Publications

May 2018 (Revised January 2019)
Teaching Note

Nashton Partners and Its Search Fund Process

By: Richard S. Ruback, Royce Yudkoff and Ahron Rosenfeld

Teaching Note for HBS No. 212-006. In 2008, Jay Davis (HBS’ 08) and Jason Pananos (HBS’ 08) formed Nashton Partners and raised $500,000 from investors to fund their search. After 30 months of searching, and exhausting the money they raised to fund their search, Davis... View Details

Keywords: Search Fund; Acquisition; Capital Structure; Financing and Loans; Investment Funds; Partners and Partnerships

January 2024
Technical Note

Venture Capital and Private Equity Funds: A Primer

By: Jo Tango and Christina Wallace

How do venture capital and private equity funds actually work? This Technical Note covers the "when, who, and how" details:

"When": fund length, extensions, and when investors can no longer initiate new investments.
"Who": who is in the General... View Details

Keywords: Fund Flows; Fund Management; Venture Capital; Private Equity; Investment Funds

02 Aug 2021
Blog Post

ALUMNI WORK TO REVERSE BIAS THROUGH PHILANTHROPY

business and society. Two new ventures led by HBS alumni are leveraging the power of philanthropy in the fight against racism. By retooling traditional philanthropic models in distinctive ways, the New... View Details

May 2021
Case

André Hoffmann: Beyond Philanthropy

By: Lauren Cohen, Hao Gao, Jiawei Ye and Spencer C.N. Hagist

André Hoffmann is a leader of one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies. His exceptional tenure in philanthropy over the past several decades, including being president of the WWF and the vice-president of the MAVA Foundation, has allowed him access to a far... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Restructuring; Social Entrepreneurship; Values and Beliefs; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Cash Flow; Macroeconomics; Ethics; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Switzerland; United States; Japan

January 2018
Case

Environmental Technology Fund Partners and E-Leather

By: Vikram S. Gandhi and Aldo Sesia

It is 2014 and Environmental Technologies Fund (ETF) Partners, a UK-based venture capital firm, has an opportunity to invest in a privately held UK company that manufactured engineered composition leather extracted from waste leather using an environmentally friendly... View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Venture Capital; Investment Strategy; Investment; Strategy; Ownership; Valuation; Energy Conservation; Equity; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Performance Efficiency; Manufacturing Industry; Financial Services Industry; United Kingdom

March 12, 2024
Editorial

Best Practices for Family Philanthropy

By: Christina R. Wing

Philanthropy is a key priority for many families, but when sitting down and considering where to start, the vast options can be overwhelming. Social impact is not supposed to be a chore, but rather something you and your family can appreciate and look forward to... View Details

Keywords: Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Social Enterprise; Family Business; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact

2009
Case

The North America Environmental Fund (NAEF)

By: Roberto Charvel, Fernando Fabre and T. Putimahtama

NAEF was the first VC fund created in Latin America. It was also the first fund to focus on green technologies. The fund and its managers confronted several issues regarding the under-developed governance and cultural structures required for succesful VC investments. View Details

Keywords: Clean Tech; Emerging Market; Venture Capital; Business Startups; Energy; Entrepreneurship; Finance; Governance; Technology; Green Technology Industry; Financial Services Industry; Latin America; North and Central America

28 Sep 2017
News

Why Venture Capitalists Aren’t Funding The Businesses We Need

March 2015
Case

Pearson Affordable Learning Fund

By: Michael Chu, Vincent Dessain and Kristina Maslauskaite

An in-house venture capital fund for affordable private schools at the base of the pyramid established by Pearson, the world's largest education company, PALF sought to invest in business models providing superior educational outcomes in emerging markets on a... View Details

Keywords: Impact Investment; Low Cost Private Schools; Investment Fund; Business At The Base Of The Pyramid; Transition; Investment; Development Economics; Business Growth and Maturation; Social Entrepreneurship; Emerging Markets; Private Sector; Education; Education Industry; Asia; Africa

17 Jun 2015
News

Gender, looks hold sway in venture capital funding

01 Apr 2015
News

Female-Run Venture Capital Funds Alter the Status Quo

14 Oct 2016
News

A venture capitalist proves himself as a hedge fund manager

August 2020 (Revised November 2022)
Case

George Soros: The Stateless Statesman

By: Geoffrey Jones and Wendy Ying

This case traces the business career and philanthropic activities of George Soros. The Hungarian-born Soros made a fortune as a hedge fund investor after establishing Quantum Fund on the tax haven island of Curaçao in the Netherlands Antilles in 1973 where he was... View Details

Keywords: Hedge Fund; Philanthropy; Populism; Finance; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Political Elections; Personal Development and Career; Leadership Style; Financial Services Industry; Europe; Hungary; United Kingdom; North and Central America; United States

24 Apr 2014
News

Corporate venture funds invested wisely can propel a company forward

opportunities and rapid decline. Lerner, author of The Architecture of Innovation (HBS Press, 2012), also found that corporate venture funds invested in start-up companies provide an alternative to in-house... View Details

01 Jun 2018
News

The Importance of Philanthropy

Thanks to the generosity of alumni and friends over many years, HBS is fortunate to have an endowment that provides a foundation of support for core priorities. However, contrary to popular belief, the endowment does not cover all our financial needs. Annual giving to... View Details

March 2021 (Revised May 2021)
Supplement

Blue Meridian Partners (B): Pivoting in a Crisis

By: V. Kasturi Rangan

The (B) case situated in 2020 describes the many quick decisions taken by the fund in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the calls for social justice, and raises the question of whether and how these decisions are aligned with the long range strategy of the fund. View Details

Keywords: Venture Philanthropy; COVID-19; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Venture Capital; Social Issues; Health Pandemics; Decisions; Strategy

01 Jun 2012
News

The Power of Philanthropy

heretofore incurable affliction that affects some 30,000 children and young adults in the United States. The O’Donnells founded The Joey Fund and worked tirelessly with the other organizations. Almost singlehandedly, O’Donnell created “a... View Details

Keywords: Health, Social Assistance; Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations; Personal Services

Spring 2012
Article

The Roadmap for Private Equity, Venture Capital and Hedge Funds in Mexico: Alternative Assets as an Accelerator of Credit to Firms in Emerging Markets

By: Roberto Charvel

This article shows how alternative assets could be a good way for banks to start providing more loans to firms in emerging markets and finance growth, while giving local institutional investors access to new asset types. View Details