Just a day after General Catalyst, an 18-year-old venture firm, revealed plans in an SEC filing to raise a record $1.375 billion in capital, another firm that we’d said was likely to file any second has done just that.
Lightspeed Venture Partners Raises Record $1.8 Billion
According to a fresh SEC filing, Lightspeed Venture Partners, also 18 years old, is raising a record $1.8 billion in new capital commitments from its investors, just two years after raising what was then a record for the firm: $1.2 billion in funding across two funds (one early-stage and the other for ‘select’ companies in its portfolio that had garnered traction).
The Game Has Changed
Still on our watch list: news of bigger-and-better-than-ever funds from other firms that announced their latest funds roughly two years ago, including Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz, and Accel Partners. The supersizing of venture firms isn’t a shock, as we wrote yesterday — though it’s also not necessarily good for returns, as we also noted.
Right now, venture firms are reacting in part to the $100 billion SoftBank Vision Fund, which SoftBank has hinted is merely the first of more gigantic funds it plans to raise, including from investors in the Middle East who’d like to plug more money into Silicon Valley than they’ve been able to do historically.
The Consequences of Size
The game, as ever, has also changed, these firms could argue. For one thing, the size of rounds has soared in recent years, making it easy for venture firms to convince themselves that to ‘stay in the game,’ they need to have more cash at their disposal.
Further, so-called limited partners from universities, pension funds, and elsewhere want to plug more money into venture capital, given the lackluster performance some other asset classes have produced. When they want to write bigger checks to the funds in which they are already investors, the funds often try accommodating them out of loyalty (We’re guessing the greater management fees they receive, which are tied to the amount of assets they manage, are also persuasive).
The Impact on Returns
What’s neglected in this race is the fact that the biggest outcomes can usually be traced to the earlier rounds in which VCs participate. Look at Sequoia’s early investment in Dropbox, for example, or Lightspeed’s early check to Snapchat. No matter the outcome of these companies, short of total failure, both venture firms will have made a mint, unlike later investors that might not be able to say the same.
There is also ample evidence that it’s far harder to produce meaningful returns to investors when managing a giant fund (This Kaufmann study from 2012 is among the mostly highly cited in the field).
Lightspeed’s Track Record
In fact, Lightspeed has a strong track record of investing in successful companies. With a portfolio that includes the likes of Snap, Spotify, and Robinhood, it’s clear that the firm has a keen eye for identifying promising startups.
Conclusion
While the supersizing of venture firms may seem like a positive trend at first glance, it’s essential to consider the potential consequences on returns and the impact on the venture capital ecosystem as a whole. As we continue to monitor this trend, one thing is clear: Lightspeed Venture Partners is leading the charge.
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