IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/ijfiec/v29y2024i2p2452-2471.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Investment decisions under uncertainty: Corporate venture capital as a real option

Author

Listed:
  • Fatima Shuwaikh
  • Mathew Hughes
  • Souad Brinette
  • Sabrina Khemiri

Abstract

This paper aims to assess the role of corporate venture capital (CVC) as option‐creating investments and how corporate investors practice CVC options in their investment decisions. Using a sample of 4206 US firms between 1998 and 2019, our results show that sector fit and geographic fit reduce uncertainty and impact investors' decisions on CVC investments. When exogenous uncertainty is mitigated, CVC‐backed companies experience higher investment amounts than independent venture capital funds (IVC)‐backed ones. The results evidence that follow‐on investments motivate IVC‐backed companies to exit via IPOs. At the same time, a prolonged duration for the organisational learning option leads CVC‐backed companies to exit via acquisition. This study helps investors to reduce uncertainty surrounding investments and improve the usefulness of their real options. We also provide implications for how policymakers target and develop an entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Suggested Citation

  • Fatima Shuwaikh & Mathew Hughes & Souad Brinette & Sabrina Khemiri, 2024. "Investment decisions under uncertainty: Corporate venture capital as a real option," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(2), pages 2452-2471, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:ijfiec:v:29:y:2024:i:2:p:2452-2471
    DOI: 10.1002/ijfe.2794
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/ijfe.2794
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/ijfe.2794?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ajay Agrawal & Christian Catalini & Avi Goldfarb, 2014. "Some Simple Economics of Crowdfunding," Innovation Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 14(1), pages 63-97.
    2. Elena Cefis & Orietta Marsili & Damiana Rigamonti, 2020. "In and Out of Balance: Industry Relatedness, Learning Capabilities and Post‐Acquisition Innovative Performance," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(2), pages 210-245, March.
    3. Laurence Capron & Jung‐Chin Shen, 2007. "Acquisitions of private vs. public firms: Private information, target selection, and acquirer returns," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(9), pages 891-911, September.
    4. Henri A. Schildt & Markku V.J. Maula & Thomas Keil, 2005. "Explorative and Exploitative Learning from External Corporate Ventures," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 29(4), pages 493-515, July.
    5. Bruce Kogut & Nalin Kulatilaka, 2001. "Capabilities as Real Options," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 12(6), pages 744-758, December.
    6. Majd, Saman & Pindyck, Robert S., 1987. "Time to build, option value, and investment decisions," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 7-27, March.
    7. Douglas Cumming & Sofia Johan, 2010. "Venture Capital Investment Duration," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(2), pages 228-257, April.
    8. Gompers, Paul & Lerner, Josh, 2000. "Money chasing deals? The impact of fund inflows on private equity valuation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(2), pages 281-325, February.
    9. Hellmann, Thomas, 2002. "A theory of strategic venture investing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 285-314, May.
    10. Rita Gunther McGrath & Atul Nerkar, 2004. "Real options reasoning and a new look at the R&D investment strategies of pharmaceutical firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 1-21, January.
    11. Trigeorgis, Lenos, 1993. "The Nature of Option Interactions and the Valuation of Investments with Multiple Real Options," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 28(1), pages 1-20, March.
    12. Steven N. Kaplan & Antoinette Schoar, 2005. "Private Equity Performance: Returns, Persistence, and Capital Flows," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(4), pages 1791-1823, August.
    13. Gompers, Paul A, 1995. "Optimal Investment, Monitoring, and the Staging of Venture Capital," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 50(5), pages 1461-1489, December.
    14. Peter Iliev & Michelle Lowry, 2020. "Venturing beyond the IPO: Financing of Newly Public Firms by Venture Capitalists," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 75(3), pages 1527-1577, June.
    15. James Simmie, 2003. "Innovation and Urban Regions as National and International Nodes for the Transfer and Sharing of Knowledge," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(6-7), pages 607-620.
    16. Corey C. Phelps & Sandip Basu & Suresh Kotha, 2011. "Towards understanding who makes corporate venture capital investments and why," Post-Print hal-00575634, HAL.
    17. Christopher F. Baum & Mustafa Caglayan & Bing Xu, 2021. "The impact of uncertainty on financial institutions: A cross‐country study," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(3), pages 3719-3739, July.
    18. Wim Vanhaverbeke & Geert Duysters & Niels Noorderhaven, 2002. "External Technology Sourcing Through Alliances or Acquisitions: An Analysis of the Application-Specific Integrated Circuits Industry," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(6), pages 714-733, December.
    19. Peter J. Lane & Michael Lubatkin, 1998. "Relative absorptive capacity and interorganizational learning," Post-Print hal-02311860, HAL.
    20. Arshad A. Khan & Sufyan U. Khan & Shah Fahad & Muhammad A. S. Ali & Aftab Khan & Jianchao Luo, 2021. "Microfinance and poverty reduction: New evidence from Pakistan," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(3), pages 4723-4733, July.
    21. Bing Guo & Yun Lou & David Pérez‐Castrillo, 2015. "Investment, Duration, and Exit Strategies for Corporate and Independent Venture Capital‐Backed Start‐Ups," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(2), pages 415-455, June.
    22. Fatima Shuwaikh & Souad Brinette & Sabrina Khemiri, 2022. "The impact of dynamic ambidexterity on the performance of organizations: evidence from corporate venture capital investing in North America," Post-Print hal-03768273, HAL.
    23. Thomas J. Chemmanur & Elena Loutskina & Xuan Tian, 2014. "Corporate Venture Capital, Value Creation, and Innovation," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(8), pages 2434-2473.
    24. Fatima Shuwaikh & Souad Brinette & Sabrina Khemiri & Rita Grego de Castro, 2024. "Venture capital activities under uncertainty: US and UK investors behavior," Post-Print hal-03810085, HAL.
    25. Lee Fleming & Charles King & Adam I. Juda, 2007. "Small Worlds and Regional Innovation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 18(6), pages 938-954, December.
    26. Susanne Espenlaub & Arif Khurshed & Abdulkadir Mohamed, 2015. "VC investments and global exits," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(7), pages 608-628, May.
    27. Marco Ceccagnoli & Matthew J. Higgins & Hyunsung D. Kang, 2018. "Corporate venture capital as a real option in the markets for technology," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(13), pages 3355-3381, December.
    28. Bayar, Onur & Chemmanur, Thomas J., 2011. "IPOs versus Acquisitions and the Valuation Premium Puzzle: A Theory of Exit Choice by Entrepreneurs and Venture Capitalists," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 46(6), pages 1755-1793, December.
    29. Christian Catalini, 2018. "Microgeography and the Direction of Inventive Activity," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(9), pages 4348-4364, September.
    30. Vareska Van de Vrande & Wim Vanhaverbeke, 2013. "How Prior Corporate Venture Capital Investments Shape Technological Alliances: A Real Options Approach," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 37(5), pages 1019-1043, September.
    31. Bart Nooteboom, 2000. "Learning by Interaction: Absorptive Capacity, Cognitive Distance and Governance," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 4(1), pages 69-92, March.
    32. Shuwaikh, Fatima & Brintte, Souad & Khemiri, Sabrina, 2022. "The impact of dynamic ambidexterity on the performance of organizations: Evidence from corporate venture capital investing in North America," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 991-1009.
    33. David Benson & Rosemarie H. Ziedonis, 2009. "Corporate Venture Capital as a Window on New Technologies: Implications for the Performance of Corporate Investors When Acquiring Startups," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(2), pages 329-351, April.
    34. repec:cup:jfinqa:v:46:y:2011:i:06:p:1755-1793_00 is not listed on IDEAS
    35. Dushnitsky, Gary & Lenox, Michael J., 2006. "When does corporate venture capital investment create firm value?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 21(6), pages 753-772, November.
    36. Thomas Keil & Erkko Autio & Gerard George, 2008. "Corporate Venture Capital, Disembodied Experimentation and Capability Development," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(8), pages 1475-1505, December.
    37. Cumming, Douglas (ed.), 2012. "The Oxford Handbook of Venture Capital," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195391596.
    38. Jeon, Euiju & Maula, Markku, 2022. "Progress toward understanding tensions in corporate venture capital: A systematic review," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(4).
    39. Lerner, Josh, 1995. "Venture Capitalists and the Oversight of Private Firms," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 50(1), pages 301-318, March.
    40. Kang, Jun-Koo & Li, Yingxiang & Oh, Seungjoon, 2022. "Venture Capital Coordination in Syndicates, Corporate Monitoring, and Firm Performance," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    41. Wadhwa, Anu & Phelps, Corey & Kotha, Suresh, 2016. "Corporate venture capital portfolios and firm innovation," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 95-112.
    42. Stuart, Toby & Sorenson, Olav, 2003. "The geography of opportunity: spatial heterogeneity in founding rates and the performance of biotechnology firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 229-253, February.
    43. Shuwaikh, Fatima & Dubocage, Emmanuelle, 2022. "Access to the Corporate Investors' Complementary Resources: A Leverage for Innovation in Biotech Venture Capital-Backed Companies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    44. Vladimir I. Ivanov & Fei Xie, 2010. "Do Corporate Venture Capitalists Add Value to Start‐Up Firms? Evidence from IPOs and Acquisitions of VC‐Backed Companies," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 39(1), pages 129-152, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shuwaikh, Fatima & Dubocage, Emmanuelle, 2022. "Access to the Corporate Investors' Complementary Resources: A Leverage for Innovation in Biotech Venture Capital-Backed Companies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    2. Jeon, Euiju & Maula, Markku, 2022. "Progress toward understanding tensions in corporate venture capital: A systematic review," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(4).
    3. Galloway, Tera L. & Miller, Douglas R. & Sahaym, Arvin & Arthurs, Jonathan D., 2017. "Exploring the innovation strategies of young firms: Corporate venture capital and venture capital impact on alliance innovation strategy," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 55-65.
    4. David Bendig & Simon Hensellek & Julian Schulte, 2024. "Beneficial, Harmful, or Both? Effects of Corporate Venture Capital and Alliance Activity on Product Recalls," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 48(1), pages 35-70, January.
    5. Patrick Röhm, 2018. "Exploring the landscape of corporate venture capital: a systematic review of the entrepreneurial and finance literature," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 68(3), pages 279-319, August.
    6. Gao, Tingfan & Wang, Shixun & Chen, Baizhu & Yang, Lihong, 2024. "The impact of big tech corporate venture capital investments on innovation: Evidence from the equity investment market," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    7. Maxin, Hannes, 2018. "The Corporate Venture Capital Exit Decision," VfS Annual Conference 2018 (Freiburg, Breisgau): Digital Economy 181647, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    8. Ahlers, Oliver & Hack, Andreas & Kellermanns, Franz W., 2014. "“Stepping into the buyers’ shoes”: Looking at the value of family firms through the eyes of private equity investors," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 5(4), pages 384-396.
    9. Patrick Haslanger & Erik E. Lehmann & Nikolaus Seitz, 2023. "The performance effects of corporate venture capital: a meta-analysis," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 2132-2160, December.
    10. Petrit Ademi & Monika C. Schuhmacher & Andrew L. Zacharakis, 2023. "Evaluating Affordance-Based Opportunities: A Conjoint Experiment of Corporate Venture Capital Managers’ Decision-Making," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(6), pages 2293-2322, November.
    11. Varkey K. Titus Jr. & Brian S. Anderson, 2018. "Firm Structure and Environment as Contingencies to the Corporate Venture Capital-Parent Firm Value Relationship," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 42(3), pages 498-522, May.
    12. Vareska Van de Vrande & Wim Vanhaverbeke, 2013. "How Prior Corporate Venture Capital Investments Shape Technological Alliances: A Real Options Approach," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 37(5), pages 1019-1043, September.
    13. Tony W. Tong & Yong Li, 2011. "Real Options and Investment Mode: Evidence from Corporate Venture Capital and Acquisition," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(3), pages 659-674, June.
    14. Rin, Marco Da & Hellmann, Thomas & Puri, Manju, 2013. "A Survey of Venture Capital Research," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 573-648, Elsevier.
    15. Fatima Shuwaikh & Emmanuelle Dubocage & Dennis Murer, 2023. "Underpricing of corporate and independent venture capital-backed IPOs: Do they differ?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 60(4), pages 1629-1650, May.
    16. Bing Guo & Yun Lou & David Pérez‐Castrillo, 2015. "Investment, Duration, and Exit Strategies for Corporate and Independent Venture Capital‐Backed Start‐Ups," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(2), pages 415-455, June.
    17. Johannes Wallmeroth & Peter Wirtz & Alexander Peter Groh, 2017. "Institutional Seed Financing, Angel Financing, and Crowdfunding of Entrepreneurial Ventures: A Literature Review," Working Papers hal-01527999, HAL.
    18. Benkraiem, Ramzi & Dubocage, Emmanuelle & Lelong, Yann & Shuwaikh, Fatima, 2023. "The effects of environmental performance and green innovation on corporate venture capital," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    19. Amor, Salma Ben & Kooli, Maher, 2020. "Do M&A exits have the same effect on venture capital reputation than IPO exits?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    20. Lin, Jun-You, 2020. "What affects new venture firm’s innovation more in corporate venture capital?," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 646-660.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:ijfiec:v:29:y:2024:i:2:p:2452-2471. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.interscience.wiley.com/jpages/1076-9307/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.