https://www.canva.com/design/DAFA0MYzQRM/view
The objective of the following guide is to provide a clear and introductory explanation into the Venture Capital (VC) industry. This document is by no means exhaustive into understanding this entire and comprehensive space but should be used as a beginners guide as a gateway into this ever-changing area. As such, we strongly encourage our target audience to be those who are new to the VC arena and want to better understand the nuances of the industry with better clarity.
Our hope is that our readers will learn a great deal about VC investing and its importance, but also understand why it exists and get a glimpse into some of the cautionary tales behind this space that has fueled the growth some of the biggest companies we know of today.
It should be noted that this is a living document and by no means complete. We envision that continual updates shall be made to this guide as new information or questions come to light. This guide is completely free and we encourage you to share it with others.
Finally, we strongly believe in the power of the written word. Whilst a powerpoint deck (see above) is helpful in conveying high-level concepts and ideas, in many cases it’s not enough for the audience to fully appreciate the complexity and nuances of this particular space. This guide serves this particular purpose and together, paired with the deck will serve as a potent combination to help the audience better appreciate the ideas and concepts presented throughout.
If you have any questions or request on this guide or otherwise, please feel free to reach out to us at [email protected].
The Venture Capital industry as most of us know it today was born during the technology renaissance period of the 1970s when we saw the world be introduced to the computer age. However, what most people might not be aware of is that the concept of VC in and of itself predates this era and goes all the way back to the industrial revolution, and perhaps even before then as well.
Traditionally, the notion of investing has been left to the wealthy rich and aristocrats of our age. Some notable families include the Rockefellers, and Morgan Family to name just but a few. It was these dynasties and many other generational wealthy families that fueled the industrial revolution and invested billions of dollars into the corporations and institutions we know of today.
However, as previously mentioned, investing in technology itself really came about only until the latter part of the 20th century and really started in the heart of Silicon Valley. During this time, a string of early-stage venture funds started emerging such as Sequoia Capital, Sutter Hill, Bessemer Ventures, and Kleiner Perkins all aimed at investing in ground-breaking technologies of semiconductors manufacturing and software development.
From this point forward, the venture capital space has become synonymous with technology investment and growth right up until today known for powering the growth of companies like Facebook, Google, Amazon, Netflix, Oracle and many more.
At its core, the idea of VC is very simple — invest some amount of agreed capital into ideas and products/services that you believe are scalable with high-growth potential that will hopefully generate a return on investment great than the initial principal amount committed over a defined period of time.