Grasping For Hope Amid VC Gloom

from the why-it's-not-so-bad... dept

You know you're in trouble when the only thing worth celebrating is that your recent losses aren't as bad as previous losses. However, that's exactly what many in the VC community are doing these days. They're pointing out that, while VC firms are still showing negative returns, they're not quite as negative as they've been in the past. Of course this, "I didn't lose you as much money as I lost you in the past" attitude still doesn't make investors very happy. Of course, anyone involved with venture investing should know that it's a long-term business, and funds are designed to last a decade or more - so looking at the year-to-year performance isn't as helpful. This is especially true in a world where there's a lottery/winner-takes-all element. One big hit two years from now will make five years of losses seem like peanuts. Sometimes it really is too bad that people have such a Wall Street mentality that they feel the need to put VC (and other) investments into the same terms as their short-term Wall Street investments.