dsmWealth July 4, 2019

Mark White is surprised by the lack of venture capital being devoted to the vast agribusiness sector that props up the Midwest, and sees an opportunity to correct it.

White, managing partner at Prairie Crest Capital, noted that the Midwest is home to 20% of the nation’s population. Its universities support 20% of the college-level research being conducted nationally, yet only 4% of venture capital dollars are spent here.

Firms such as Des Moines-based Prairie Crest
(www.prairiecrest.com) are looking to pair investment money with companies that are looking at ways to improve crop yields, feed more people, reduce waste, and lessen the impact of food cultivation on the environment.

"We’re after things that change the world," says White, such as making office chairs out of plants instead of petroleum-based plastic. Prairie Crest has placed money with Natural Fiber Welding Inc., of Peoria, Ill., a start-up company that is looking at how plant material can be used instead of plastic for everything from office furniture to clothes. Yes, that polyester in your shirt is petroleum-based, and every time it is washed it sheds tiny micro fibers that end up polluting the oceans.

Prairie Crest works with universities, accelerators and other investment groups to identify investment opportunities. Its reach is nationwide but concentrated between the mountains, White says—the Rockies to the west and Appalachians to the east.

Prairie Crest is not a start-up, or angel, investor, but it does get involved with companies in their early stages, often before they generate any revenue. On its own or with others it will assemble a syndicate that puts money into a particular venture, and then provides it with know-how on engineering, operations, customer acquisition, and other facets of becoming a success.

The firm attracts money from high net-worth individuals, or family offices, or trusts and even some small endowments. As it is relatively new to the venture capital scene—founder and managing partner Barry Adams opened Prairie Crest in 2016—it has not yet attracted pension fund investments.

Prairie Crest offers several investment paths that would vary depending on the amount of money that would be committed. One is a blind pool, where qualified investors commit to funds that are called upon as needed. The firm also funds special purpose vehicles for accredited investors.

"This is for people who have some understanding of what venture capital is—seeking higher potential for higher risk," says White. He cautions that people sometimes get overly excited by the prospects of venture capital and over commit to it. He doesn’t want that to happen; he just wants investors to do their part in feeding the world.

'Gift Annuities' — The Gift That Gives Back

BY STEVE DINNEN

Doctors Without Borders is offering a pretty sweet deal, as far as charitable gift annuities are concerned. If you’re 70 years old and send them, say, $40,000, they’ll pay you back $2,240 of that every year for the rest of your life. That works out to a rate of 5.6 percent, which in the world of immediate annuities is acceptable.

Doctors Without Borders is but one of thousands of charities that offer gift annuities. They see them as a good way to pull in some money, while giving a bit back to the donor during his or her lifetime.

Beth Golden, a spokeswoman for the New York-based charity, said that in establishing its payout rates her organization follows work done by the American Council of Gift Annuities. It regularly reviews the annuities universe and comes out with guidelines.

Rates rise with your age. A 75-year-old, for instance, will collect $2,480 yearly, while an 80-year-old will get $2,920. Payouts are lower if a spouse is involved in the contract.

Doctors Without Borders invests your $40,000 (which qualifies for a tax deduction, if possible), and pays you the return until the end of the contract. (That’s a polite way of saying until you’re dead.) It then uses whatever remains for its programs.

9 Mind-Blowing Facts About the Richest Person on Earth

BY KATIE WARREN, Business Insider

Jeff Bezos is the richest person on the planet. Worth an estimated $121 billion, the Amazon CEO is $16 billion richer than the world's next-richest person, Bill Gates.

Bezos even retained his ranking as the world's richest person following his divorce from MacKenzie Bezos, after which she kept a 4% stake in Amazon worth roughly $35.7 billion, making her the third-richest woman in the world.

Although his annual salary is only $81,840, most of Bezos' wealth comes from his Amazon shares. The world's richest man makes $2,489 per second -- more than twice what the median U.S. worker makes in one week, according to calculations by Business Insider.

Here are nine mind-blowing facts that show just how wealthy Bezos really is. READ MORE >>

Wealthy Investors Sitting on Cash Despite Market Optimism

BY BLOOMBERG NEWS

A majority of wealthy American investors are optimistic about U.S. stocks, but are still sitting on piles of cash, according to a UBS Group survey.

A sunny outlook reigned among 57% of the survey's U.S. respondents. The survey, conducted in March, targeted investors with at least $1 million in investble assets. Tempering that enthusiasm were the 29% who described their outlook on U.S. equities as neutral, and 14% who said they were pessimistic.

The percentage of optimists is roughly even with the reading for 2018's fourth quarter, which was taken in November before the stock market plunge. Back then, fewer investors described themselves as neutral and more said they were pessimistic. Read More >>

New Members Bring Less Wealth to Congress

BYJENNIFER HABERKORN, Los Angeles Times

When wages temporarily stopped for thousands of federal workers during the government shutdown in January, nearly 100 lawmakers signed over or donated their paycheck to show solidarity.

But Rep. Sharice Davids (D-Kan.), elected just weeks earlier, literally couldn’t afford the gesture.

"If you’re a member of Congress who can say: ‘I can forgo an entire paycheck,’ more power to you," she said in an interview in her Capitol Hill office. But "this incoming class had probably quite a few people who were not in a position to say I will forgo a paycheck after having not worked for" months because of the demands of the campaign.

More often than not, members of Congress come from a moneyed pedigree, whether they made a fortune in business before starting a political career, married a wealthy spouse or inherited family fortunes. Last year, 40% of the House and Senate were millionaires and the median net worth of lawmakers was more than $511,000, according to a calculation by the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call. READ MORE >>