Alumni Networks in Venture Capital Financing

Jon A. Garfinkel, Erik J. Mayer, Ilya A. Strebulaev, and Emmanuel Yimfor

♦ One-third of deals in the venture capital (VC) market involve a founder and investor from the same university. Venture capitalists are more likely to invest in, and place larger bets on, startups with founders from their alma mater. These deals are also more likely to lead to IPOs post-funding. Tests using VC partner turnover confirm a direct link between education ties and funding likelihood. Taken together, our results suggest that university connections facilitate improved deal-making and outcomes, rather than diverting funds toward lower-quality startups.

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