First it was the heated angels vs. venture capitalists debate, and then the infamous “angelgate” Bin 38 meeting. These and other happenings are still the talk of the startup investment scene, and at the epicenter – a notorious gang of in-betweeners known as “super angels.”
Whether you agree with this nomenclature or prefer to call them “micro VCs,” as an entrepreneur or young startup, it’s important to understand these key players in the investment market. ChubbyBrain, a group of “data geeks” focused on helping entrepreneurs, has put together a handy list breaking down everything you need to know about the super angels.
In case you’re confused about what exactly a super angel or micro VC is, it’s basically any angel investor who has become so popular and skilled at their craft as to warrant raising an outside fund themselves. They sit between traditional angels who invest their own cash and full-blown VC firms that employ partners and invest copious amounts of other people’s money.
So who are the super angels? That’s where ChubbyBrain’s directory comes in handy. Thursday, the self-proclaimed data geeks compiled a list of 14 super angel funds, complete with loads of information for each. Curious about the average size of Dave McClure’s 500 Startups investments? That’s in the directory. Want to know about the types of companies Howard Lindzon’s Social Leverage funds? That’s there too.
Other valuable information include the size of each fund, the geography of the investments made and the number of investments made by each super angel. For startups, approaching investors is all about developing a personal relationship and getting to know their habits and needs. As I’ve mentioned before, it’s a lot like dating, and in that case, ChubbyBrain’s directory is the startup investment personals section.
