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Spreadsheet supplement for case 213047.

Valuation of a pre-revenue biotech company at IPO using probability trees and real option techniques. Company is based in Massachusetts and lists in London on AIM. Products are genetically-modified fast-growing salmon for fish farmers and disease-prevention drugs and diagnostic kits for farmed shrimp.

Following the revelation of a US$2 billion loss on trading at JP Morgan’s chief investment office (CIO) in London, the company’s board of directors is tasked with recommending changes to its risk management practices and corporate governance structure. The case provides background on JP Morgan's well-respected risk management infrastructure and discusses how the CEO focused on its historic strength in risk management to argue against the need for the United States to implement the strict regulations contained in the Dodd-Frank Act and the associated Volcker Amendment. The role of regulation is significant. As a result of trying to meet the tighter requirements of these U.S. standards as well as the new Basel III accord, the CIO took on significant derivative positions that were not well understood and, rather than decreasing the firm's risk exposure, actually increased it. Of further interest is the concurrent change in JP Morgan's method of calculating risk, which allowed for a significant reduction in risk measurement and thus an improvement in the firm's level of risk-weighted assets.

Following the revelation of a US$2 billion loss on trading at JP Morgan's chief investment office (CIO) in London, the company's board of directors is tasked with recommending changes to its risk management practices and corporate governance structure. The case provides background on JP Morgan's well-respected risk management infrastructure and discusses how the CEO focused on its historic strength in risk management to argue against the need for the United States to implement the strict regulations contained in the Dodd-Frank Act and the associated Volcker Amendment. The role of regulation is significant. As a result of trying to meet the tighter requirements of these U.S. standards as well as the new Basel III accord, the CIO took on significant derivative positions that were not well understood and, rather than decreasing the firm's risk exposure, actually increased it. Of further interest is the concurrent change in JP Morgan's method of calculating risk, which allowed for a significant reduction in risk measurement and thus an improvement in the firm's level of risk-weighted assets.

This case is a critical introduction, for business students, to the significance of cash flow statements. First students evaluate the cash flow statements of four "mystery" companies and recommend one for an acquisition. After making a recommendation in class, students are given more information, namely risk assessments and audit opinions, and reevaluate their recommendations. Finally, students learn the surprising identities of the "mystery" companies. Note that students should not view Cases (B) and (C) prior to completing the homework. Cases (B) and (C) are found in the case teaching note that is available only to registered business educators.

In mid-April 2010, Clark McCullough, a partner at Ardent Capital, reviewed the final investment memorandum concerning a possible $110 million investment in AtHomeCare, Inc., a private company providing home health care services. Over the course of the previous year, Ardent Capital had completed preliminary due diligence, and in the fall of 2009, it had signed a letter of intent (LOI) and had been granted an exclusivity agreement to consider a potential purchase of the company. Although the company fit well within Ardent's current areas of investment focus, the deal had been conceived as a rollup strategy, in which AtHomeCare would serve as an investment platform, and other health care services companies would be acquired to build a larger entity. A large portion of the due diligence had focused on finding a suitable acquisition target, but to date no target had been locked in. With the LOI agreement set to expire later in the month, the firm's investment committee would now have to decide whether to proceed with the purchase of AtHomeCare on a stand-alone basis with only the prospects of yet-to-be-determined acquisitions or delay the purchase until an add-on acquisition surfaced.

Spreadsheet Supplement for UV6543

CAPRO Group is a small electrical engineering services firm operating out of New Delhi, India. In December 2011, with falling revenues due to macroeconomic conditions and increasing competition, the firm's owner and founder appoints his son to look into restructuring the business. The electrical distribution control panel manufacturing and installation industry is highly fragmented, with only a few big firms and many small firms. Most firms specialize in one niche of the industry, whether it be manufacturing of equipment or panels, installation, or consultancy services. Different niches require different inputs in terms of labour, finances, and technical knowledge. Given the labour problems in India, combined with the country's spiraling interest rates and slowing economic growth, the owner's son must decide on a plan to bring his company out of its current slump.

CAPRO Group is a small electrical engineering services firm operating out of New Delhi, India. In December 2011, with falling revenues due to macroeconomic conditions and increasing competition, the firm’s owner and founder appoints his son to look into restructuring the business. The electrical distribution control panel manufacturing and installation industry is highly fragmented, with only a few big firms and many small firms. Most firms specialize in one niche of the industry, whether it be manufacturing of equipment or panels, installation, or consultancy services. Different niches require different inputs in terms of labour, finances, and technical knowledge. Given the labour problems in India, combined with the country’s spiraling interest rates and slowing economic growth, the owner’s son must decide on a plan to bring his company out of its current slump.

The board of directors of Symantec Corporation asked a consultant for an independent opinion on an important financing decision. Symantec had been working with several investment banks on a plan to raise debt to repurchase common shares. The consultant found it to be an interesting financing plan; whereas repurchasing shares immediately would increase Symantec's financial leverage, converting the notes in the future would reduce leverage at a potentially significant dilutive cost to the firm's equity. More interestingly, the company negotiated with the investment banks to buy a call spread on its own stock, covering the same number of shares as would be issued to noteholders upon conversion. After reviewing the proposal, the consultant tried to understand the motivation behind the structure of the transaction. Why would Symantec choose to issue convertible bonds, and why would it intend to buy the call spread?

Patrick Dickinson (HBS '09) and Michael Weiner (MIT's Sloan '07) acquired Castronics, a firm that specialized in threading pipe used in the oil and natural gas industry, at the end of 2009. The partners overcame significant hurdles during the first two years of ownership, which included the loss of nearly half of their workforce, the threatened entry of a formidable competitor into their market, and limited production capacity. In spite of these challenges and many other day-to-day obstacles, by the summer of 2011, the company successfully tripled production and EBITDA and the partners were deciding whether or not to sell the company.

The board of directors of Symantec Corporation asked a consultant for an independent opinion on an important financing decision. Symantec had been working with several investment banks on a plan to raise debt to repurchase common shares. The consultant found it to be an interesting financing plan; whereas repurchasing shares immediately would increase Symantec's financial leverage, converting the notes in the future would reduce leverage at a potentially significant dilutive cost to the firm's equity. More interestingly, the company negotiated with the investment banks to buy a call spread on its own stock, covering the same number of shares as would be issued to noteholders upon conversion. After reviewing the proposal, the consultant tried to understand the motivation behind the structure of the transaction. Why would Symantec choose to issue convertible bonds, and why would it intend to buy the call spread?

This case examines a proposed growth equity investor in a Russian fashion retail chain.

This note provides an opportunity to understand how private equity investors need to adapt to emerging markets.

On January 6, 2010, Stanko Grmovsek was sentenced to three years and three months in prison for making profits of an estimated US$9 million over 14 years based on insider tips from his best friend from law school, Gil Cornblum. Grmovsek and Cornblum had operated an illegal insider trading scheme from 1994 until 2008. Using his role as a corporate lawyer at various law firms, Cornblum had passed material non-public information related to 46 takeovers to Grmovsek, who then traded illegally using brokerage accounts located in the Bahamas and Ontario. On October 27, 2009, Grmovsek pleaded guilty to all charges against him in both Canada and the United States following a joint investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).

This note introduces convertible notes in angel financing. It begins by delineating the differences between a priced and non-priced round. It then describes a specific example of a convertible note, with attention paid to technical details regarding valuation caps.

BASIX, an Indian microfinance corporation, must decide whether to continue to sell weather insurance to its clients. A brand-new financial product, weather insurance pays if measured rainfall during the growing season falls below a pre-specified limit. Mr. Sattaiah, managing director of the BASIX's bank, considers a revised insurance policy for the coming season, weighing the costs and potential risks of expanding the product against the potential benefits.

The chief executive officer of a financial institution must decide whether or not to grant a $3 million loan to an investor in mutual funds. The financial institution makes loans of $2 for every $1 invested in mutual funds to qualified investors. The issue here is to determine whether the risks associated with this loan application justify the investment. The case involves assessing the various risks associated with the loan, including the credit risk attached to the borrower, the market risk of the planned investment program, and the currency risk of a loan in Canadian dollars and investments in foreign securities.

The case study documents the efforts of the African Development Corporation (ADC) and the Loita Group to acquire shares in Nile Commercial Bank (NCB) - the number one banking icon in South Sudan - and thus participate in the development of South Sudan as an independent, commodity-rich state. The case focuses on ADC's CEO, Dirk Harbecke, who in 2011 ran a fund that invests in banking and insurance services in sub-Saharan Africa. The case discusses whether or not ADC and Loita should invest in NCB. The real-world result of the case is ADC and Loita's eventual investment in the bank, as explained in the chapter "Restructuring the bank," which outlines the investment as it happens in real time in September 2011.