R. Hambrecht & Company
ORG
Hambrecht '' Hambrecht R. Hambrecht & Company Hambrecht & Quist
When asked what they did before Google at W. R. Hambrecht & Company, the investment bank in San Francisco, the answer is was that a lot less business. Hambrecht, the system-bucking champion of using auctions to sell initial public offerings of stock, has developed a following among entrepreneurs since Google went public in an auction 18 months ago. Using a method it calls OpenIPO, Hambrecht has auctioned off shares in two companies already this year, after taking five public that way in 2005. Traffic.com, which provides information about local traffic conditions to radio and TV stations and directly to consumers, raised $78.6 million in late January through an auction led by Hambrecht.