From An Investor's Guide to Nanotech Indices Over two years ago, on April 1, 2004, Merrill Lynch, with great fanfare, unveiled the first index to track the emerging field of nanotechnology as a market force. Within days, however, the timing of Merrill Lynch release-April Fool's Day-was brought into question as the company had to embarrassingly retract a number of companies from its index and admit that they had little or nothing to do with nanotechnology.
—Jack Uldrich, President, The NanoVeritas Group. Author of the award-winning bestseller, The Next Big Thing is Really Small: How Nanotechnology Will Change the Future of Your Business, and the just-released Investing In Nanotechnology: Think Small, Win Big

From: Hiring, Motivating, Retaining Key Employees - the CEO example.
Many nanotechnology startups are based on the work of a scientist or engineer, often with no business experience. These entrepreneurs often have a standard set of weak spots in their management skills - a lack of customer focus, little to no background in launching or heading a corporation, or simply a lack of awareness that they cannot drive a business as well as develop a technology and get a product to market. Even companies with the strongest potential and IP can become an unattractive investment decision if the right management team isn't in place and if a cooperative team environment is not established & maintained.
—Bo Varga, Managing Director of Silicon Valley Nano Ventures.

From Nanotech Investing for the Regular Joe: Opportunities for Non-Institutional Investors
By employing simple investment strategies and by taking advantage of tools and research already available, it is possible for the average investor to participate in the potential gains afforded by the growing nanotech industry. However, it is most important to always keep things in perspective. Before any funds should be dedicated to stock investments, the individual investor should review the risk tolerance and goal of those funds.
—Evan J. Hoobchaak is financial planner based in Chicago. He advises his private clients with regard to strategic investments (including stocks, bonds, mutual funds and limited partnerships), retirement planning and tax strategy.