Many Investors in Venture Capital Say a Big Return Isn’t Enough
- Billionaire Niklas Zennstrom says high demand for impact VC
- Mission-oriented startups attract better workers, he says
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Niklas Zennstrom, whose technology investments helped make him a billionaire, said venture capital financiers are demanding a higher purpose from their funds. Managers of endowments and pension funds increasingly ask VCs to prioritize companies with an element of sustainability or humanitarianism, he said.
One byproduct of the shift is related to guidelines from the United Nations, Zennstrom said Tuesday at Bloomberg’s Sooner Than You Think conference in London. The UN’s General Assembly set 17 objectives, known as Sustainable Development Goals, for member countries to achieve by 2030. They include eliminating poverty and hunger, promoting gender equality and conserving the environment.