Entrepreneur Brian Pallas doesn’t believe in venture capital. His startup, Opportunity Network is funded entirely from private investors and business partners. The 28-year old hasn’t taken a penny of venture capital. Last year, when I first reported about Pallas’ success, ON was valued at $100m with revenues of $5-10M for 2015. The site is aimed at CEO’s and family businesses around the globe looking for partnerships, or mergers and acquisitions. ON makes anonymous introductions for members who meet strict financial requirements and are looking for deals of $1m or more. The business will close its third round of fundraising this month with investments of $10m. Pallas has strong views about the importance of keeping fundraising and ownership within a founder’s control. He also believes VCs are over-rated, for both entrepreneurs and investors. We spoke recently about why startups may be better off avoiding venture capital, and how Pallas grew his startup without it. Read more on Forbes.com
Journalist & startup speaker. Forbes, BBC, Spear’s, PRI. Adventurer, art addict, foodie, aspiring surfer & adrenalin junkie.
