Oct 12, 2017

eShares raises $41 million to play both sides of tech IPOs

Dan Primack

Illustration: Sam Jayne / Axios

eShares, a Silicon Valley-based provider of equity management software, has raised $41 million in Series C funding co-led by Social Capital and Menlo Ventures.

Why it matters: Because proceeds will be used to help eShares expand beyond private company stock management. CEO Henry Ward says that the company already has deals with some VC-backed startups to manage their public stock ledgers post-IPO, with hopes someday of possibly launching its own exchange.

Context: The funding comes the same week as Solium Capital (TSX: SUM) acquired Capshare for its own cloud-based equity management platform.

Bottom line: eShares is really a byproduct of the IPO delay game, which has created bloated cap tables and liquidity frustrations for early employees. By adding public stock management, it hopes to essentially hedge against a trend-line reversal.

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Caitlin Owens

America's grimmest month

Trump gives his Sunday press briefing in the Rose Garden. Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

President Trump asked Americans to continue social distancing until April 30, officials warned that tens or even hundreds of thousands of Americans could die — and that's the least depressing scenario.

Why it matters: April is going to be very hard. But public health officials are in agreement that hunkering down — in our own homes — and weathering one of the darkest months in American history is the only way to prevent millions of American deaths.

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Exclusive: Civil rights leaders oppose swift move off natural gas

Photo Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Top American civil-rights activists are opposing an abrupt move away from natural gas, putting them at odds with environmentalists and progressive Democrats who want to ban fracking.

Driving the news: In recent interviews, Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and National Urban League President Marc Morial said energy costs are hitting people of color unfairly hard. These concerns, expressed before the coronavirus pandemic, are poised to expand as paychecks shrink across America.

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Axios

For some, coronavirus pushes new issues to top of national agenda

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

The coronavirus pandemic is helping shift policy priorities for some Americans, according to results from an online caucus the Glover Park Group provided to Axios.

Why it matters: Crises can force the nation to acknowledge bipartisan problems that are often neglected due to lack of a political motivation to solve them.

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