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Specialist versus generalist investors: Trading off support quality, investment horizon and control rights

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  • Andrieu, Guillaume
  • Groh, Alexander Peter

Abstract

We model an entrepreneur’s selection of either an active (specialist) or a passive (generalist) investor for an innovative venture that requires external equity for startup and expansion financing. We assume that the specialist investor provides better support but has a shorter investment horizon than the generalist. We particularly focus on the entrepreneur’s net present value (NPV)-maximizing contract, taking into account the specialist’s potential moral hazard. This latter might try selling his claim in a secondary transaction to an uninformed outside investor, even though the project is unsuccessful and should be abandoned. We show that the entrepreneur may trade off crucial contract parameters when seeking external financing. Either type of investor may be preferable, contingent on the allocation of control rights, the investor’s support quality and investment horizon, the chances of success, and the venture’s expected liquidation value.

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  • Andrieu, Guillaume & Groh, Alexander Peter, 2018. "Specialist versus generalist investors: Trading off support quality, investment horizon and control rights," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 459-478.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:101:y:2018:i:c:p:459-478
    DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2017.10.012
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Allocation of control rights; Investment horizon; Entrepreneurial finance; Venture capital; Business angels;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship

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