scholarly journals The Role of Governmental Venture Capital in the Venture Capital Ecosystem: An Organizational Ecology Perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 611-628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio Bertoni ◽  
Massimo G. Colombo ◽  
Anita Quas

We use the theory of organizational ecology to study how governmental venture capital (GVC) affects the investment behavior of private venture capital (PVC). Because of its objectives and dominant competencies, GVC is a unique organizational species that occupies a different niche than PVC. GVC is conceived to establish mutualistic relations with PVC. Accordingly, the greater the presence of GVC in a venture capital (VC) ecosystem, the more PVC investors should be attracted toward GVC’s niche. We consider several relevant niche dimensions at the company (age and size), industry (biotechnology), and regional (competitiveness) levels. Our analysis of 1,239 PVC investments in Europe confirms most of our predictions.

2021 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 645-663

Abstract The financing of young start-up companies is hindered by market failures that prompt governments around the world to intervene at the venture capital market. The aim of this paper is to give a comprehensive overview on this research field based on sound systematic literature review methodology, which was never done before. We found three major themes: pure governmental venture capital involvement, governmental-private venture capital cooperation, and governmental involvement in the financing of pre-seed startups. The evaluation of the governmental efforts varies according to these themes and also the investigated geographic location. Generally, pure governmental venture capital is the most controversial theme, the government-private cooperation is mostly viewed in a positive light, while the authors almost unanimously praise the government’s efforts when financing pre-seed startups. We found that the success of governmental venture capital should not be judged based on the realized return of its investments, since profit maximalization is not its goal. The governments try to alleviate market failures at the venture capital market and transition financed startup companies to private financing. Thus, we advise researchers to use the number of this type of successful transitions as the success criteria of governmental investments.


Author(s):  
Martin Giraudeau

This chapter is an analysis of the project appraisal procedures in place at American Research and Development Corporation (ARD) between 1946 and 1973, under the management of Georges F. Doriot. It shows the importance of knowledge technologies and administrative procedures in the way the venture capital company dealt with uncertain futures. The origins of these knowledge practices are traced back to Georges F. Doriot’s own views on business and more generally to the pragmatist movement in business administration of which he was a member. The conduct of project appraisal at ARD is then observed directly, and this reveals its reliance on a rich set of knowledge and diagnostic techniques as well as administrative procedures. These observations allow for a specification of the nature and role of imagination in the entrepreneurship and venture capital practices examined here—in particular, its close relationship with organized knowledge.


2021 ◽  
pp. 104225872110245
Author(s):  
Jennifer L. Woolley ◽  
Nydia MacGregor

This study investigates how venture development programs such as private incubators, university incubators, and accelerators influence the success of participating nanotechnology startups. With the recent growth in such programs, empirical work is needed to compare their impact on participants across programs and with nonparticipants. Using data on firm bankruptcies, liquidation, government grants, and venture capital, we find benefits, but the influence of each venture development program varies greatly. We further investigate the influence of program services and resources to clarify program heterogeneity beyond existing typologies. The results clarify the role of these programs and ecosystem intermediaries.


2017 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Etzkowitz ◽  
Henry Etzkowitz

This article outlines a counter-cyclical innovation strategy to achieve prosperity, derived from an innovative project, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). We identify an ‘innovation paradox’ in that the very point in the business cycle, when legislators are tempted to view austerity as a cure for economic downturns and to reduce innovation spend, is when an increase is most needed to create new industries and jobs and innovate out of recession or depression. It is both desirable and possible that policymakers resist the urge to capitulate to the innovation paradox. During periods that exhibit subdued inflation, elevated spare productive capacity, and low government borrowing rates, governments should increase their borrowings and use the proceeds to boost investment targeted towards innovation. We show how the State of California successfully utilized debt financing, traditionally reserved for physical infrastructure projects, to stimulate the development of intellectual infrastructure. Finally, we recommend a halt to European austerity policies and a ‘triple helix’ broadening of narrow ‘smart specialization’ policies that chase a private venture capital chimera. Europe should seize the present macroeconomic opportunity of low interest rates, borrow for innovation and be paid back manifold by ‘picking winners’, similarly to what the USA has been doing through DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) with GPS, as a response to Sputnik, the Internet and artificial intelligence, or the driverless car, formerly known as the ‘autonomous land vehicle’ in its military guise. Proactively targeted macroscopic investments in innovation are needed to solve the productivity/employment puzzle and foster the transition to a knowledge-based society.


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