【报告主题】Expert Networks as Information Intermediaries in Private Markets
【主讲嘉宾】Joseph Pacelli，Harvard Business School
【报告时间】2025年5月13日 15:45
【报告地点】会计学院108室
【内容提要】
This paper examines how expert networks function as information intermediaries in private capital markets. The global expert network industry now exceeds $2.3 billion in annual revenue and holds growing economic importance, yet research on how these networks influence investment outcomes remains limited. We analyze a comprehensive dataset of expert network calls from a provider regarding private firms from 2018 to 2024, merged with private equity transaction data from Pitchbook. Our findings reveal that private firms subject to expert network calls are approximately 60% more likely to subsequently raise capital, and transactions preceded by expert network calls raise 73% more capital than those without such calls. Examining call content, we find that sentiment in expert responses predicts both higher deal probability and larger capital commitments, while investor question sentiment shows no such association. Our evidence suggests that expert networks help overcome information asymmetries in private markets, a setting where traditional information intermediaries have limited presence, by facilitating the transfer of specialized knowledge. These findings contribute to our understanding of information intermediation in capital allocation decisions and private market investment processes.