University Venture Fund Investing $18 Million

The University Venture Fund(UVF) recently announced that it has some $18 million to invest in new and growing companies, "Entrepreneur" reported. The UVF has deep ties to Brigham Young University, the University of Utah, Westminster Collge and Wharton School of Business. "We don't mandate that capital go to alumni," says managing director Jared Hutchings, "But we certainly give preferential treatment."

Weed Control Business Owner Picky About Investors

Pam Marrone has attracted $570,000 for Marrone Organic Innovations from angel investors she feels she knows well. Her selectiveness is based on her prior experience at AgraQuest, a pest-control start-up funded with $50 million from venture capitalists and other investors. At AgraQuest, Marrone had a falling out with her investors over business strategy, and subsequently left the company. At Marrone Organic Innovations, a weed control business, "I'm starting up again really determined to find investors that do share our values," says Marrone. "I've learned that you don't accept just anybody's money."

CPA Squeeze Pushing Out Smaller Clients

Implementation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002 has made the shortage of CPA's even more acute. Mitchell Mertz at Eisner, a midsize accounting firm in New York, told BusinessWeek SmallBiz about a "waterfall effect", as large CPA firms pursue large clients, "and second-tier and regional accounting firms that small companies often rely on picking up mid-cap public companies." Small businesses that need help finding a good accountant are advised to: 1) ask their banker for a recommendation, 2) try the Service Corps of Retired Executives' www.goodaccountants.com service, 3) show up to their first meeting with "internally prepared financials that hang together."