2026全球风险投资未来洞察报告：释放流动性与增长潜力

The Future of Venture Capital:Unlocking Liquidity and Growth I N S I G H TR E P O R TM A Y2 0 2 6 Contents Foreword3Executive summary41Why venture capital matters and why the model is under strain61.1What makes venture capital unique81.2The US case study: From ERISA to market dominance91.3The global expansion of the asset class102The liquidity squeeze and the exit gap112.1The exit and distribution gap132.2The scale of trapped value172.3The rise of secondary markets182.4Improving secondary-market infrastructure203The global scale-up gap in innovation223.1The new geography of innovation: Scaling start-ups233.2How success breeds ecosystems: The power of founder factories284Strengthening the foundation:Capital, regulation and institutional reform294.1How the LP landscape is changing304.2Regulatory fragmentation: The invisible scaling tax325AI and the new economics of venture capital335.1From software to labour markets345.2The new growth playbook: Faster, leaner, harder to value345.3Private capital at public scale355.4The AI-enabled investor356Strategic recommendations36Conclusion: Strengthening the venture capital industry39Contributors40Endnotes42 Disclaimer This document is published by theWorld Economic Forum as a contributionto a project, insight area or interaction.The findings, interpretations andconclusions expressed herein are a resultof a collaborative process facilitated andendorsed by the World Economic Forumbut whose results do not necessarilyrepresent the views of the World EconomicForum, nor the entirety of its Members,Partners or other stakeholders.©2026 World Economic Forum. All rightsreserved. No part of this publication maybe reproduced or transmitted in any formor by any means, including photocopyingand recording, or by any informationstorage and retrieval system. Foreword Sarah A. SoulePhilip H. Knight Professorand Dean, MorgridgeProfessor of OrganizationalBehavior, Graduate School ofBusiness, Stanford University Drew PropsonHead, Technologyand Innovation inFinancial Services,World Economic Forum This is not a crisis of venture capital’s relevance,as the need for patient, conviction-driven capitalremains critical. It is, rather, a signal that themodel must continue to evolve. Meeting thismoment requires more than individual reflection.It calls on practitioners, institutional investors,policy-makers and other ecosystem participantsto come together to identify where the systemis underperforming and develop solutions withthe rigour that the stakes demand. Venture capital has long served as a powerfulengine of economic growth and technologicalprogress. By channelling capital towards early-stage companies with the potential to reshapeindustries, the venture model has helped producesome of the most consequential businesses of themodern era, from semiconductors to software andbiotechnology to clean energy. The institutions,norms and networks that define the VC ecosystemtoday were built over decades of iteration, and theyreflect a deep understanding of how to identify andscale transformative ideas. This report, a collaboration between the WorldEconomic Forum and the Stanford GraduateSchool of Business Venture Capital Initiative,is the product of precisely that kind of collectiveeffort. Drawing on perspectives from prominentvoices across the VC landscape over the courseof 2025–2026, it aims to offer a comprehensiveassessment of where the industry stands andactionable insights for the various actors workingto strengthen it. We are grateful to the many leaderswhose input and expertise shaped this analysis,and we hope it serves as a valuable resource forthose committed to ensuring that venture capitalcontinues to fulfil its essential role in supportinginnovation and entrepreneurship. The industry, however, now faces a period ofsignificant pressure. A prolonged contraction inexit activity has created considerable liquidity strainacross the asset class, testing the patience oflimited partners and forcing a reassessment of fundeconomics. Additionally, regulatory fragmentationpersists and capital pools remain unevenlydistributed, slowing the pace of venture-backedinnovation. These challenges are not felt equally.Regional ecosystems vary in their depth and accessto the global capital networks on which early-stagecompanies depend. What is working in one marketmay be structurally unavailable in another. Executive summary Five priorities to strengthen venture capital’sability to finance global innovation. Over the past 50 years, venture capital (VC) hasevolved from a niche financing mechanism into acentral pillar of the global innovation economy. Asmall fraction of companies receive venture funding,yet those firms account for a disproportionate shareof technological breakthroughs, economic growthand corporate value creation. In the US, companiesthat received VC funding and subsequentlywent public now account for nearly half of themarket capitalization and 94% of research anddevelopment (R&D) spen