Caldbeck Allegations

[freshmanjs]

This story is gaining steam rapidly in VC / Silicon Valley circles. It's going to be a big deal (and rightfully so).

link (https://pando.com/2017/06/22/binary-capitals-justin-caldbeck-accused-unwanted-sexual-advances-towards-female-founders-wheres-outrage/)

[Bluedog]

How is this on topic for the EK forum? I get that he got his undergrad from Duke (MBA from Harvard), but I don't think any news articles related to anybody with a Duke connection should be on the basketball forum.

[freshmanjs]

How is this on topic for the EK forum? I get that he got his undergrad from Duke (MBA from Harvard), but I don't think any news articles related to anybody with a Duke connection should be on the basketball forum.

Well, he was on the basketball team, so it's hardly "anyone with a Duke connection"

[Bluedog]

Well, he was on the basketball team, so it's hardly "anyone with a Duke connection"

Hmmm, did not know that. I wasn't paying much attention to Duke basketball in the 90s admittedly, although I see he logged 70 minutes and scored 13 points in his career.

[Indoor66]

Well, he was on the basketball team, so it's hardly "anyone with a Duke connection"

But it has nothing to do with basketball or anything basketball related.

[freshmanjs]

But it has nothing to do with basketball or anything basketball related.

Threads about former basketball players are commonplace on this board (e.g., the current Tatum charity thread), as are even more distant topics like the former Marching Band director. I know the difference is that this is a negative story, but it's an important one.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I had no idea who he was, either, (former walk-on) but JD wrote an article about him and his brother 2 years ago. (A very brief one that links to a longer one.)

https://www.dukebasketballreport.com/2015/8/13/9146627/the-caldbeck-brothers-long-gone-from-duke-basketball-are-doing-very

[CDu]

Both Caldbecks were members of the basketball team in the late-90s. The younger Caldbeck was a classmate of mine. For all the talk folks on DBR make about "the walk-ons are part of the team, too", we should do a better job of remembering said walk-ons, no? Especially ones that were walk-ons on some of our best teams.

Justin was a walk-on for the 1999 team (and earlier teams). His younger brother Ryan was a walk-on for the 1999-2001 teams.

[BLPOG]

Umm...I don't really have any interest in this topic and haven't read any other news about it, but I did read through most of the article linked at the top of this thread.

It struck me as being written with a particular narrative in mind and the conviction that this story does/will support that narrative.

Maybe it does, but I'm not a fan of that style of reporting, argumentation, or editorializing. It tends to run roughshod over facts.

[brevity]

Umm...I don't really have any interest in this topic and haven't read any other news about it, but I did read through most of the article linked at the top of this thread.

It struck me as being written with a particular narrative in mind and the conviction that this story does/will support that narrative.

Maybe it does, but I'm not a fan of that style of reporting, argumentation, or editorializing. It tends to run roughshod over facts.

Editorializing is the point of writing an editorial.

I also wondered why the original post in this thread linked to an editorial from Pando rather than the article (https://www.theinformation.com/silicon-valley-women-tell-of-vcs-unwanted-advances?shared=d725da) from The Information, but the latter requires a subscription.

And this is totally Main Forum appropriate, provided we stay within PPB parameters. If we can post about Christian Laettner's business problems (here (http://forums.dukebasketballreport.com/forums/showthread.php?26114) and here (http://forums.dukebasketballreport.com/forums/showthread.php?38165)), we can post about this.

[Troublemaker]

There's not much to say. If Caldbeck behaved the way that is alleged -- and there are at least 3 women going on the record that he did -- then hopefully he experiences the appropriate consequences to his career and within the legal system.

It's disappointing that he's a Duke alumnus, but I imagine everyone realizes that every school will have its share of embarrassing alumni.

[msdukie]

https://www.axios.com/justin-caldbeck-takes-indefinite-leave-of-absence-from-binary-capital-2446988189.html

[mr. synellinden]

Well, I will say one thing - that's how you do an apology. I would love to know if/who helped him write that. Really can't do a much better job of taking ownership, accepting responsibility, recognizing the importance of these issues, and committing to change.

[bob blue devil]

There's not much to say. If Caldbeck behaved the way that is alleged -- and there are at least 3 women going on the record that he did -- then hopefully he experiences the appropriate consequences to his career and within the legal system.

It's disappointing that he's a Duke alumnus, but I imagine everyone realizes that every school will have its share of embarrassing alumni.

considering that he's already admitted and made an apology, and the number of accusers is now 6 (with pristine credibility), there is little doubt the allegations are true. he is a clown and embarrassment, but, yes, they belong to all schools. unfortunately for duke, he was one of our few leaders in venture capital and many people there probably remember him as the duke basketball guy (its high profile and different). when pj hairston does what he does, he's just another clown basketball player in the world of basketball.

[FadedTackyShirt]

considering that he's already admitted and made an apology, and the number of accusers is now 6 (with pristine credibility), there is little doubt the allegations are true. he is a clown and embarrassment, but, yes, they belong to all schools. unfortunately for duke, he was one of our few leaders in venture capital and many people there probably remember him as the duke basketball guy (its high profile and different). when pj hairston does what he does, he's just another clown basketball player in the world of basketball.

Given that multiple posters in this thread didn't recognize the name despite two brothers being on high profile teams, will be a blip with respect to Duke basketball.

Laettner and Brian Davis were involved in an SF penthouse a few years ago that initially listed for $70M and eventually sold for $28M (a loss). Nobody cared about Laettner's involvement and the focus was on the initial asking price.

SV has a problem with gender inequity and more specifically within the VC community. Was a recent high profile trial involving termination of a female associate at a very well known VC firm. She was also Asian, which will be a bigger focus than Duke basketball with Caldbeck.

The Uber case is a much bigger story. Hot company and a founder holding 30% of the stock worth $2B being forced out is highly unusual. Binary's assets are $300M.

As noted, other than well liked/respected Tim Cook, Duke has a low profile in SV. The Bain network (Pagliuga) and Wall Street are much deeper.

[bob blue devil]

Given that multiple posters in this thread didn't recognize the name despite two brothers being on high profile teams, will be a blip with respect to Duke basketball.

Laettner and Brian Davis were involved in an SF penthouse a few years ago that initially listed for $70M and eventually sold for $28M (a loss). Nobody cared about Laettner's involvement and the focus was on the initial asking price.

SV has a problem with gender inequity and more specifically within the VC community. Was a recent high profile trial involving termination of a female associate at a very well known VC firm. She was also Asian, which will be a bigger focus than Duke basketball with Caldbeck.

The Uber case is a much bigger story. Hot company and a founder holding 30% of the stock worth $2B being forced out is highly unusual. Binary's assets are $300M.

As noted, other than well liked/respected Tim Cook, Duke has a low profile in SV. The Bain network (Pagliuga) and Wall Street are much deeper.

agreed - this is a blip for duke basketball and this is just a subplot in the culture problem within silicone valley. i think the $300mm aum undersells binary's profile as it was an up-and-comer (it's like saying brandon ingram hasn't done much in the nba). but, again, the people who knew caldbeck are far more likely to associate him with duke than they are the typical vc with their alma mater.

[Henderson]

Dude was a walk on 20 years ago. If folks are interested in his life because of that, ok....

[Indoor66]

Dude was a walk on 20 years ago. If folks are interested in his life because of that, ok...

I'm with you. MEH

[FadedTackyShirt]

There's a thread about the Director's Cup on the board and the link between Stanford's decades' long dominant performance and VC is under reported.

Stanford invested early ('50s/'60s) in office space near campus when HP took off. Helped create the critical mass of innovation which created SV. Tech IPOs exploded in the early '80s and Stanford's academic and athletic endowments grew rapidly as they tapped into that wealth. They have a huge number of teams, almost all of which are completely endowed. Announced last week a new endowment for the women's swimming coach. Duke women's swimming doesn't offer a full complement of scholarships yet, let alone endow them, coaches, and facilities.

Good news for Duke is that the University is now actively partnering with Durham to improve downtown and make it more attractive to innovative start ups. A buddy's on a Duke task force working to build up the infrastructure. There's no mystery why Harvard and Stanford have huge numbers of teams along with massive academic and athletic endowments. Obviously Duke has a long way to go, but they're on the right track and actively working to change the dynamics.

[CDu]

Dude was a walk on 20 years ago. If folks are interested in his life because of that, ok...


I'm with you. MEH

Nobody is forcing you to read or post in the thread.

[JasonEvans]

Nobody is forcing you to read or post in the thread.

Wait... what?!?! You mean we are not required to post in every thread. Wow, that really takes a load off my plate!

;)

[BD80]

Wait... what?!?! You mean we are not required to post in every thread. Wow, that really takes a load off my plate!

;)

To some, compelled = required.

[Pghdukie]

I believe that DBR is a highly respected Forum with quality members that corresponds quality opinions. With a penchant (at times) to interject humor graciously! My humble stance on the Caldbeck situation is - when this thread goes to Page 3, it will be quickly forgotten.

[budwom]

So many people seem to have forgotten the Caldbeck era, when Vermont kids dominated the hoop roster.

[MCFinARL]

There's a thread about the Director's Cup on the board and the link between Stanford's decades' long dominant performance and VC is under reported.

Stanford invested early ('50s/'60s) in office space near campus when HP took off. Helped create the critical mass of innovation which created SV. Tech IPOs exploded in the early '80s and Stanford's academic and athletic endowments grew rapidly as they tapped into that wealth. They have a huge number of teams, almost all of which are completely endowed. Announced last week a new endowment for the women's swimming coach. Duke women's swimming doesn't offer a full complement of scholarships yet, let alone endow them, coaches, and facilities.

Good news for Duke is that the University is now actively partnering with Durham to improve downtown and make it more attractive to innovative start ups. A buddy's on a Duke task force working to build up the infrastructure. There's no mystery why Harvard and Stanford have huge numbers of teams along with massive academic and athletic endowments. Obviously Duke has a long way to go, but they're on the right track and actively working to change the dynamics.

Sure, but Harvard and Stanford are not really in the same situation. Because Harvard, as an Ivy League school, does not offer athletic scholarships (though many athletes receive aid through the university's very generous need-based financial aid program), the cost calculation of operating a sports team is quite different--a smaller amount of money can support more sports.

[sagegrouse]

Sure, but Harvard and Stanford are not really in the same situation. Because Harvard, as an Ivy League school, does not offer athletic scholarships (though many athletes receive aid through the university's very generous need-based financial aid program), the cost calculation of operating a sports team is quite different--a smaller amount of money can support more sports.

Two things about Harvard:


Any admitted student of modest means at Harvard is essentially guaranteed a full ride. Athletes, of course, do qualify for preferred admission at the discretion of the school.
Harvard has an endowment of $37.6 billion, far larger than any other school. If the overseers decide they want to spend money on something, they have no difficulty coming up with the wherewithal.

FWIW, the Duke University endowment is reported as $6.8 billion. This is separate from "The Duke Endowment" established in 1924 by James B. Duke. Its value is $3.37 billion per the latest annual report, and historically, about one-half of the grants go to Duke University.

[rsvman]

Well, I will say one thing - that's how you do an apology. I would love to know if/who helped him write that. Really can't do a much better job of taking ownership, accepting responsibility, recognizing the importance of these issues, and committing to change.

Yeah, it's a great apology, for sure. But their earlier response essentially denied the allegations and supported him. So it seem clear that apologies apparently come only after irrefutable evidence is obtained. Prior to that it's obfuscation. That doesn't speak as well of his character as his well written apology seems to do.

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

I had been following this story, but couldn't place why I knew his name. In light of the trouble at Uber, Caldbeck's story is fitting a definite Silicon Valley narrative.

BTW, he's now out and the fund may be dissolved. How toxic is he now in the Valley?

https://techcrunch.com/2017/06/25/binary-capital-co-founder-justin-caldbeck-quits-as-matt-mazzeo-steps-away-from-the-firm/

[SilkyJ]

Given that multiple posters in this thread didn't recognize the name despite two brothers being on high profile teams, will be a blip with respect to Duke basketball.

Laettner and Brian Davis were involved in an SF penthouse a few years ago that initially listed for $70M and eventually sold for $28M (a loss). Nobody cared about Laettner's involvement and the focus was on the initial asking price.

SV has a problem with gender inequity and more specifically within the VC community. Was a recent high profile trial involving termination of a female associate at a very well known VC firm. She was also Asian, which will be a bigger focus than Duke basketball with Caldbeck.

The Uber case is a much bigger story. Hot company and a founder holding 30% of the stock worth $2B being forced out is highly unusual. Binary's assets are $300M.

As noted, other than well liked/respected Tim Cook, Duke has a low profile in SV. The Bain network (Pagliuga) and Wall Street are much deeper.

WRT to Uber's valuation: its closer to ~$50B right now (its secondary paper was going for $70B (https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2017-03-16/uber-needs-to-get-real-about-that-69-billion-price-tag) on the secondary market in late '16/early '17). So if Travis owns 30% (is that true?), he is worth something like $15B...on paper...but I'm not sure he owns 30%. This NYT article (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/12/technology/uber-chief-travis-kalanick-stock-buyback.html) is on his ownership and the company's share buyback agreement, and they dont give his ownership (I'm not sure its disclosed anywhere; a benefit of being private. 30% ownership would be very high for a company that has raised $14B and taken on that much dilution, but its possible.)

WRT to Duke's presence in SV: Its certainly not as big as Stanford's, but there's a few of us and we are just fine with our profile :)

[FadedTackyShirt]

WRT to Uber's valuation: its closer to ~$50B right now (its secondary paper was going for $70B (https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2017-03-16/uber-needs-to-get-real-about-that-69-billion-price-tag) on the secondary market in late '16/early '17). So if Travis owns 30% (is that true?), he is worth something like $15B...on paper...but I'm not sure he owns 30%. This NYT article (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/12/technology/uber-chief-travis-kalanick-stock-buyback.html) is on his ownership and the company's share buyback agreement, and they dont give his ownership (I'm not sure its disclosed anywhere; a benefit of being private. 30% ownership would be very high for a company that has raised $14B and taken on that much dilution, but its possible.)

30% sounded unusually high to me (thought it was typically ~5%), but also seemed odd that he'd be forced out as CEO but still remain on the board. Travis did assemble a very friendly board, but he also likely holds a butt load of stock if he remains on the board.

[sagegrouse]

30% sounded unusually high to me (thought it was typically ~5%), but also seemed odd that he'd be forced out as CEO but still remain on the board. Travis did assemble a very friendly board, but he also likely holds a butt load of stock if he remains on the board.

Uhhhh.... He owns enough of Uber to command a board seat.

[SilkyJ]

Uhhhh... He owns enough of Uber to command a board seat.

Uhhhh, isn't that what he said?


....but he also likely holds a butt load of stock if he remains on the board.

I think the point is that we don't know how much he owns or what voting controls he might have. He clearly has some of these super voting shares based on what I've read, but its unclear how much controls he still has.

Even if he only owned 5-10%, though, there are still ways to remain on the board based on how he negotiated the investments from outside investors. He likely got very favorable terms given how much of a darling Uber was in SV, and the articles of Inc. may allow him to remain on the board even if he doesn't control a huge portion of stock. I'm not a corporate governance expert, but I've seen this in other scenarios, though not at this magnitude of company. (Didn't Zuckerberg have similar controls that almost made it impossible to force him out, even of the CEO slot?)

[Jeffrey]

FWIW, from my experiences, every situation is unique. I'm not sure there's enough public information to even make an educated guess.

[ice-9]

He might have 30% of the voting shares, but only 5% of all shares for example.

Tech companies with a lot of hype and growth might have been able to negotiate that, as Mark Zuckerberg did with Facebook to retain control.

[cspan37421]

pretty horrible IMO, if allegations are true.

https://www.axios.com/former-binary-capital-employee-sues-harassment-and-threats-2450168326.html

[westwall]

pretty horrible IMO, if allegations are true.

Sigh ! Just when I was expecting this thread would become "Uber Allegations". Not yet!

[cspan37421]

I was doubly worried when related articles mentioned another accused VC person named Dave McClure! Turns out not to be the David McClure of DBB.

Google translate tells me that uber = about, so in a way, this thread is indeed "uber allegations"

[FadedTackyShirt]

Google translate tells me that uber = about, so in a way, this thread is indeed "uber allegations"

Uber isn't a German word. Ueber (u with an umlaut) means super or extraordinary.

Still fits with the Binary allegations. Hope for fair trials for all involved.