China seen as perfect market for VC
By (Shenzhen Daily)
Updated: 2004-04-05 09:36

China was expected to become a perfect market for venture capital, said foreign speakers who addressed the 2004 China Venture Investment Seminar.

Todd Brooks, investment chief of US venture capital firm Mayfield, said China was spearheading world economic development with the fastest growth rate in gross domestic product. With a middle class taking shape, China had an indisputably unique status in the world economy, he said.

Encouraging China to set up a second board, he cited Silicon Valley and said there should be more tolerance in Asian cultures toward failure. He said that a great cultural difference between the West and the East was that the West was more tolerant. The essence of Silicon Valley culture was open-mindedness toward failure, he said.

While admitting great opportunities existed in China's venture capital market, some American capitalists also had worries. Brooks said Americans were fearful of Chinese Government interference. That was why many backed off at the last minute before getting into the Chinese market, he said.

Brooks also pointed to China's inadequacy in protecting intellectual property as another concern of American business. But he showed some confidence by saying it would take some time to set up a mechanism to protect intellectual property.

Other speakers said China's venture capital market was "mysterious" as many foreign businessmen knew little about it. That partly explained their hesitation in investing in China, they said.

But some foreign businesses have already entered China. One is Doll Capital Management of the United States. Its managing director Dixon Doll said his company had entered into partnership with Chinese companies such as Legend, 51job, UP Technologies (China) Ltd. and SMIC, a Shanghai-based chip firm.

Some speakers from Silicon Valley said the European market with its slow growth had high risks for American venture capital, while Israel, despite boasting many success stories, harbored hidden jeopardy because of its unstable political situation.

A question they then posed was: Can China be a perfect investment region for American venture capital? Their conclusion was that the middle class population in China would increase to about 100 million within one year, and with 700 million Chinese people wanting to improve their life, the country had great potential to upgrade its technologies and for venture capital investment.

Doll said no company could afford to neglect the Pacific economic rim, where investment cost was low while return was high. He referred to China as one of the best destinations, saying he had the least worry about making money in China.

Mayfield's Brooks said he had seen tremendous changes in Shenzhen since his last visit to the city five years ago. He said compared with the United States, China had huge opportunities.

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