“The secondary market is in a quandary because people can’t figure out what stuff is worth right now,” Smythe said. “Buyers are demanding lower prices, making liquidity difficult for many of these names.” Sellers, meanwhile, “don’t want to accept the reality of how much less they’re worth now.” June 8th, 2022

Ken Smythe, the chief executive of Next Round Capital Partners, an advisory firm, said he was representing investors looking to sell Bolt shares worth several hundred million dollars. But even at a valuation of $8 billion, he said, they were having trouble finding buyers.

“People don’t have faith in this kid or the management team,” Mr. Smythe said, calling Bolt “a ghost ship sailing in the middle of the night without a captain.” May 10th, 2022

Investors are getting very weary of these high-cash burn instant delivery companies,” said Next Round Capital CEO Ken Smythe, who advises institutional investors buying and selling stakes in private startups.

Would-be investors in the apps have been scared off by the poor market performance of Doordash and the intense capital needs of the fiercely competitive delivery market, Smythe said. “They are saying, ‘Just look at DoorDash’s stock,’” Smythe said of potential investors. “If Gopuff needs to raise additional capital, it may not be pretty.” March 3rd, 2022