:palm-tree: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez on Thursday made an appearance on Fox Business where he discussed Miami’s booming economy, referring to it as “on fire,” as the city posts repeated increases in real estate sales, an influx of new jobs, and the welcoming of tech businesses from states like California and North Carolina. Miami in recent years has made its mark as a burgeoning tech city, being named one of the top cities in America for eCommerce business. The city has managed to carve out a niche in the cryptocurrency space, with the creation of a cryptocurrency specific to the area: MiamiCoin. “It’s on fire,” said Suarez. “Our tax base grew by 12 percent year over year. We’ve transferred over $2 trillion in assets under-managed companies in the last two years. Our venture capital pipeline grew by 400 percent year over year. It’s amazing what following some basic principles will do for a city like keeping taxes low, keeping people safe, keeping homeless low. We are at a 2013-year low in homelessness where our tax rate is at a 1960s low and our homicide rate is at a 1950s low.”

James Cohane (Director of KPMG Venture Capital) has put together a collection of articles that explain what business development is, how it differs from sales, why it matters, and when/how to execute on it.

For venture capitalist David Blumberg, the pandemic took him from his ancestral home of California across the country to Florida. Realizing that he was no longer chained to his fixed, physical office in San Francisco, he took the plunge and moved over 3,000 miles in order to take advantage of the up-and-coming vibe of Miami, as well as the state’s business-friendly regulations and taxes. David learned how to take advantage of the pandemic and was able to recognize it as — as he puts it — a catalyst of virtualization, innovation, and decentralization. Blumberg is the founder and managing partner of Blumberg Capital, a private Venture Capital firm investing in early-stage IT, digital media, social media, mobility, Internet, e-commerce, payments, SaaS, and tech-enabled services. He also serves as a board member of Credorax, Trulioo, IntSights, and Slync.io. David holds an undergraduate degree from Harvard University and an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Listen to today’s episode of Investing in Florida Technology and find out how David made the leap from studying government to becoming a venture capitalist, how he embraces virtualization, and why he believes that the 21st century will be one of massive innovation and productivity for office and service work. #venture_capital #startups #tech #vc #invest

The number of startups and entrepreneur investments has grown drastically amid the uncertainty of the past few years. Although acquiring funds for a business has never been easy, venture capitalists are now spending less time than ever looking at each pitch deck. Especially in an age when time is money, VCs aren't just saying no to a few opportunities here and there — they're saying no on a massive scale. One leading VC firm, Andreessen Horowitz, reveals just how difficult it is to hear "yes." According to an interview, the firm invests in just 0.7% of the startups its team investigates each year. Though the firm doesn't reveal all its selection secrets in the video, it does emphasize the importance of the pitch. #entrepreneurship #startups