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Family offices become serious rivals to VC firms for funding startups

• 1cvmask 5y ago
  Key quotes from the article: Where once VC was seen as “patient capital”, in contrast to public markets and their obsession with quarterly earnings, now it often looks like some of the most impatient. Public market investors are content to let founders dominate their companies through supervoting shares that allow them to screen out short-term demands. Endowments and family offices are designed to husband wealth for generations. Meanwhile, VCs can be so focused on the exit that they bounce companies into an IPO for which they are not ready or, worse, sell out themselves and forego untold future potential. ....... Family offices are planning to significantly scale up their start-up investing in the coming year, according to an SVB Capital/Campden Wealth survey published in October, and the effort is being led in many cases by next-generation family members, suggesting it is a trend that will endure. As more investors build their expertise and track records, they can also build a powerful network effect, eroding traditional VCs’ main advantage — “access” to deal flow.