November 12th – Denver | November 13th – Golden

Private Equity’s Influence on Venture Capital

Private equity trends and behaviors influence how downstream venture capitalists operate. Private equity tends to acquire or invest in venture-backed deals, making these entities crucial to seed stage exits and follow-on investments. Similar to how VCs keep a close eye on Series A or B venture deals, venture capitalists and seed investors should pay attention to these upstream private equity investors as well.

Learning from the most successful private equity practices, venture capitalists can improve outcomes by taking a more active approach to managing investments. Be it board seats or hands-on operational support, venture capitalists, like private equity investors, can add value to portfolio companies through an increased sense of ownership, attentiveness, and responsibility.

While VC is being pushed upstream with larger rounds in later-stage companies, the opportunity for taking smaller deals at more reasonable valuations in places like Colorado keeps growing. By relying more on private equity deals or acquisitions, as opposed to IPOs, to exit a deal, understanding private equity is crucial to the success of both entrepreneurs and investors.