Davis's book provides useful data on a variety of aspects of pension funds: size, benefit determination, taxation, regulation, performance criteria and investment allocations. The discussion is well summarised, although the views are largely unoriginal and uncontentious (for example, the chapter on tax treatment is wholly based on work at the Institute for Fiscal Studies). It is interesting to see divergence in portfolio composition and fund performance in private pension plans across countries, although care must be taking in drawing any conclusions on the investment strategy of different managers. Although Davis generally synthesises, on one issue he takes a strong position: he regards defined-benefit pension plans as clearly superior to defined-contribution plans. Given the way that defined-contribution schemes are becoming ever more popular in theory and in practice (witness the World Bank's Averting the Old Age Crisis), this is an archaic position to take and is hardly justified by Davis's reasoning. He asserts that 'members of [defined-benefit plans] trade wages for pension at the long-term average rate of return in the capital market'. Since, he argues, employers bear investment risk in defined-benefit plans and employees in defined-contribution plans, then if both earn the same average rate of return, the insurance properties of defined-benefit plans are clearly superior to defined-contribution. But this is misleading numerous respects. There is plenty of evidence, especially in the United States, that agency problems preclude defined-benefit plans from earnings the long-run average rate of return. Secondly, defined-benefit plan members obtain widely differing returns on their contributions, depending on vesting conditions, the extent of indexation of preserved or deferred benefits, incomplete earnings averaging procedures in determining pension benefits etc. Earnings and job tenure uncertainty mean that many defined-benefit plan members will earn substantially less than the average rate of return on their contributions. Furthermore, final salary defined-benefit schemes have frequently been used of boosting the remuneration of senior executives to the detriment of ordinary members. In all these respects, defined-contribution plans are superior. Even the alleged weakness of defined-contribution plans (investment risk) is unconvincing as suitable portfolio strategies should exist which permit such plans to earn the risk-free return. It is the substantial equity premium which has induced fund managers to go for a different risk-return trade-off and thus expose plans to investment risk. All this may seem arcane to those who are not pension specialists. But defined-benefit coverage is declining in countries such as the Untied States and the United Kingdom. The only feasible means of expanding private pension coverage in the future is through defined-contribution schemes, even if the mis-selling of personal pensions in the Untied kingdom provides important lessons for regulation. With the bleak prospect of declining social security pension provision in many countries, policies towards private pension provision are of increasing importance. (This is an edited version of a review from the Economic Journal, vol. 105, no. 433, pp. 1653-4.)

This is not a treatise nor a source of knowledge per se. It consists of 2 transactions - a vc deal and a junk bond deal and a bunch of appendices with statutes. It is designed for class room use - this is the student text and there is, apparently, a teacher's text available. The first 150 pages has some nice, simple corp.fin. information. Not much use if you're a practitioner and want to know how a junk bond deal is put together. It's pretty easy to find 85% of the material in this book for free and just print it out. The other 15% is not worth the $90 this thing costs.

This book might be a lot more helpful if it were updated regularly. The current--third--edition is from 1986, which is ludicrous with subject matter this volatile. The content itself is a bit too brief, but would still be very helpful if it had been done some time in the last 1-5 years.

This book was not enlighting, alot of the information was out date. The phone numbers to the locations were disconected etc.

This book has information on many goverment agencies, but does not have specific locations on how to get it as an individual.

I wish I had seen these reviews for this book. It is worthless in terms of information on obtaining funds for small business. If your handicapped or a minority it might be of some use for loans. Nothing relevent for myself as an individual with no startup capital.

I rarely rate a book as one star. This book is the exception.

My favorite gripe about books is that some of them have misleading titles designed to make them more appealing to book buyers. That certainly describes this book. The bulk of the programs listed in the book are LOAN programs. I don't think loans are a source of free money. Do you? The author never explains why these are sources of free money.

Usually, when I find a misleading title, I still find a mostly worthwhile book underneath. This book is the exception. Almost all of the programs listed come from either the Small Business Administration, the Agriculture Department, or Housing and Urban Development. Each of these organizations will help you over the telephone or send you material on the programs they make available. Web sites are also available.

Why, then, is the book so thick? That's because it lists the same agencies at the same address over . . . and over . . . and over . . . and over. You get the idea. Properly organized, this book could have been condensed to about 20 percent of its size, and would have been easier to use. That would have reduced the costs to the readers and the profits to the publisher and author. Can't have that, can we?

Let's look at the next problem. This book was published in this edition in 1996. There's been a lot of change in government programs since then. So undoubtedly, a lot of this information is out of date. A book like this should be updated at least every two years.

Finally, once you find out who to talk to or write to, what do you do? The book claims to help you design your application and use your grant properly. I found the material on that subject to be very brief and general. Few would find it adequate to succeed in even getting an SBA loan. Lengthy books are written on that subject alone!

If you want to get help from these agencies, find someone who has experience with them to help you (like your banker, attorney, accountant or neighbor). Even if you need to call information in your state to get the telephone number of the relevant governmental agency, that will still cost a lot less than this book.

Do not buy, and do not read this book.

If ever I have seen an example of a miscommunication about how to improve a business, it is in the form of this book. I encourage you to consider ways to redesign your business's basic operating model (perhaps through more outsourcing) as a way to reduce your need for capital, as a substitute to taking on loans from the Federal Government.

I was very disappointed in this book because I felt like the title itself is very misleading. The title of the book is called "FREE MONEY From the Federal Governement for SMALL BUSINESSES AND ENTREPRENEURS" By Laurie Blum. The book description clearly states that there are hundreds of millions of dollars available FREE! to small business and entrepreneurs, when in fact the only thing that I found in this book pertaining to small businesses were LOANS and ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS, and the last time I checked LOANS are not free. This book description needs to be more clear as to what kinds of grants are available and the title "FREE MONEY" should not be used when this book is filled with mostly loan options. From reading the book description I was under the impression that this was a book filled with nothing but grant information! I was very disappointed and unsatisfied with this book. If I'm wrong or misunderstood this book please fill free to correct me and direct me to the pages where the business grants are supposed to be located.

They did not even take the time to print this with a Laser printer, instead they used some form of inkjet. The photocopied pages are just a bunch of forms compiled together without commentary. Don't buy this book.(Some one at Amazon should start looking at books to verify that they pass the standard of a book, this is the second kinko's job i have purchased.)

This book isn't a book at all. The only original words by the author are a few terse pages at the beginning in which he repeats various platitudes about raising money. The entire 'book' is just poor quality reproductions of standard forms that can be found on the Internet, or obtained for free from various sources. When you consider the amount of effort required to 'write' this book with some of the truly solid efforts on the market, it's a crime that this publisher and book are on the market. Amazon should pull this one immediately. Don't waste your money like I did.

Except for a practically worthless 4 page introductory section and a useless membership directory, this book consists of standard forms, which are available online and free anyway. Much better explanatory information is available online from a number of sources. Don't waste your money like I did! I have purchased dozens of books from Amazon, and this is the only one I have regretted.

The above comment is to the point. The book was a big disappointment.

I totally agree with the preceding evaluation.

I expected a lot and got deceived. This "book" should rather be called an "overpriced note" directed to the European Commission. It's not so readable (catalog style), but at least, it summarises the main issues about V.C. in Europe, from an english point of view! (;-)

The authors don't know anything about funding new ventures. The sample businessplan that is included should never get any funding from somebody that's not a complete idiot. After I bought this book I will never buy a book that doesn't have a customer commet.

By reading the hard-cover, you should think (as I have thought !), this book would transform you in an investor-catching guy. Too bad... Definitly, there is NOTHING in this book, excepted perhaps some money-funding system (the book...)for the authors ! Please, trust me : don't buy ! You'll save your bucks.

I was required to use this book for a course on VC in my MBA program, and I found overly wordy and not very precise in its advice.

It is less of a handbook and more of a treatise. If you are looking for a direct and clear scoop on raising venture capital, this isn't the book for you. If you have been trying for some time and want to get a deep peek into the minds of the VC's out there, this could work if you had the time to wade through it.

This book is an unfortunate product of poor editing, lackluster writing, and inexcusable slip-ups. Although I am not knowledgeable about Venture Capital, I assume most of its readers approach the book with similar backgrounds: a keen knowledge of English. Finding three errors in the first three pages left me questioning the value of the actual content.

Although the book may contain some valid points about venture capital, it is in no way a "good book" and I would strongly recommend readers look elsewhere for their beginnings in seeking venture capital. (And I recommend the editors learn the difference between "then" and "than"!)

This book was extremely disappointing to me. I found so many incorrect statements that I wonder about the parts with which I am not familiar. Maryland history is of great interest to me, therefore I was anxious to read Builders of Annapolis. In the very beginning of the book it is written that settlers of Maryland were mostly Catholic. It takes very little research to determine that is an incorrect statement. The errors went on from there -- too numerous to enumerate. The author had such an interesting idea for writing about some of the early Annapolitians. Why didn't he do a better job with his research? I am sorry I bought this book.

Looking for map directions and none of the maps on this page are accessible. Can`t you people give anything away? I mean what`s this word comming to when we have to pay, pay, & pay for everythhing even local directions. Dosn`t anybody do anything free anymore???? Disgusted in NY