The Dig

The Dig – A cartoon about the increasingly unusual ways venture firms are seeking to return cash to investors and bring in new buyers as companies stay private longer.

Venture investors are finding new ways to get their money back as companies stay private longer. In 1995, technology company took an average of 8 years to go public and now it’s closer to 12. One way venture capitalists have sought to return capital to their investors is to sell an existing stake, thereby shortening the wait. Secondary buyers purchase company shares or fund interests from investors who want cash now, while continuation vehicles allow fund managers to keep a company and give their investors a chance to sell. These transactions reached $240Bn across private capital in 2025. Robinhood Ventures has taken another route, listing a fund whose shares can be traded even while the companies it owns remain private.

A newly unveiled firm, Solari Capital lead by AJ Scaramucci, is betting on businesses that could change who gets to buy these assets. Its portfolio includes Treasure Trove, which allows people to buy rare collectibles and eventually open that market to ordinary investors. It has already acquired a $2M first-appearance Iron Man comic and a record-setting Pokémon card, while his collection extends to dinosaur bones. None of this means Solari’s own investors can cash out sooner, but it shows how much effort is going into finding new buyers for things that have been difficult to sell.

Scaramucci calls collectibles “the cultural store of value.” Their prices will ultimately be tested by buyers … much like the paper valuations of the 859 active US venture-backed unicorns, worth a combined $4.34TN, that have yet to exit.