Corporate venture capital has become a $100B+ force in tech. Charlie Hayward from Global Corporate Venturing unpacks what’s really driving the trend: which sectors are heating up, where CVCs make a difference, and how Europe stacks up under capital constraints and geopolitical pressure.
Here’s what’s covered:
00:00 – Setting the stage: CVC as a $100B+ global force
01:00 – Why corporate venture matters: from Microsoft’s outlier story to the role of corporate backers
03:00 – Active CVC units: stock performance and why entrepreneurs should care
04:00 – Lower bankruptcy risk & higher exit multiples for CVC-backed startups
05:00 – State of play: fundraising headwinds, but CVCs take the long-term view
05:30 – Early-stage shift: corporates getting active in seed & pre-seed rounds
06:00 – Global hotspots: Latin America and APAC showing strong momentum
07:00 – What CVCs bring: board seats, portfolio support, but still lighter on financial-return expectations
08:00 – Who plays the game: large corporates with $1B+ revenues dominate, but LP stakes open doors for smaller players
09:00 – New frontiers: universities, accelerators, and venture clienting as the next CVC battlegrounds
Show Notes
CVC by the numbers
Global CVC investment now >$100B annually.
Startups with CVC backing are 50% less likely to go bankrupt.
Exits: CVC-backed companies command slightly higher multiples than VC-only peers.
Trends to watch
Shift to early stage: more CVCs writing checks at seed and pre-seed.
Regional momentum: Latin America and APAC seeing the steepest growth.
Support functions: best-in-class CVCs are building portfolio development teams, sometimes rivaling financial VCs.
Beyond big corporates: while giants with $1B+ revenues dominate, a growing number of smaller players are participating as LPs.
Strategic vs financial balance
CVCs still skew toward strategic value-add — market access, customer validation, product fit — but Charlie argues there’s no reason more shouldn’t also pursue VC-like financial returns alongside.
New frontiers
University ties: a massively underused pipeline for corporates.
Accelerators & venture clienting: increasingly popular for structured startup engagement.
💡 One-liner takeaway
Corporate venture capital is no longer a side-game — it’s a $100B global force shaping exits, de-risking startups, and increasingly pushing into seed-stage and new markets.
