VC: An American History

About this book

A major exploration of venture financing from its origins in the whaling industry to Silicon Valley that shows how venture capital created an epicenter for the development of high-tech innovation. VC tells the riveting story of how the industry arose from the United States long-running orientation toward entrepreneurship. Venture capital has been driven from the start by the pull of outsized returns through a skewed distribution of payoffsa faith in low-probability but substantial financial rewards that rarely materialize. Whether the gamble is a whaling voyage setting sail from New Bedford or the newest startup in Silicon Valley VC is not just a model of finance that has proven difficult to replicate in other countries. It is a state of mind exemplified by an appetite for risk-taking a bold spirit of adventure and an unbridled quest for improbable wealth through investment in innovation. Tom Nicholass history of the venture capital industry offers readers a ride on the roller coaster of setbacks and success in Americas pursuit of financial gain.