events held in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and
Palm Beach. An "angel" investor is an individual that
places their own money in early-stage private equity ventures,
and sometimes work with venture capitalists, who have established
investment funds. These exclusive events, either during morning
breakfasts or evening cocktail hour, have served to create a network
of over 180 accredited investors for entrepreneurs to get their
concepts funded. The NewIdeaCenter also sponsors business plan
workshops for entrepreneurs in their Miami and Boca Raton offices.
......
The
InternetCoast is driven by the efforts of the numerous volunteers
that actively work and network in the committees. There are already
over forty individuals who have volunteered to work on the Entrepreneurship
and Capital teams. The team also counts on the support of the
region's entrepreneur organizations and venture capital associations.
Our final ambition is to work in unison to foster entrepreneurial
drive and successes in the InternetCoast. You may volunteer for
our efforts contacting info@NewIdeaCenter.com
Ready
for an Americas Rebound
South Florida Business Journal , January 17, 2002, By Jim
Freer
The slowdown in venture capital investment has been a classic
case of the United States catching a cold and Latin America coming
down with a spillover flu, said Mick Lopez, CEO of eFiltro New
Idea Center in Coral Gables.
Efiltro, which also has offices in Boca Raton and Buenos Aires,
Argentina, helps companies in the United States and Latin America
develop products and find customers. Efiltro also introduces those
clients to and assists them with negotiations with venture capitalist
and other investors. During 2000, eFiltro's first year, nearly
70 percent of the company's work was with clients in Latin America,
Lopez Said. Las year, demand for advisory services from Latin
America dropped sharply and eFiltro focused on expanding its business
sin the less-troubled U.S> Market. Now about 10 percent of
eFiltro';s work is with Latin American clients. But Lopez said
he expects that by this year's third quarter, after the U.S. economy
resumes growing, there will be a pick-up in the flow of venture
capital and other private equity in the United States.
To prepare for that business, eFiltro last month joined a financial
advisory firm in Brazil and a firm in Mexico in forming Americas
Ventures. The other members of that consortium are ITC Ventures
of Sao Paolo, Brazil and New Capital of Mexico City. "We
have worked with them on several projects," Lopez said. Now,
he said, the three advisory firms will combine their advisers
and services on projects where U.S. companies seek to invest in
Latin America and on projects where Latin American firms seek
to set up offices or sell products in the United States. When
the market for those services rebounds, Lopez said, he expects
there will be far fewer competitors than in 2000. "A lot
of advisory firms were opening in Latin America," he said.
"Now, I can't even find the Web sites of some of the best
ones."
Before forming eFiltro, Lopez was an IBM executive in that company's
division that serves and attempts to find clients in Latin America.
During its first two years, eFiltro developed business plans and
provided other advisory services to 30 companies, with a base
that Lopez said is "mostly in South Florida and Latin America."
Three of those clients obtained venture capital from funds they
were introduced to by eFiltro. Those companies are: MetroTrack
of Fort Lauderdale, whose technology enables clients to find the
phone numbers of wireless calls; Merkatum of Miami, which provides
software for business-to-business Internet services; and Banca2
of Argentina, which operates an online financial portal.
Last year, eFiltro organized four angel investor seminars in Coral
Gables. At those meetings, wealthy individuals, known as angels,
meet with owners of young companies looking for seed capital and
other early-stage financing. EFiltro plans to hold angel seminars
at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables on February 26 and at a
yet-to-be-determined site in Fort Lauderdale on March 19. Information
may be obtained on the company's Web site, www.efiltro.com.
Internet:
Holes in the Net
Investors are returning slowly; in the meantime, cuts and consolidation
rule.
By Lisa Gibbs, Florida Trend Magazine, January 2002
Two
years ago, euphoria over the Latin internet market raised millions
for  would-be
media pioneers — and hopes that south Florida had finally
found a way to capitalize on the high-tech economy. Today, ambitions
have shrunk along with dot-com stock prices and venture capital
funding.
Internet firms that haven’t gone out of business have slashed
staff and shelved expansion plans. Patagon.com, a Miami online
bank and brokerage, recently laid off 18 of its 49 employees in
Miami and announced plans to sell its U.S. brokerage operations.
Several promising ventures have sold out to larger firms: Yupi
Internet of Miami Beach, for example, was purchased by Microsoft’s
MSN after cutting staff and canceling a planned IPO; and the North
Palm Beach-based Bankrate closed financial advice unit Consejero.com
in 2000. Even giants like AOL haven’t escaped the suffering.
The Fort Lauderdale-based AOL Latin America announced late last
year it was cutting 133 jobs, 7.6% of its workforce.
The
survivors aren’t giving up; they’re just thinking longer-term.
“The growth is still there,” says Mick Lopez, CEO of Miami
venture capital firm eFiltro. A recent Boston Consulting Group report
projected Latin American online sales rose to $1.3 billion in 2001
from $540 million in 2000. Lopez says investors are slowly returning.
“Before, deals would get funded in four to six weeks; now it
takes four to six months.”
Meanwhile,
in Miami, talk has shifted from the internet to broader technology
and telecom sectors. “There’s a greater rationale for
Miami to be the center of internet traffic than to be the center
of production of internet content,” says Seth Gordon, co-founder
of Tuesday Network, a local internet networking group.
Miami
Herald, November 12, 2001 by Bea Garcia
Angels
to the rescue.
In an effort to bring much needed financing to start-ups in Florida
and Latin America, eFiltro.com has been reaching out to potential
investors, educating them in the fine art of being so-called angels
for these young firms.
EFiltro, which was formed last August, helps companies find sources
of capital as well as counsels them on their business plan. So
far, it has held two angel investor seminars, both in Miami. Future
meetings will be geared to creating a network of angel investors
in South Florida. The next meeting is today in Fort Lauderdale.
 ``This
area has so many wealthy individuals, and more are coming with
migration from the Northeast and South America, says Mick Lopez,
CEO and one of the eFiltro founders. It's a ``shame these human
and capital resources haven't been tapped for the benefit of the
local economy.''
So far, eFiltro has assisted several firms in identifying funding
sources: MetroTrack, based in Fort Lauderdale, Merkatum, based
in Miami, and eBanca2, based in Argentina.
Since its inception 15 months ago, eFiltro.com has reviewed hundreds
of business plans. Yet, only 30 companies have been invited to
present their business plans at eFiltro investment forums, Lopez
says. The emphasis is on sound business models, experienced management
teams, proprietary technology and a large potential market for
their products or services. Lopez says eFiltro also searched to
present companies that hadn't sought venture financing and thus
would be new to these investors.
Twenty of these 30 companies have raised capital, totaling about
$47 million. Twenty-five percent of companies have gotten funding
after they presented their business plans at an eFiltro seminar.
EFiltro has three partners in Miami, including Lopez who spent
a good portion of his career with IBM, holding positions in South
Florida and Latin America. It also has three partners in Buenos
Aires, and one in California. It also works with about a dozen
consultants, depending on the type of company it's assisting.
Sun-Sentinel,
November 11, 2001 (Selected
parts)
Last
Spring tyhe US-Argentina StrategPartners' Forum brought together
South Florida tech companies with Argentine counterparts for some
intense interrnational networking, but perhaps the best part of
the whole event was simply that it happend in Miami....
After
the Argentina mission, a delegation of 28 high-tech companies
from Spain came to South florida in June. Some officials from
Israel visited in September, and full scale missions from Israel
and Brazil are in the works for next year.
Mick
Lopez, CEO of eFiltro, Coral Gables, and one of the InternetCoast
planners for the events, said firms from both nations set up face-to-face
meetings arranged via the InternetCoast Web siste. they were looking
for potential parnters for everything from distribution to software
development to expansion and acquisition.
(eFiltro
notes: this is a long article on the Sunday section, that we only
show a small portion. eFiltro was invited by the Argentina Minnistry
of Science and technology to attend as their venture consultant
advisor, and was a business development consultant for the Consulate
of Spain).
EFiltro Press Release, November 1, 2001
- New
eFiltro Website - www.efiltro.com
- Americas
Ventures - eFiltro Miami and Buenos Aires teams with ITC Ventures
in Sao Paulo and NewCapital in Mexico to provide pan-regional
venture capital consulting services.
- Angel
Networks - eFiltro teams with InternetCoast, Miami Internet Alliance,
First Tuesday and others to encourage new early stage venture
capital networks in South Florida.
- vFinance.com
- eFiltro teams with the leading site for firms seeking capital
to provide business plan analysis services
- Buenos
Aires - New permanent offices established at Paraguay 1345, Piso
7, Oficina 11, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Boca
Raton - eFiltro sets up second Florida office in Military Trail
in Boca Raton
- The
Americas Group - eFiltro becomes strategic partner for identification
and transfer of new technologies to Latin America
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), October 15, 2001 by
Christine Winter
After several succesful outings in Miami, eFiltro and Langley
Group will sponsor an Angel Investor Seminar for Broward Country.
Angels are private investors who help start-up companies bridge
the gap between self-funding and support from large venture capital
fimrs in return for a stake in the company.
The
seminars are designed to encourage early-stage capital investment
in South Florida companies. The event will be held from 5pm to
8pm Nov 12 at the Hyatt Regency Pier 66 in Fort Lauderdale and
selected entrepreneurs will be able to make presentations. Attendence
investors is by invitation only. For more information contact
Mick Lopez at 305-913-3185 ext 2462.
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), August 27, 2001 by Christine
Winter
There's
no doubt the entire technology sector could use a heavenly intervention
these days perhaps an archangels to ward off creditors, or a miracle
to meet the payroll. But most start-up firms would probably settle
for an angel investor or two.
Angels are private investors who help start-up companies bridge
the tgap between self-funding and support from large venture capital
firms in return for a stake in the company. According to research
at the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire,
the number of active angels in America is around 400,000. The
typical angel investor has a net worth of at least a million dollars,
and will typically invest from $50,000 to $500,000 in a start-up
tech company.
However it is becoming more common for angels to work in formal
groups, or informal syndicates, which typically invest up to $350,000
in a startup. Unfortunately, South Florida is not exactly a hotbed
for angel investor networks. According to Angel Investor Magazine,
none of the Top 10 angel groups, according to the number of deals
completed in 2000, was based in Florida.
That is why eFiltro, a Coral Gables company that describes
itself as a facilitator for new business ventures, will stage
its second Angel Investor Seminar Spet 10 at the Biltmore Hotel
in Coral Gables, The event is co-sponsored by local groups like
InternetCoast, Miami Internet Alliance and First Tuesday.
Their goal is to spark the creation of a South Florida angel investor
network.
The
seminar, designed to educate new and experienced investors on
the pitfalls and rewards of venture funding, will be followed
by a private Investor Matchmaking and Networking event, where
five entrepreneurs will present their concepts to accredited local
investors and venture capitalists who have been invited to attend.
Seats are limited for the free seminar. To reserve a space, contact
eFIltro via email at info@efiltro.com
or call 305-913-3185 ext 2462.
Sun-Sentinel
(Fort Lauderdale), August 6, 2001 by Christine Winter
Extracted from featured article:
Let's Make a Deal
Mick Lopez, chief executive of eFiltro, a Coral Gables based consulting
firm that matches up high-tech start-ups and investors, describes
himself as a regular on the circuit for high-tech networking.
He said he came away from one large conference organized by several
local support groups with eight business leads. He later closed
two deals.
Recently
I was eating a sushi restaurant in Coral Gables and a guy came
up to me who remembered me from one of the many meetings I attend,
Lopez said. He quickly recruited the former dot-commer,
now with a large bank, to help organize eFiltro's angel investor
network.
Business News America, July 3, 2001
Florida-based
eFiltro is forming a regional consortium to provide fund raising
and business development advice to Latin American and US-based
technology companies, CEO Mick Lopez said, adding that partners
are being sought in Chile, Spain, New York and Los Angeles.
Efiltro,
an entrepreneur-investor matchmaker, plans to launche the pan-regional
consulting network this quarter, and already has established a
presence in Brazil, Mexico, Miami and Argentina, Lopez told BNAmericas.com.
For
instance, if a company in Buenos Aires is looking for money, he
explained, instead of going to our offices in that country, they
can go to Miami or Rio. Or if a company is based in California
and needs to open branches in Latin America, we can help them
through our regional network.
Launched
last August 22, eFiltro (www.efiltro.com)
receives and evaluates business plans from companies looking to
raise funding. Every two months, it selects five companies to
showcase at an event in Florida and then take on a road show.
The
company, which broke even two months ago, has worked with ventures
such as MetroTrack, Sterling Financial, Lineabox and merkatum.
It charges for its services when companies secure financing, in
which case, it takes cash and stock equity of the amount raised.
In
Chile and Uruguay, eFiltro collaborates with the First Tuesday
network, which organizes a monthly networking event for entrepreneurs
and investors in a number of cities worldwide. Amid the
softer Internet market conditions, both eFiltro and FT had broadened
their dotcom focus to include technology oriented companies in
the biotech, laser and wireless industries.
The Miami Herald, June 4, 2001, by Bea Garcia
Extracted from the ·Chatroom: South Florida Tech Scene·
Column
In the never-ending dance to match up young companies with seed
capital. EFiltro and four local entrepreneur groups are holding
a seminar this evening on what it takes to be an angel investor.
Mick
Lopez, who runs eFiltro.com, said the goal is to create the kind
of angel network in South Florida that's already well established
in Silicon Valley with angel clubs such as the Band of Angels
and garage.com.
One
basic requirement: deep pockets regardless of where the investor
is based. According to businesspartners.com, the typical angel
investor has a minimum net worth of $1 million with an average
annual income of $90,000 or more. About 60 percent of the investments
made by angel investors are under $50,000, with the rest ranging
up to $500,000.
And
despite the turmoil in the markets in the latter half of last
year, angel groups still funded 236 percent more companies in
2000 than in 1996. Angel Investor magazine estimates that angel
investing has grown at 35 percent compounded rate in those five
years.
EFiltro Press Release, June 15, 2001
eFiltro Birthday: eFiltro Co. and its operational team
are over one year old now. Since our launch in late August, 2000,
we have received over 1 million hits to www.efiltro.com,
several hundreds of business plans from twelve countries, and
especially, established contact with premiere infrastructure firms,
consultants and over two hundred investors.
Spanish Trade Mission: Thirty information technology companies
from Spain will visit Miami on June 4-6th sponsored by the Spain
Consulate, Internet Coast, Beacon Council, Enterprise Florida
and others. Please visit www.internetcoast.com/spain
for information and to sign up for interviews with these firms
that desire joint ventures, associations and business development
in South Florida and Latin America.
Strategic Partnership with eFiltro: Dow Jones/America Economia,
the leading business news magazine in Latin America, has formed
a strategic partnership with eFiltro to develop new venture markets
in the region.
Internet Street Fair: eFiltro selected two winning "elevator
pitches" from CarRevolution and Global Linking for presentation
on WAXY radio during the great Internet Street Fair (Lincoln Road
- Miami Beach) on May 5th.
CHILE First Tuesday: eFiltro partners with First Tuesday
Chile, and Uruguay, to sponsor Investor Matchmaking Events through
our website in May.
Hispanic Venture Capital Fair: eFiltro coordinated a venture
capital event at the Hispanic Internet Summit on April 28th, sponsored
by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic National Bar Association,
LULAC and NSH-MBAs. Six Hispanic and Latin American focused companies
presented to top venture capitalists from Softbank, Fleet Ventures,
Advent & others.
US · Argentina Strategic Partner Conference: eFiltro
Argentina accompanied over thirty information technology firms
from Argentina, at the invitation of the Ministry of Science and
Technology, to Miami and Orlando, on March 19-24th to assist them
obtain partnerships and funding, and hosted a venture capital
panel with representation from Crossbow, Motorola, Softbank, and
Spydre Labs.
Southeast I-dealflow - eFiltro will actively participate
in the minority venture capital fair in Atlanta on November 2nd.
Visit www.i-dealflow.org or contact us if you are a minority business
focused firm seeking venture capital.
South Florida Business Journal, May 25, 2001
Recognizing a need to address a learning curve, a group of South
Florida organizations that advise young technology companies will
hold a seminar for ·angel· investors. The seminar
is scheduled for June 4 at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables.
It is open to investors and business owners who register by June1.
The
organizers are also selecting four South Florida companies to
make presentations to a group of angel investors, investment bankers
and officials of venture capital firms. The session will
be open only to presenting companies and investors.
Co-Sponsor
eFiltro analyzes business plans and identifies capital
provides for entrepreneurs and business owners. Other sponsors
are InternetCoast, Miami Internet Alliance, First Tuesday and
Tuesday network.
EFiltro
CEO Mick Lopez said organizers hope the seminar will be the first
in a series for individuals who provide financing and owners of
technology firms seeking capital. ·The objective
of the two-hour seminar is to introduce new investors to the risks
and rewards of venture capital in order to create a better base
for economic development in South Florida,: Lopez said.
Lopes
said South Florida has numerous individuals who would like to
invest in ·angel· deals, but have not received guidance
about the process or have not been able to find companies that
meet their investment standards.
California,
Texas and New England have large networks of angel investors partly
because advisory groups have formal programs that link them with
entrepreneurs, added Lopes, who previously was IBM·s director
of business development for Latin America.
Speakers
at the seminar, which is also open to business owners, will be:
Ralph Heckert of Bernstein Investment Research and Management
in West Palm Beach, john Carey of the law firm Kilpatrick Stockton,
Michael Heller of the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, and
Bill Greene of Cenetec in Boca Raton, an incubator/accelerators
for young Internet Firms.
The Miami Herald, April 8, 2001, by Bea Garcia
Excepts from the feature article on Business Monday section
Venture capitalists are taking a more selective approach to dot-coms,
asking tough questions about management ability, business strategy
and product development.
The
impact of the past 12 months was easy to see at a matchmaking
event in Coral Gables two weeks ago, sponsored by First Tuesday/I-americas,
the Internet networking group, and eFiltro.com, a local firm that
helps match companies and investors. Out of the five companies
making a pitch for money, only one, MetroTrack, a Fort Lauderdale
company that is developing technology to track 911 calls from
cellular phones, was in the conceptual stage. The others had
fully developed products and were generating revenue.
These
companies aren·t going to die if they don·t get
financing right away,· says Hugo deStoop, who helped organized
the First Tuesday group about 18 months ago.
The Sun-Sentinnel, March 16 2001, by Doreen Hemlock
Excerpts from news article.
On Monday, executive from 32 companies from Argentina are slated
to meet counterparts from the Sunshine State in sessions at Florida
internationals University·s campus in Miami. The InternetCoast
hopes the mission can spur more Argentine companies to open offices
in South Florida. Plus, it hopes to offer new contacts, so
that South Florida companies can sell more of their rechnologies
and services to Argentina and heyound, said Mick Lopez, president
of Coral Gables-based eFiltro Co. and a leader in the InternetCoast.
A
nation of immigrants, Argentina is known for its entrepreneurship
more so than, say mexico, which has nearly triple the population.
And Argentine entrepreneurs have a broad scope, a pan-regional
approach, said Lopez of eFiltro, which helps start-ups polish
their business plans and get venture capital.
LocalBusiness.com, March 14, 2001
A looser credit environment, better-focused venture capitalists,
more disciplined companies touting realistic burn rates -- these
were some of the optimistic musings and predictions made by Tuesday
Network's cheery speakers, despite the recent market nosedive.
Scott Adams, CEO of business accelerator Cenetec and the Internet
Coast's new-technology maven, said that although it has been tougher
to raise money during the past year, the money is there. Companies
just have to work harder and longer to get it.
"Those
who have money to invest are not releasing it unless it is a grand-slam
deal," Adams said. Despite the dot-com shake-out and the
declining stock market, he predicted that the next several months
would bring a recovery and an era of steady, more logical growth.
Also on hand at the networking event at the Omni Colonnade in
Coral Gables were:
 Mick
Lopez, CEO of Miami-based eFiltro, which helps start-ups develop
business models and brings together entrepreneurs and capital
providers
Alberto
Perlman, CEO of Miami's Spydre Labs, which specializes in services,
technology and distressed companies
Jan
Boyer, president of Softbank Latin Ventures, which has invested
in a number of South Florida Internet companies and
Charles
Ganz, vice chairman of Aventura's Mellon Private Trust Co.
Lopez
reminded the audience that despite market gyrations and recalcitrant
equity investors, venture capitalists are still raising funds
at a record rate. And that money has to go somewhere. But he cautioned
that companies must hew to a disciplined and proven business model
that takes into account how many people will find their products
attractive enough to buy. "Plans fail on the size of the
market," he said.
Spydre's
Perlman reminded the group that just a year ago, a company's success
was judged not by its revenues, but by how much money it had raised.
One lesson garnered from the experience of Internet entrepreneurship
is that in too many cases one start-up is willing to give away
a product that another wants people to pay for.
Softbank's
Boyer had some good practical advice as well. Companies, he said,
should constantly ask themselves: Is that (fill in the blank:
product, employee, marketing strategy) a good return on my capital
and time? "If you have cash, pretend that you don't,"
he said. "If you don't have cash, don't worry. Either you
are talking to the wrong investors or you haven't truthfully answered
the (good-return) question."
Boca Raton News, March 2001
InternetCoast, the organization promoting South Florida as a technology
hub, introduced its committee chairs at its recent meeting at
Florida Atlantic University. They are: Scott Adams and Mick Lopez,
co-chairs of the entrepreneurship and capital committee.
Business News America, November 17, 2000
Florida based community for entrepreenrus and investors, eFiltro
yesterday launched an office in northern Mexico·s industrial
capital Monterrey, part of a US $1 million regional investment
plan, Mexican operations manager Benjamin Alvarez said.
The company, which already has a presence in Mexico City, has
set up two analysits inmontetrey due to the cty;s growing B2B
ecommerce market and Internet-investing companies there such as
Grupo Alfa, Cemex, and Grupo Imsa, Alvarez told BNAmericas.com.
Launches in Florida on August 22, eFiltro connects Latin American
and Florida based entrepreneurs with venture capital investors,
incubators and accelerato4rs, as well as with infrastructure companies
in the region. The company receives and evaluates business plans
and posts selected plans in a database, which is shared by investors
and incubators affiliated with eFIltro. EFiltro also has offices
in Buenos Aires and Sao Paulo and works with regional accelerators
and incubators such as Spydre Labs, World Cap Internet Solutions,
ITC Ventures, Latin American Acceess and Numbers at work.
Efiltro
does not invest directly in the companies it reviews, in oder
to remain independent and avoid any possible conflict of interest,
Alvarez said. Its revenues come mostly through finder's
fees, commissions, on investment capital and stock warrants in
start-up projects.
International
management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company hold a minority
stake in eFiltro. It is also funded by the executive team, headed
by CEO Mick Lopez, former director of business development for
IBM Latin America. Individual investors include Gene Prescott
and Robert Kay of the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, where eFiltro's
US office is located.
Buenos Aires Economico, October 5, 2000
Translated from Spanish, major excerpts from news article
EFiltro, dedicated to evaluate and create Internet companies
in Latin America and Unites States, announced yesterday fantastic
alliances with Consultatio and IBM to develop join projects.
Consultatio,
the venture capital headed by Eduardo Constantini, will help realize
the conacts with the investors for those projects that efiltro
has evaluated as interesting for development. IBM, will provide
the necessary infrastructure, as was explained by Omar Arab, president
of eFiltro for the Southern Cone. As was mentioned yesterday in
this newspaper, eFiltro has an agreement with McKinsey to use
their methodology for analysis that allows them to classify from
0 to 100 the main indicators for a project, for such areas like
financial model, competititve advantage, market size and management.
Our
model was given an impulse by the fall of the Nasdaq, which has
helped us much, sustained Mick Lopez, CEO of eFiltro. In Internet,
there was a bubble where the investors forgot the golden rules
of investment, which they are now dusting off. They will be more
selective he added. As part of these rules, Lopez stated, atypical
IPO is done after three to five years of launching a new company.
Microsoft did it in 10 years. A company must be self sustained
in 18 to 24 months. Projects must be regional, not only local
in nature.
La Nación (Argentina), September 20, 2000
Translated from Spanish, major excerpts from news article.
There was much press coverage of our launch, that is available
for any review. The Internet incubator eFiltro has arrived in
Argentina. We are a community in the Internet that seeks
to establish personalized relationships between all the players
of the new economy, to deliver successful companies, said Omar
Arab, president for the Southern Cone. Every month, in Argentina,
we expect to analyze over 50 business plans and we will go forward
with one only one said the director, with headquarters in Argentina.
Internet.com · September 13, 2000 · by Joe Gose
Excerpts from full article.
It may be hard for some to imagine that a land of gators, orange
groves, and thongs is on its way to becoming the next Silicon
Valley, but not for promoters of South Florida. For the most part,
he says, the funding is split between South Florida's Interstate
95 corridor and Central Florida's Interstate 4 corridor. During
the first and second quarters of 2000, venture capital pumped
$181 million into 16 Internet companies along I-95 and $145 million
into 13 Internet companies along I-4, Donsky says. During all
of last year, venture capital financed 13 Internet companies along
I-95 with $183 million and 12 Internet companies along I-4 with
$134 million.
"We
have a number of cities that have separate concentrations of Internet
and tech companies," he says. "But there's not critical
mass in any one of these cities when you're talking about the
management, accounting, legal, and financial infrastructure to
build these startups."
Some
entrepreneurs have noticed the lack of critical mass when it comes
to building new companies. Recent South Florida startups include
eFiltro and Cenetec, two accelerators that evaluate, invest in,
and assist new technology and Internet ventures in South Florida
and Latin America. Hiway Technologies founder Scott Adams began
Cenetec after he and others made seed investments in a few companies.
The
competitive advantage Miami has over everybody else in the universe
is that it is the highway to the Americas and has become the de
facto Internet capital of Latin America," says Mick Lopez,
CEO of eFiltro and an IBM alum. "We've targeted new ventures
in both South Florida and Latin America, and this was the ideal
place for us to be."
Business News America, September 6, 2000 by Maja Viklands
Florida-based community for entrepreneurs and investors eFiltro
plans to launch operations in Argentina on October 4, in Mexico
and Brazil later the same month, eFiltro CEO Mick Lopez told BNAmericas.co-m
"We
have over US$1mn in committed capital to roll out operations,"
Lopez said. International management consulting firm McKinsey
& Company has a minority stake in the company, he added.
Launched
in Florida on August 22, eFiltro connects Latin American and Florida-based
entrepreneurs with venture capital investors, incubators and accelerators,
as well as infrastructure companies in the region. The company
receives and evaluates business plans, and posts selected plans
in a database, which is shared by investors and incubators affiliated
with eFiltro.
EFiltro
sponsors included Miami-based accelerator Spydre Labs, Buenos
Aires-based incubator World Cap Internet Solutions, Chile-based
accelerator ITC Ventures and Miami-based incubators Latin American
Access and Numbers @ Work.
EFiltro
charges US$100 to evaluate and post business plans. If an investor
decides to take on one of the projects, the company gains a minority
equity sake in return, Lopez said. It also generates revenues
by analyzing and developing business plans.
In
order to protect data eFiltro works with ethical hackers, none
of whom have succeeded in to breaking into the site, Lopez said.
"Our site is not HTML-based, it is a Lotus Domino database
so it is hard to get into. We also have a very strict privacy
statement," Lopez said.
The
company also seeks to educate entrepreneurs on how to build successful
ventures, Lopez said, adding that eFiltro will arrange seminars
and workshops on venture creation processes. EFiltro is open to
all companies, serving dotcoms as well as "a shoe manufacturer
who wants to expand capacity but doesn't want to take a bank loan,"
he concluded.
The Miami Herald, August 28, 2000, page 11G, by Bea Garcia
Just when you thought that we might never see another dot-com
hang its shingle online, along comes eFiltro.com. The venture
has tapped local money: Gene Prescott and Bob Kay, the money and
talent behind the revitalization of the historic Biltmore Hotel.
Mick Lopez, an IBM veteran and eFiltro.com's CEO, says that this
is exactly the time when a company like eFiltro is needed. Its
mission is to review and rate business plans and submit the best
ones to a stable of venture capital firms for funding.
"Before a two-page business summary was good enough to get
seed money", Lopez says. "Now, VCs want to see a more
robust business plan". efiltro.com worked with McKinsey &
Co. to develop a 100 point check list for evaluating business
plans. The firm also worked with eFiltro to come with a methodology
for standardizing business plans. Lopez says that more than 30
sponsors have signed to work with eFiltro in less than one month.
They're expecting to provide resources, services or capital. "We
want to make sure the good ideas get funded," says Albert
Llodra, who has signed on as chief operating officer.
EFiltro Press Release · August 23, 2000
The unveiling of eFiltro (www.efiltro.com)
as the premier facilitator for the creation, analysis and selection
of business plans was announced yesterday in a reception at The
Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. eFiltro is a Web based facilitator
that provides a single point of contact for entrepreneurs, risk
capital providers and venture capitalists so they can interact
with greater speed and velocity. eFiltro provides the analysis
and selection of business plans for funding through their vast
sponsor network.
Mick
Lopez, CEO of eFiltro, pointed to the new and unique service that
the website provides to entrepreneurs and capital providers. "The
business plan defines the goals of your business and the means
to attain success. eFiltro provides a robust, proprietary methodology
that is based on a global study commissioned to an international
consulting firm, and supplemented by the vast experience of our
management team".
An
impressive Board of Advisors was introduced to the crowd as well
as a solid list of sponsors that have already joined the new eFiltro
web community. These sponsors include IBM, Florida International
University, Screaming Media, Tequesta Capital, Kilpatrick Stockton,
Spydre Labs, Latin America Access, University of Miami North,South
Center, Numbers @ Work and Worldcap Internet Solutions, among
others.
"As
all markets continue to evolve, so does the way in which funding
is allocated and the criteria used to invest in start-ups. It's
more complex than ever to get funded·.the entrepreneur
needs to tell the right story. The business plan is key",
noted Gene Prescott, President of Seaway Hotels and a director-owner
of the eFiltro advisory board.
eFiltro
reviews and evaluates the business plan and once the review is
completed, qualified entrepreneurs may receive funding via their
global network of sponsors or use eFiltro's services to improve
their business plan skills.
With
the interest of providing an educational format for entrepreneurs
and the tools for getting ideas properly funded, eFiltro will
be offering a series of business plan building workshops in the
near future.
The
idea for eFiltro emerged when Mick Lopez, the company's CEO and
former Director of Business Development for IBM Latin America,
realized that the specific needs of entrepreneurs, risk capital
providers and infrastructure firms were not being met by anyone
in the marketplace.
"While
risk capital providers are being inundated and overwhelmed with
business plans, the Entrepreneurs cannot gain access to resources
and investors, eFiltro emerges as the single solution for all
members of the value chain" added Mr. Lopez.
eFiltro
executive offices are located at The Biltmore Hotel Executive
Center . The company recently established regional presence in
Argentina, Mexico and Brazil. The company is fully funded and
employs more than 10 seasoned executives
|
|
