Whether the Hybrid and Public Venture Capital Funds are the First Investors of Young Innovative Companies?

Abstract

The paper deals with the issues of investment of hybrid and public venture capital funds. The results show that hybrid and public venture capital funds in Latvia in most cases are the first investors. Only a smaller part of these investments are investments of the early stages of funding. The results of our research suggest that venture capital funds with public participation avoid projects with a high level of information asymmetry. The consequence of this can be underfunding of young innovative companies with the potential for rapid growth, which, in turn, is not consistent with the goals of public subsidies of venture capital funds in the context of the need to stimulate innovative economic development.