As an example of an business that does not seek to extract liquidity at “arbitrary time horizons,” Hartung pointed to multinational conglomerate holding company Berkshire Hathaway. “They want the transaction from shareholders as liquidity,” he said.
Fenwick-Smith told the audience that investor patience gives small companies the opportunity to blossom and become an important part of tomorrow's economy. Expecting to transform “the IBMs and the Exxons of this world” into impact companies probably isn’t realistic, he said.
“But working with young companies, that's where you really have a chance to make a difference. It’s the only way we're really going to become an impact society,” he said. “There are huge opportunities out there. We see them every day. And they're exciting.”