As I sat in a session at the recently concluded “Women in Private Markets Summit” by Private Equity International in London; this one themed “The Future of London as a Global Financial Centre”. I found myself pondering a particularly pointed question:
This is definitely a thought-provoking piece! I completely agree that the lack of patient capital is one of the most significant barriers to scaling SMEs and startups. Your argument for reallocating local pension funds is compelling and could serve as a game-changer for the Nigeria’s growth trajectory.
For me, the issue of high-interest rates crowding out private sector investments is most critical. As long as government bonds and money market instruments offer attractive, low-risk returns, institutional investors aka pensions are unlikely to shift their focus toward higher-risk asset classes like venture capital. Similarly the high-interest could negatively impact valuations.
This imbalance stifles innovation in pensions investing and slows the growth of the private markets.
Thank you for being my first ever commenter on Substack :)
You’re absolutely right that VC can feel like the Wild West at times, and that’s part of the inherent risk that comes with investing in this asset class. But, as they say, the higher the risk, the higher the reward. While it’s true that VC is generally not as regulated as other asset classes (even in more developed markets), we can’t shy away from stepping into the arena.
At some point, we have to start taking on some of those risks ourselves if we hope to build the ecosystems we’re dreaming of. Appreciate you sharing your perspective.
This is definitely a thought-provoking piece! I completely agree that the lack of patient capital is one of the most significant barriers to scaling SMEs and startups. Your argument for reallocating local pension funds is compelling and could serve as a game-changer for the Nigeria’s growth trajectory.
For me, the issue of high-interest rates crowding out private sector investments is most critical. As long as government bonds and money market instruments offer attractive, low-risk returns, institutional investors aka pensions are unlikely to shift their focus toward higher-risk asset classes like venture capital. Similarly the high-interest could negatively impact valuations.
This imbalance stifles innovation in pensions investing and slows the growth of the private markets.
Thank you for dropping a comment.
I totally agree with you. Let’s face it, why take the risk of investing in VC’s, when you can double your money in c.4 years with yields above 20%.
Great write up, the challenge many countries will have is that Venture Capital isn’t as regulated as the other asset classes
At times can be the wild Wild West
Thank you for being my first ever commenter on Substack :)
You’re absolutely right that VC can feel like the Wild West at times, and that’s part of the inherent risk that comes with investing in this asset class. But, as they say, the higher the risk, the higher the reward. While it’s true that VC is generally not as regulated as other asset classes (even in more developed markets), we can’t shy away from stepping into the arena.
At some point, we have to start taking on some of those risks ourselves if we hope to build the ecosystems we’re dreaming of. Appreciate you sharing your perspective.