The NY Times reports that some big investors have not been able to meet capital calls from venture firms: Cash panic sweeping VC industry – The capital calls problem. That’s likely to squeeze the Silicon Valley startup economy even more.
VC firms typically make “capital calls” to these investors whenever they need more money to pump into their startups. However now rumors are circulating that Columbia University’s endowment fund is illiquid — that is, it can’t raise the cash it needs to fund current commitments. Harvard, meanwhile, is reportedly trying to sell a third of its private equity portfolio at a steep discount in a “secondary offering.”