CHARACTERISTICS OF INFORMAL VENTURE CAPITAL IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC: QUANTITATIVE APPROACH

Abstract

In this paper, the demographic and investment profiles of business angels operating in the Czech Republic are evaluated based on a sample of 78 angel investors. This is the first attempt to use data on investor activities from the Pitchbook database, which has become increasingly popular in academic research. Beyond the framework of descriptive statistical analysis, a multidimensional statistical investigation using cluster analysis was conducted. The results show that there are two groups of angel investors in the Czech Republic. The first group is represented by investors who predominantly have a large active portfolio, as well as the number of total completed investments. On the other hand, the second cluster is made up of investors who conduct a smaller number of investments and are also in the position of the founder of a start-up. Not surprisingly, there are two main locations of angel investors in the Czech Republic, Brno and Prague. Both categories of typical investors are united by some demographic characteristics; for example, the market is dominated by middle-aged men with a completed Master’s degree in Economics who invest in start-ups in the field of information and communication technologies. The main contribution of the paper consists in evaluating the demographic and investment profiles of angel investors operating in the Czech business environment. The results of the research have implications for upcoming research, the informal venture capital industry, and public policy beyond the Czech business environment, while developing tools for fostering an angel ecosystem. In today’s globalized world, the boundaries of angel investors are often blurred. Just as start-ups have ambitions to expand internationally, informal venture capitalists are increasingly making cross-border deals. From the perspective of both investee firms and policy makers, it is thus important to know the profiles of not only domestic but also foreign business angels, e.g. with regard to the setting of public support for foreign capital inflows.