IPO/M&A Exits by Venture Capital in India: Do Agency Risks Matter?

Venture Capital Firms (VCs) encounter severe information asymmetry risks at almost every stage in their investment lifecycle. This paper explores the agency risks arising from information asymmetry during the stage of exits by VCs from the funded companies in their portfolio and how that impacts the incidence of specific types of type of exits (IPOs/M&As). In this empirical study, by using the data on IPO and M&A exits from venture capital-funded companies, we show how the ability of prospective buyers to better resolve agency risks is directly correlated with the incidence of the above exit types. Using the technique of logistic regression, we demonstrate that factors such as syndication, specialization focus of the VC firm (in terms of stage and sector) and the level of its social capital (proxied by its age and experience) drive the success rate of exits. This is one of first studies in context of exits from VC funded companies in the Indian context.