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Venture capital and the investment curve of young high-tech companies

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  • Bertoni, Fabio
  • Croce, Annalisa
  • Guerini, Massimiliano

Abstract

We explore how and when venture capital (VC) alleviates the financial constraints of portfolio companies. Using a sample comprising 128 VC-backed companies and 233 non-VC-backed companies identified by propensity score matching, we estimate an error-correction model by accounting for the fact that the investment curve may be U shaped because of capital market imperfections. Our findings show that VC leads the investment curve to flatten in portfolio companies, which indicates an alleviation of financial constraints. This effect, however, is economically and statistically significant only after companies receive a follow-on round of VC financing. Because follow-on rounds, on average, do not involve larger amounts invested but have stronger informative content than initial rounds of investment, we interpret this result to indicate the importance of VC certification for the alleviation of financial constraints in portfolio companies. Evidence regarding the access to credit by VC-backed companies confirms this interpretation of the results.

Suggested Citation

  • Bertoni, Fabio & Croce, Annalisa & Guerini, Massimiliano, 2015. "Venture capital and the investment curve of young high-tech companies," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 159-176.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:corfin:v:35:y:2015:i:c:p:159-176
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2015.08.012
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    3. Li Jing & Huying Zhang, 2023. "Venture Capital, Compensation Incentive, and Corporate Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-19, March.
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    5. Massimiliano Guerini & Francesca Tenca, 2018. "The geography of technology-intensive start-ups and venture capital: European evidence," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 45(3), pages 361-386, September.
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    8. Massimo G. Colombo & Kourosh Shafi, 2016. "The impact of patenting on the size of high-tech firms: the role of venture capital and product market regulation," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 43(1), pages 85-103, March.
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    10. Niculaescu, Corina-Elena & Sangiorgi, Ivan & Bell, Adrian R., 2023. "Venture capital financing in the eSports industry," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Venture capital; Investment curve; Young high-tech companies; Financial constraints; Staging; Certification;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • D92 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Intertemporal Firm Choice, Investment, Capacity, and Financing
    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage

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