• Entertainment
  • Finance
  • Marketing
  • Real Estate
  • Technology
  • Social
National Journal Community Of e-Experts
Finance 0

Throwing Money Into Tech Startups Will End In Tears

By Kurt Osterberg · On April 16, 2018

The tech startup boom has been one of the most important and visible economic “growth engines” of the past half-decade. The boom was spurred, in large part, by the success and excitement over Facebook, Uber, Airbnb, and similar companies, which led to a widespread search for the “Next Facebook” or billion dollar “unicorn” company. Unfortunately, the tech startup boom has devolved into a dangerous bubble as a result of record low-interest rates and the trillions of dollars worth of liquidity that is sloshing around the globe as a result of central bank quantitative easing (QE) programs.

As an Austrian economist, I believe that central bank manipulation of borrowing costs (typically by holding interest rates too low) creates false signals or “fool’s gold” business and economic booms that trick investors into jumping into “hot” trends, only to lose their shirts when borrowing costs are inevitably increased again. These bad investments are called malinvestments and occur largely as a result of central bank market distortions rather than organic market forces. I believe that a very high proportion of today’s tech startups will prove to be malinvestments when the current boom turns into a bust.

A recent Wall Street Journal article describes the latest phase of the startup bubble quite well – SoftBank’s Billions Spur Global Race to Pour Money Into Startups

The Silicon Valley money machine is once again in high gear, thanks largely to SoftBank. The conglomerate is injecting billions of dollars into tech, in turn causing deep-pocketed global investors—and some U.S. venture firms—to arm up in response. A record level of late-stage money is flooding in, threatening to keep some startups out of the public markets even longer while heightening concerns that the sector is overvalued.

In recent months, hotly contested companies like ride-hailing service Lyft Inc. and dog-walking app Wag Labs Inc. have received hundreds of millions of dollars more than they sought. Bidding wars are re-emerging, and some once-staid foreign investors are expanding U.S. offices and ditching their ties and suits to court talented entrepreneurs.

“The top companies have as much heat around them as ever and continue to get bid up,” said John Locke, who runs late-stage investing for venture-capital firm Accel Partners.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share Tweet

Kurt Osterberg

You Might Also Like

  • Finance

    STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

  • Finance

    NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

  • Finance

    5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

No Comments

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Top Finance

  • 3 Best Large-Cap Blend Mutual Funds For Enticing Returns 3 Best Large-Cap Blend Mutual Funds For Enticing Returns
  • What is Value Chain Analysis? How to Deliver Value & Gain a Competitive Advantage What is Value Chain Analysis? How to Deliver Value & Gain a Competitive Advantage
  • Hedge Funds In The US Hedge Funds In The US
  • 5 Ridiculously Useful Non-Monetary Reward Examples that Improve Employee Engagement 5 Ridiculously Useful Non-Monetary Reward Examples that Improve Employee Engagement
  • Chart: Amazon’s Dominance In Ecommerce Chart: Amazon’s Dominance In Ecommerce

New Posts

  • STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

    STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

    June 20, 2022
  • NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

    NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

    June 20, 2022
  • 5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

    5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

    June 20, 2022
  • Bill Gates – ‘NFTs & Crypto Based on Greater Fool Theory’

    Bill Gates – ‘NFTs & Crypto Based on Greater Fool Theory’

    June 20, 2022
  • Actor Seth Green Pays $300,000 to Recover his Stolen BAYC NFT

    Actor Seth Green Pays $300,000 to Recover his Stolen BAYC NFT

    June 20, 2022
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Terms of use

Copyright © 2018-2021 NJCEE. All Rights Reserved.