At least 18 companies received first-time funding within 30 days of the Dow's so-called "Black Week" in October 2008

by: Scott Austin
June 8, 2009
blogs.wsj.com

The week of Oct. 6, 2008, is often referred to as �Black Week,� when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 18% in its worst-ever weekly decline.

In the aftermath, venture capitalists tightened their purse strings to reflect the new reality. Sequoia Capital held a now-famous meeting on Oct. 7 for portfolio companies in which a PowerPoint presentation titled �RIP: Good Times� underscored the importance of cutting costs. Young start-ups struggled to attract new investors as investment levels plummeted in the coming weeks.

But some venture firms continued on fueling new companies, perhaps mindful that Cisco Systems Inc. raised money from Sequoia about two months after the 1987 stock-market crash. The best start-ups are often funded in times like these, venture capitalists often say, because these companies know how to keep operations lean and mean from the start.

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