Financial Poise™ has one mission: to provide reliable plain English business, financial and legal education to individual investors, entrepreneurs, and other private business owners.

The return on your investment depends on how your investment is structured and is not necessarily the same as the performance of the company. How's an investor to measure?

A parking ticket can teach you a lot about unethical business practices. Find out how rent-seeking behavior affects consumers and society. 

401(k) lawsuits are on the rise. Take these four important steps to ensure retirement plan options are transparent and reasonable.

How to Lessen the Impact of the New Tariffs Recently, The U.S. raised tariffs on $200 billion worth of products from 10% to 25% with a threat to levy additional tariffs on an additional $325 billion worth of goods from[...]

Optimizing Returns in Core, Value-Add and Development Real Estate When investing in real estate, there are a variety of factors that can influence the stability of your cash flow, as well as your upside potential and overall projected return.  One[...]

Given the wealth of options, investing decisions can be overwhelming. Narrow the field with your exchange traded funds (ETF) selections and keep it simple.

Your company’s online footprint constitutes an important part of the overall value of its goodwill. Indeed, the ability to create an online experience for a brand and to use online channels to reach new customers and retain existing ones is[...]

As a retirement plan sponsor, can you justify its mutual fund fees? Find out how to identify and assess plan fees to the benefit of employees.

Sunk costs from the past can affect your future business decisions, resulting in missed opportunities. Find out how you can avoid the sunk cost fallacy.

Handled well, the ESOP functions as a means of financing the ownership transition of a closely-held business in a tax-favored manner. But it's not right for everyone.

A letter of intent is used in the purchase and sale of a business to set forth the framework for the negotiation of definitive transaction documents and closing of a transaction. Normally, a letter of intent does not create a[...]

What is a private placement? Read Financial Poise’s guide to private placement types, rules and private placement memorandums.

Most people are familiar with the concept of a stock exchange and publicly traded shares of companies that are listed there. But the private equity market is less well-understood.

When it comes to stocks and bonds in the public equity market, prices can reflect new data quickly, and almost everyone is privy to the same information. However, there is a second, much larger market—the private company market—that has the potential for outsized returns and portfolio diversification through private equity investment. But how do you select a fund (and a fund manager)?

The last major farm crisis is now 40 years in the rear view, but today’s farmers are experiencing a parallel phenomenon, especially where it comes to farm sector debt.

Normalization of marijuana continues to push legislatures towards legalization, which will have an important effect on private equity firms as they invest in cannabis.

Whether you are a lone wolf angel, part of an angel group, or investing in a VC fund, the threshold question is: is investing in venture capital for you?

Safeguarding Your Business with a Solid Risk Management Plan All business entities face risk.  Some aspects are insurable, while some are not. But just because it’s insurable, does that mean you should buy insurance?  Organizations today are transitioning from simply[...]

Investing in Hollywood diversifies a portfolio for investors who deem it “worth the risk,” with the potential for venture capital-style returns.

The Purchase Agreement is the principal arena of negotiation. Understanding the document and its risks is foundational to the sale of your business.

More than 42% of Americans will retire broke, according to a survey taken by GOBanking Rates. For the third year in a row, thousands of individuals were polled to ascertain how much the average American has set aside for retirement, and the results may, and should, shock you.

Looking to invest in a startup? Learn about investing in venture capital, the perfect stage to invest and what to know about VC fund management fees.

The crowdfunded securities of yesterday were rife with illiquidity. Today, secondary markets for crowdfunded securities have emerged and continue to grow.

Whether you’re considering investing in cryptocurrencies, cannabis, businesses that leverage blockchain or the latest emerging technology, you’re ultimately considering investing in non-traditional, “alternative” investments.

What happens when a family business with debt and no exit strategy faces a crisis? Read about their alternative solution: a distressed debt investor.

Consumer trends are changing rapidly due to technology, social consciousness and emerging industries, making the consumer goods industry an exciting one to consider adding to your portfolio.

There is considerable potential in equity crowdfunding, but all investors should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages to such investing.

Equity crowdfunding has changed in notable ways since its introduction in 2012, and is now primed to revolutionize how we finance companies and investments.

Learn how EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, facilitates financial comparison among companies in the same sector.

Your company has decided which marketing tactics to use, now how do you use digital marketing analytics tools? Learn about google analytics and other tools.

In Part 2 of the series on online marketing, we explore social media marketing strategy, email marketing, pay per click and blogging as effective tactics.

Read this first of three articles on online marketing for entrepreneurs, and learn the importance of building a website and mastering SEO.

Get high returns by diversifying your portfolio with tangible assets like sports memorabilia, fine art and precious metals. Invest in an existing hobby and diversify with your diversion.

Are you planning to sell your business or otherwise transition its leadership? Here's how to plan and stage your company for transitioning at maximum value.

What is the difference between angel investing and VC? The first difference is money. Angel investors invest much smaller amounts. VC takes it from there.

Divorce is more than a legal process. It’s an emotional one, too. Read about the four divorce process steps, including the announcement and the aftermath.

How does the court calculate damages in trade secrets misappropriation cases? Learn how to measure actual loss, reasonable royalty rates and other remedies.

In John Drachman's latest article, he explores six ways private equity can be a terrific component of a savvy investor’s retirement plans.

Think of the LOI as akin to a father asking his daughter’s date, “What are your intentions with my daughter, young man?” but doesn’t have to be that intimidating.

Crowdfunding has evolved from rewards-based funding to equity crowdfunding under Title III of the JOBS Act. Is crowdfunding for you?

Equity crowdfunding developed under Regulation D matches startups with angel investors in weeks rather than months, shortening timelines all around.

In the first of three parts, discover the origins of crowdfunding, which started as rewards-based funding allowing investments in projects in return for rewards.

Take a lesson from poker, where an increasing number of sharks are chasing fewer fish. Today’s investors must raise their skill level over other investors or (cue Jaws theme music) bad things can happen.

Marketing to Millennials: A Major Challenge for Financial Services Industry When it comes to managing their money, the nation’s millennials march to a different beat; one that has the financial services industry feeling out of step. Predictably, millennials are more[...]

Employees Have Retirements Staked on Company Success An employee stock ownership plan, commonly referred to as an ESOP, offers a range of benefits for sponsor companies, in addition to its owners and employees. As a qualified employee benefit plan, an[...]

How Non-Grantor Trusts Help Protect Your Assets from State Income Tax In 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was signed, restricting many of the deductibles on state income taxes. As a result, a great deal of discussion lately[...]

Inaction Dissatisfaction is Preferable to Buyer's Remorse At a client’s recent board meeting we were evaluating making a bid on a rival business worth $100 million. Our management had spent years positioning itself for the opportunity to obtain this business,[...]

Bad Bosses Don't Communicate Vulnerabilities In her campaign for the Democratic nomination, Minnesota’s Senior Senator Amy Klobuchar’s campaign has had to deal with blowback from former staff, who alleged mal-treatment. She was asked about this on a recent CNN-hosted town[...]

Like Snowflakes, They Vary Transitions in family-owned businesses can take many forms and be challenging endeavors. From a change of control, as the torch is passed from one generation to the next, to the much more life-changing sale of the[...]

How Non-Disclosure Agreements and Precautions Can Save a Business Deal In the summer of 2014, French asset manager Vincent Le Stradic boarded the train from London to Paris. Deciding to work on the train, Le Stradic laid bare the details[...]

Counseling Family Businesses Through Divorce [Editor’s Note: It has been three years since we profiled Financial Poise Columnist Carrie Rosenbloom, who is also an attorney, educator, mediator and therapist. She has since opened her own firm, Evolve Family Business, and[...]

As Legalization Nears, Marijuana and CBD Investment Opportunities Surge Cannabis-infused beer? How about Cannabis Gummy Bears? With more states legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use, the opportunities for investing in cannabis are now endless. Recently, House Representative and Rules[...]

Business valuation is both a science and an art You need both your right and left brains when you set about valuing businesses, which is an endeavor that is mostly science, with a fair bit of art added in. To[...]

Buyers' End Game Affects Suitability As an owner considers a sale of a business, it is critical to identify the goals of the transaction, and match those objectives with the most suitable prospective buyer. There are many different kinds of[...]

Incidents are Perpetually, Dramatically On the Rise Data breaches are happening at an alarming pace and, just as disturbing for those trying to head them off, there is no common denominator cause. Fortunately, adopting a best-practices approach can help your[...]

Overview of the Alternative Assets Landscape [Editor’s Note:  This is the fourth installment in a series of articles dedicated to the 95% of people in the U.S. who have never invested in a startup, a venture capital fund, a private[...]

What to Consider Before Making Your Retirement Move The best advice for retirement is simple: plan early. You may have enrolled in a 401k and saved money, but knowing how to retire is more than that. Whether you want to[...]

Does Legacy Rate Higher with You, or Pure Profit? Thinking about selling your business? Is maintaining its integrity and mission more important to you than pure profit? Then an Employee Stock Ownership Plan may be something to consider. Some business[...]

We recently got to know DarcMatter - a fully transactional platform that offers transparent, institutional-level access to alternative investment opportunities, and the company's CEO, Sang Lee. Investors can source private investment opportunities in hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and structured debt opportunities. By using technology and designed feeder funds, DarcMatter can provide a frictionless process for both investors and private issuers while remaining fully compliant with all financial regulations.

You are a small business owner and you’ve had a great relationship with your lender. In fact, your relationship manager is a member at your country club. Everything has been great for years, business has been booming and there have[...]