In Season 4, Episode 3 of the popular TV series Mad Men, Don Draper meets Anna’s niece, a U.Cal Berkeley student. “I’m not political,” she tells Don, “I just don’t understand who’s in charge.” “You’re in charge,” comes the ad man’s response. Historian Andrew Marr concurs. Summarising his authoritative book A History of Modern Britain,…
Category: Finance for PPPs & entrepreneurs
Tips for entrepreneurs / business managers seeking equity investments: Part 2
A couple of resources for entrepreneurs, on how to pitch to venture capital funds. The first is how HEC Paris lecturer Serge Desvignes of Iris Capital recommends entrepreneurs format their presentations. In 10 slides: 1 – Offer your solution to solve problems (needs met, value proposition) 2 – Description of products/services: succinct not over-technical (picture, video,…
Tips for entrepreneurs / business managers seeking equity investments: Part 1
Think of the value you create for customers vis-a-vis the competition Working in venture capital / private equity, I come across a number of poorly presented business proposals. The first thing I want to know about a business is whether it will be able to sustain growth and profitability by offering customers something of value…
Korean corporate land acquisition in Madagascar: how the law governs it, and how it ought to
Imaduddin Ahmed Executive Summary In 2009, the government of Madagascar was overthrown for negotiating a seemingly unfavourable deal with Korean conglomerate Daewoo. Of concern to the nation with malnutrition rates as high as 50% were land grabs and food security. The subsequent Malagasy president revoked the deal. Yet despite the bitter experience, Daewoo and the…
Regulating Frontier Market Funds as Value Creating Enterprises
Imaduddin Ahmed I. Introduction Do the current U.S. laws regulating the fund-raising activities of private equity funds raising capital for portfolio companies adequately balance the interests of sophisticated investors seeking higher returns, foreign private equity funds and firms in least developing countries requiring growth capital with the interests of lay investors? This is the question…
Is your economy sharia compliant?
The Guardian Also linked to by the Wall Street Journal Our system of sovereign sukuk ratings could benefit the global economy and promote better cross-cultural relations Imaduddin Ahmed Wednesday 2 February 2011 Think of two of the most common problems highlighted in today’s news: the state of the global economy and violence at the hands…
What if the world had been following Islamic financial practices?
The Guardian Also linked to by Bloomberg Businessweek It has its limitations, but it’s worth considering how the Islamic approach to banking might have prevented the financial crisis Imaduddin Ahmed 7 January 2011 Sub-prime loans, which caused housing foreclosures in the US, are not allowed in Islamic finance. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images Imagine a world…
Pakistan, rebranded
The Boston Globe By Imaduddin Ahmed and Kapil Komireddi March 25, 2010 Pop-star Ali Zafar GOOGLE “PAKISTAN is’’ and you’ll find a host of common searches: “a failed state,’’ “a terrorist country,’’ “doomed’’ and — encompassing all of the above — “the problem.’’ Pakistan’s image is both the effect and a potential cause of terrorism:…
