Yesterday I had the pleasure of listening to Jouko Ahvenainen, co-founder of Grow VC. They want to make it easier for web and mobile start-ups to get funding. People who have not been investing in start-ups before are also encouraged to try. With Grow VC it doesn’t matter where you reside. It is a global community. You can sign up for free, but to be able to seek an investment, invest or offer your services you pay a minimum fee of US$20 per month. Not bad. At the time of writing, investors have indicated that they have as much as US$13,698,500 available for investments.

TechCrunch: “Grow VC launches, aiming to become the Kiva for tech startups”
BBC News: “the first global crowdfunding tool for web and mobile start-ups”

Michael Covel, author of Trend Following & The Complete Turtle Trader, released his movie Broke - The New American Dream in 2009. The main theme of the movie is trend following. Making money in both up and down markets. It touches the subject of the financial crisis and how people are screwed over by people looking for short term gains. Instead of following the herd, create your own path in life and investing. Don’t listen to the guy next door or the know-it-all guy on TV, they don’t know any more about the future than anyone else. Instead trust the numbers - the price never lies. It is the kind of movie that I would like all my friends to see. Kudos, Michael!

Turtle Trader

This is a very interesting concept. In the beginning of 2007 I found a book that interested me and so I bought it. It’s called Trend Following by Michael Covel. On his website Turtle Trader he writes about trend following traders, hedge funds but also society, life and trading in general. It’s truly interesting. I also subscribe to his Podcast. He’s got a new book about “the turtles” that is just out. Go check it out!