In today's competitive market, innovation stands as a cornerstone of organisational success, with Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) emerging as a pivotal tool for injecting innovative ideas and technologies into established corporations. However, maintaining strategic focus within CVCs presents notable challenges. This thesis delves into the complicated dynamics of how CVCs can effectively navigate their strategic objectives while delivering value to both their parent companies and startups. Collaborating with Company Z, this research employs a robust qualitative approach to ensure the validity and reliability of its findings. Through qualitative methods, this study develops a comprehensive framework aimed at offering a structured yet flexible approach, empowering CVCs to optimise their operations, foster innovation, and sustain long-term success. The research design encompasses interviews segmented into "pre-study" and "main" phases. The pre-study phase involves unstructured interviews with Company Z to establish foundational insights and identify key challenges and themes. Subsequently, semi-structured main interviews delve deeper into these themes, allowing for flexibility while maintaining consistency. From the literature review and pre-study interviews, four components emerged as critical for strategic success: Organisational structure, Governance, Investment process, and Performance metrics. Building on these insights, this study develops a framework with actionable insights and practical solutions to assist CVCs in navigating the complexities of strategic alignment and value creation across these five themes. By examining organisational structure, governance, investment practices, performance metrics and sustainability this study offers insights into optimising communication, fostering sustainability, and building high-performing teams. Inspired by the concept of 'simple rules,' this framework provides a comprehensive guide for navigating the intricacies of CVC operations, ensuring alignment with parent company objectives while driving innovation and strategic growth.

O presente trabalho buscou investigar, sob a perspectiva da Teoria da Sinalização, o papel certificador dos fundos de Private Equity e Venture Capital (PE/VC) sobre a qualidade das empresas estreantes na BM&FBovespa (IPOs). Para isso, propôs-se um estudo de evento visando constatar a existência de retornos anormais acumulados (proxy para qualidade dos IPOs) em carteiras de investimentos compostas por ações provenientes dos IPOs realizados na BM&FBovespa, no período de janeiro de 2004 a dezembro de 2007. As hipóteses do trabalho foram verificadas por meio de três procedimentos distintos: teste de médias, método CAPM e regressões CAR. Os resultados dos testes de médias indicaram que os IPOs de empresas investidas por fundos de PE/VC apresentaram desempenhos de curto, médio e longo prazo (até 5 anos) superiores e estatisticamente significantes em relação às empresas não investidas. Além disso, os resultados demonstraram que quanto maior a participação dos fundos de PE/VC na empresa investida, melhor o desempenho de longo prazo. Os resultados do método CAPM indicaram que os retornos observados dos IPOs foram inferiores aos retornos esperados, dado o nível de risco assumido. As regressões CAR verificaram se a presença de fundos de PE/VC explica retornos anormais positivos dos IPOs, após controle de outros fatores. As evidências encontradas sugerem que a presença de fundos de PE/VC nas empresas estreantes na BM&FBovespa possui efeito positivo sobre os retornos anormais acumulados dos IPOs e, quanto maior a participação acionária detida pelo fundo de PE/VC na empresa, no momento imediatamente anterior ao IPO, maiores os retornos anormais acumulados de longo prazo. Em geral, os retornos das amostras analisadas foram inferiores ao desempenho do índice Ibovespa, podendo ser um reflexo da crise financeira mundial, com maior impacto sobre empresas com histórico recente na bolsa (IPOs), em relação às empresas tradicionais (blue chips) que integram o Ibovespa. / This study investigated, under the perspective of Signaling Theory, the certifier role of Private Equity and Venture Capital investments (PE/VC) on the quality of initial public offerings (IPOs) at BM&FBovespa. It was proposed an event study in order to examine the existence of cumulative abnormal returns (proxy for IPOs quality) in portfolios composed of stocks from the IPOs occurred on BM&FBovespa, from January 2004 to December 2007. The hypotheses of this study were verified by three different procedures: test for equality of means, CAPM method and CAR regressions. The tests for equality of means suggested that the companies that received investments of PE/VC, before the IPOs, had statistical significant short, medium and long-term performances (up to 5 years) higher than non-invested companies. Besides that, the results showed that the higher the equity PE/VC held in the companies, before the IPO, better the long-term yield. The CAPM method indicated that the observed returns were lower than the expected returns, given the level of risk assumed. CAR regressions examined whether the presence of PE/VC explains positive abnormal returns of the IPOs, after controlling for other factors. The evidence suggests that the presence of PE/VC has positive effect on the cumulative abnormal returns on the IPOs, and the higher the equity held by the PE/VC in the firm, immediately before the IPO, the greater the long-term cumulative abnormal returns. In general, the returns of the samples were below Ibovespa index, which may be a reflection of the global financial crisis, with greater impact on companies with recent history in the stock market (IPOs), compared to traditional firms (blue chips) that integrate Ibovespa.

O presente trabalho buscou investigar, sob a perspectiva da Teoria da Sinalização, o papel certificador dos fundos de Private Equity e Venture Capital (PE/VC) sobre a qualidade das empresas estreantes na BM&FBovespa (IPOs). Para isso, propôs-se um estudo de evento visando constatar a existência de retornos anormais acumulados (proxy para qualidade dos IPOs) em carteiras de investimentos compostas por ações provenientes dos IPOs realizados na BM&FBovespa, no período de janeiro de 2004 a dezembro de 2007. As hipóteses do trabalho foram verificadas por meio de três procedimentos distintos: teste de médias, método CAPM e regressões CAR. Os resultados dos testes de médias indicaram que os IPOs de empresas investidas por fundos de PE/VC apresentaram desempenhos de curto, médio e longo prazo (até 5 anos) superiores e estatisticamente significantes em relação às empresas não investidas. Além disso, os resultados demonstraram que quanto maior a participação dos fundos de PE/VC na empresa investida, melhor o desempenho de longo prazo. Os resultados do método CAPM indicaram que os retornos observados dos IPOs foram inferiores aos retornos esperados, dado o nível de risco assumido. As regressões CAR verificaram se a presença de fundos de PE/VC explica retornos anormais positivos dos IPOs, após controle de outros fatores. As evidências encontradas sugerem que a presença de fundos de PE/VC nas empresas estreantes na BM&FBovespa possui efeito positivo sobre os retornos anormais acumulados dos IPOs e, quanto maior a participação acionária detida pelo fundo de PE/VC na empresa, no momento imediatamente anterior ao IPO, maiores os retornos anormais acumulados de longo prazo. Em geral, os retornos das amostras analisadas foram inferiores ao desempenho do índice Ibovespa, podendo ser um reflexo da crise financeira mundial, com maior impacto sobre empresas com histórico recente na bolsa (IPOs), em relação às empresas tradicionais (blue chips) que integram o Ibovespa. / This study investigated, under the perspective of Signaling Theory, the certifier role of Private Equity and Venture Capital investments (PE/VC) on the quality of initial public offerings (IPOs) at BM&FBovespa. It was proposed an event study in order to examine the existence of cumulative abnormal returns (proxy for IPOs quality) in portfolios composed of stocks from the IPOs occurred on BM&FBovespa, from January 2004 to December 2007. The hypotheses of this study were verified by three different procedures: test for equality of means, CAPM method and CAR regressions. The tests for equality of means suggested that the companies that received investments of PE/VC, before the IPOs, had statistical significant short, medium and long-term performances (up to 5 years) higher than non-invested companies. Besides that, the results showed that the higher the equity PE/VC held in the companies, before the IPO, better the long-term yield. The CAPM method indicated that the observed returns were lower than the expected returns, given the level of risk assumed. CAR regressions examined whether the presence of PE/VC explains positive abnormal returns of the IPOs, after controlling for other factors. The evidence suggests that the presence of PE/VC has positive effect on the cumulative abnormal returns on the IPOs, and the higher the equity held by the PE/VC in the firm, immediately before the IPO, the greater the long-term cumulative abnormal returns. In general, the returns of the samples were below Ibovespa index, which may be a reflection of the global financial crisis, with greater impact on companies with recent history in the stock market (IPOs), compared to traditional firms (blue chips) that integrate Ibovespa.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-02T21:43:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Luis Carlos Domingos.pdf: 1011593 bytes, checksum: b67a228b0d89f09a5f55298b6c0b8180 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-12 / Competitive advantage and organizational performance are both management concepts closely connected to the companies competitiveness and their long-term permanence in the market. In order to reach such goal, according to the RBV foundations, the organizational capabilities of those companies must be dynamic, which means being ahead of the environmental changes, maintaining, creating and developing new capabilities. One of the ways that enables it to happen is the focus on its capitalization, which can be done with the fundraising from third parties or from own resources, with higher or lower degree of risk. Fundraising with third party capital occurs, mainly, through financial institutions and factorings. The fundraising with the use of the companies own resources, can be done through retained earnings or underwriting. The emission made through primary market sets up the initial public offering of shares or Initial Public Offering (IPO). In Brazil, the choice of Private Equity and Venture Capital funds, segments of the financial market that consist mainly of temporary fund raising, has considerably increased in recent years. However, there are only a few academic researches about the use and financial performance that these funds provide to the companies. This study seeks to examine whether companies listed at BOVESPA from 2002 to 2008 and which received funds via Private Equity and Venture Capital with IPO developed superior financial performance than those that received or not other kind of financing in the same period. We selected secondary data such as: balance sheets, profit and shareholder value, using the database Economática. Taking the logarithm of Tobin s Q as dependent variable and log_Ativo, Debt to Equity, ROA, sales raising, investment raising, investment raising Fame and investment raising indebtedness as control variables, statistic tests were used, comparing the average of the indexes, followed by analysis of economic sector, subsector and follow up. The result shows that the companies that received funds through Private Equity and Venture Capital with IPO became different from other companies that were listed at BOVESPA in that period. The present paper aims to contribute to the enrichment of academic knowledge towards this issue.(AU) / A vantagem competitiva e o desempenho organizacional são conceitos administrativos estreitamente ligados à competitividade das empresas e sua permanência no mercado a longo prazo. Para que alcancem tal objetivo, de acordo com os fundamentos da RBV, as capacidades organizacionais dessas empresas devem ser dinâmicas, o que significa estar à frente das mudanças ambientais, mantendo, criando e desenvolvendo novas capacidades. Um dos caminhos para que isso se realize é a aposta na sua capitalização, que pode ocorrer com a captação de recursos de terceiros ou recursos próprios, com maior ou menor grau de risco. A captação de recursos com capital de terceiros acontece, principalmente, via instituições financeiras e factorings. A captação por meio de capital próprio pode ocorrer por retenção de lucros ou pelo underwriting. A emissão feita via mercado primário configura a oferta pública inicial de ações ou Initial Public Offering (IPO). No Brasil, a escolha dos fundos de Private Equity e Venture Capital, segmentos do mercado financeiro que consistem fundamentalmente em aporte temporário de capital, vem crescendo consideravelmente nos últimos anos. Contudo, existem poucas pesquisas a respeito da utilização e do desempenho financeiro que esses fundos trazem para as empresas. O presente estudo procura averiguar se as empresas que estavam listadas na BOVESPA no período de 2002 a 2008 e que receberam recursos via Private Equity e Venture Capital com IPO desenvolveram desempenho financeiro superior às que receberam ou não outros tipos de financiamento no mesmo período. Foram selecionados dados secundários como: balanços patrimoniais, demonstração de resultados e valores das ações, utilizando-se da base de dados da Economática. Tomando o logaritmo do Q de Tobin como variável dependente e log_Ativo, Debt to Equity, ROA, crescimento de vendas, crescimento de investimentos, crescimento investimento Fama e CrescInv_endividamento como variáveis de controle, foram aplicados testes estatísticos, comparando a média dos índices, seguidos de análise por setor econômico, subsetor e segmento. Os resultados encontrados apontam que as empresas que receberam recursos via Private Equity e Venture Capital com IPO, tornaram-se diferentes das demais empresas que estavam listadas na BOVESPA naquele período. O presente trabalho busca, dessa forma, contribuir para o enriquecimento de conhecimento acadêmico acerca do tema.(AU)

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:32:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Mauricio Takahashi.pdf: 3377375 bytes, checksum: ece60e39e3d556f50a1a995be5cf53fa (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-05-23 / This dissertation has built a tool for capturing behavior of the entrepreneur to be able to investigate experimentally if is observed the emergence of cooperative behaviors perceived as potentially spontaneously by entrepreneurs in response to decisions modeled Investors Early Stage (Early Stage) on the strategic interaction between them at the time of the "Closing the Deal" in the industry of Private Equity and Venture Capital (PE / VC), the Theory of Games. To do so, brief review of the theoretical characteristics of the industry Private Equity and Venture Capital is made in order to understand the characteristics of the experiment and understand the peculiarities existing in this type of interaction, in which value creation is long term process and dependent on extensive procedures in which underlies the cooperation of agents. A review of Game Theory was made to search for an alternative to the selfish behavior of non-cooperation. The alternative found is a Nash Equilibrium Perfect in Sub- Infinitely Repeated Games, in which it could be the spontaneous emergence of cooperation, even if the agents are in a situation like the Prisoners' Dilemma, in which the rewards, in the short term are higher for the behaviors of non-cooperation. Then, the Entrepreneurs Game its modeling and implementation, which was used for the construction of the tool data capture. In addiction are presented the two questionnaires that were selected as validation tools of the Game, working as a mapping of control variables aiming future validation of the Game. It was possible to observe a finding, even if only preliminary, that is the "learning effect" observed when analyzing the entrepreneurs responses in which the behavior of noncooperation was terminated. / A presente dissertação construiu uma ferramenta de captação de comportamento do empreendedor que é capaz de investigar de forma experimental se é observado o surgimento de comportamentos tidos como potencialmente cooperativos, de forma espontânea por parte de empreendedores, em resposta às decisões modeladas de Investidores de Estágio Inicial (Early Stage) na interação estratégica entre estes, no momento do Fechamento do Negócio na indústria de Private Equity e Venture Capital (P.E. / V.C.), à luz da Teoria dos Jogos. Para tanto, faz-se uma breve revisão teórica das características da indústria de Private Equity e Venture Capital a fim de se entender as características do experimento e entender as peculiaridades existentes deste tipo de interação, na qual a criação de valor é de longo prazo e dependente de um processo extenso, no qual está subjacente a cooperação dos agentes. Uma revisão da Teoria dos Jogos é feita para que se busque uma alternativa ao comportamento egoísta de não cooperação. A alternativa encontrada é uma situação de Equilíbrio de Nash Perfeito em Sub-Jogos Infinitamente Repetidos, na qual pode haver o surgimento espontâneo de cooperação, mesmo que os agentes estejam em uma situação do tipo Dilema dos Prisioneiros, na qual as recompensas, no curto prazo, são maiores para os comportamentos de não cooperação. Em seguida, são apresentados o jogo e o seu modelamento e implementação, que foi utilizado para a construção da ferramenta de captura de dados. São apresentados, ainda os dois questionários que foram selecionados como instrumentos de validação do jogo, funcionando como um mapeamento de variáveis de controle visando validação futura do jogo. Foi possível se observar um achado, ainda que de forma preliminar, que é o efeito aprendizagem observado ao se analisar as respostas dos empreendedores no qual o comportamento de não cooperação foi extinto.

Henkel's New Business team is a corporate venturing unit that explores corporate entrepreneurial activities on behalf of Henkel Adhesives Technologies. The new business ideas are implemented through one of these models: incubator, venturing or innovation ecosystem. In current practice, there is no systematic framework in place to choose the implementation model. The goal of the thesis is to propose a framework for choosing the most appropriate model for implementation of a new business idea in Henkel. The thesis approaches the topic on practical and theoretical grounds. The first part outlines the related literature and theoretical focus. The literature covers definitions and theories of incubator, corporate venturing, corporate venture capital, innovation ecosystem and investment decision-making process. The practical approach relates to the company case studies of Philips, 3M and BASF. In this thesis, each model is analyzed based on a broad literature review, case studies and personal interviews with experts. The second part is the main discussion and analysis of the topic assembling with practical examples in Henkel. It comes to a recommendation that Henkel should prioritize and choose the most appropriate model for the new business proposal after the "concept scoping" stage, and before detailed investigation. It also proposes a scorecard framework that entails 14 key criteria for choosing the mode: degree of market competition, potential disruptiveness, technological risk, time to market, strategic alignment, degree of customization, dependency of related industries, technological newness of related industries, idea source, protectability of intellectual property, internal expertise, technological competence, commercial competence and parenting advantages. Furthermore, a new business developing strategy matrix is constructed based on two dimensions: strategic importance and operational relatedness. It is to further check the accuracy and validity of the results from the scorecard framework. Finally, it is suggested that future research can be done to improve the framework by adding weightings and scale of each criteria within the framework.

L’objet de cette recherche est d’identifier et analyser les facteurs déterminants de l’évolution du capital-investissement dans l’Europe de l’Est. De plus, notre travail compare les déterminants de LBO, respectivement de l’activité de VC dans les pays d’Europe de l’Est. Le modèle empirique comprend de nombreux déterminants déjà testés dans des études précédentes ainsi que de nouvelles variables telles que la productivité et l’indice de corruption, que nous considérons comme des facteurs importants pour expliquer l’évolution des investissements en capital-investissement en Europe de l’Est. Nos résultats confirment les hypothèses existantes concernant l’importance de certains déterminants sur l’évolution des investissements en capital-investissement en Europe de l’Est. Cependant, dans le contexte de la dernière crise, de nouveaux facteurs sont apparus comme importants pour le marché du capital investissement en Europe, tels que la productivité ou la corruption. La dernière partie de cette recherche montrent que les sociétés de capital-investissement en Europe de l’Est préfèrent les sorties à travers des fusions et acquisitions, suivies des introductions en bourse. De plus, nous validons une relation d'équilibre à long terme entre les investissements en capital-investissement, les introductions en bourse et les fusions et acquisitions. Le test de causalité de Granger montre l'existence d'une causalité unidirectionnelle du nombre de fusions et acquisitions par rapport au volume des investissements en capital-investissement en Europe de l'Est. / The purpose of this research is to identify and analyze the determinants of the evolution of private equity in Eastern Europe. Additionally, this paper compares the determinants of leveraged buyout activity, respectively venture capital activity in Eastern European countries. The empirical model of the first two sections includes many of the determinants already tested in previous studies and also new variables such as productivity and corruption index which we consider important factors in explaining the evolution of private equity investments in Europe. Our results confirm existing hypotheses regarding the importance of some determinants on the evolution of private equity investments in Europe. However, in the context of the last crisis new factors emerged as important for the private equity market in Europe such as productivity or corruption. The last section of this work tests the existence of a causal link between the evolution of private equity and the number of divestments of private equity funds in Eastern Europe during the financial crisis. Our results show that Eastern European private equity firms prefer M&A exits followed by IPOs. Furthermore, we validate a long-term equilibrium relationship between private equity investments, IPO and M&A. The Granger causality test shows the existence of a unidirectional causality of the number of M&A to the volume of private equity investments in Eastern Europe.

One of the single biggest challenges for start-ups is to find the necessary funding to achieve growth. Software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies are no different and rely on seed stage investments to build and develop a service in order to acquire paying customers. Given the need of external investments, SaaS companies heavily depend on their valuation for each given investor. The purpose of this study was to investigate the main value determinants for seed stage SaaS company valuations. Hence, the research question at issue was “What are the main value determinants for seed stage SaaS company valuations?”. This study was delimited to seed stage SaaS companies with a business to business (B2B) service offering in Sweden. This qualitative research was carried out through semi-structured in-depth interviews with seed stage SaaS B2B founders and investors operating in Sweden. The primary results of the qualitative research show that the main value determinants can be divided into three main factors. Firstly, external factors, such as the region, industry, and market that the company is operating within. Secondly, company factors include team and founder characteristics, firm characteristics, SaaS metrics and financials, and partnership and alliances. Thirdly, investor factors, including investor type as well as reputation and value-add. Following the findings, similarities and differences with literature were discussed. Based on the results, a revised framework including the main value determinants for seed stage SaaS company valuation was developed. The conclusion of this study is that seed stage SaaS company valuations vary among investor types. The valuation tends to not be bound to a specific valuation method, but rather a process where an overall evaluation is made from a set of criteria, which leads up to the valuation process where the final valuation is set. / En av de största utmaningarna för nystartade företag är att genomföra extern kapitalanskaffning för att uppnå tillväxt. Det gäller även för SaaS-företag (Software-as-a-service) vilka är beroende av investeringar i seed stage (fröstadiet) för att bygga upp och utveckla tjänster för att erhålla betalande kunder. Givet behovet av externa investeringar är SaaS-företag starkt beroende av dess värdering från investerare. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka de viktigaste värdedeterminanterna för värdering av SaaS-bolag i seed stage. Forskningsfrågan var således "Vilka är de viktigaste värdedeterminanterna för värderingar av SaaS-företag i seed stage?". Studien avgränsades till SaaS-företag som erbjuder B2B-tjänster i Sverige. Denna kvalitativa studie genomfördes genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med seed stage SaaS B2B-grundare och investerare som är verksamma i Sverige. De övergripande resultaten visar att de viktigaste värdedeterminanterna kan delas in i tre huvudfaktorer: externa faktorer, företagsfaktorer, och investerarfaktorer. Externa faktorer avser region, bransch, och marknad inom vilka företaget är verksamt. Företagsfaktorer inkluderar teamet och grundarnas egenskaper, företagets egenskaper, SaaS-mått och finansiella data, samt partnerskap och allianser. Investerarfaktorer avser typen av investerare samt investerarens rykte och mervärde. Utfallet från intervjuerna jämfördes med resultat från tidigare litteratur. Baserat på intervjuresultaten utvecklades ett reviderat ramverk med de viktigaste värdedeterminanterna för värdering av SaaS-bolag i seed stage. Slutsatsen av denna studie är att värdering av SaaS-företag i seed stage varierar mellan olika investerartyper. Värderingen tenderar att inte vara bunden till en specifik värderingsmetod, utan en process där en övergripande utvärdering görs baserat på en uppsättning av kriterier, vilket resulterar i en slutgiltig värdering.

SMEs are considered as the best possible vehicle to reduce the unemployment rate and increase economic participation in the country, specifically for historically disadvantaged people. Due to, among other things, the lack of small business management skills, the potential of SMEs cannot be fully realised. From the study it was found that one of the major reasons why SMEs fail to secure loans is a lack of management accounting skills. This lack of management accounting skills is due to a lack of mentors, training and business education. The study has identified a number of management accounting skills which most of the venture capital providers consider when they evaluate applications for loans. From empirical survey it was considered that budgeting, cash flow management and product costing were considered as imperative by most venture capital providers. / Management Accounting / (M. Com.)

<p>Bakgrund: De svenska börsbolagen gör större vinster än någonsin tidigare, men har fått stor kritik för att vara för långsamma i sin vinstallokering. Företag med överkapitaliserade balansräkningar utan investeringsbehov är potentiella måltavlor för riskkapitalisternas affärsidé om finansiell effektivisering och en aggressivare kapitalstruktur. Debatten i media har skapat kritik kring dessa så kallade kortsiktiga och giriga bolagsplundrare som påstås förstöra finansiella värden och kreditvärdigheten i företagen. I tidigare fall har marknaden svarat positivt på riskkapitalisternas investeringar, något som har reflekterats i ett kraftigt ökande aktiepris. Skeptiker hävdar dock att spekulationer är anledningen till att marknadsvärdet drivs upp, inte fundamentala aspekter.</p><p>Syfte: Syftet med denna magisteruppsats är att fastställa en bild av fenomenet riskkapital och hur dess aktiva ägande inverkar på svenska börsbolags kreditbetyg, kapitalstruktur och värdering.</p><p>Metod: För att uppnå syftet med vår magisteruppsats har en kvalitativ ansats till-lämpats baserad på tre börsbolag där riskkapitalisters aktiva ägande spelat en betydande roll. Det empiriska materialet har insamlats genom personliga intervjuer med aktie- och kreditanalytiker, och studien förlitar sig även på markandsdata, artiklar och nyhetssändningar i media, samt respektive bolags kvartals- och årsrapporter.</p><p>Slutsats: Studien har gjorts over den tidsperiod som varit riskkapitalisternas inve-steringshorisont – explicit och implicit. Genom att analysera det aktiva ägarskapet i tre svenska börsbolag kan slutsatsen dras att det inverkat positivt i form av högre prestanda och marknadsvärdering. De finansiella förändringarna har, till skillnad från kritiken, styrkt kreditbetyget i fallen Lindex och Volvo. En analys av Skandia/Old Mutual visade dock en marginellt ökad kreditrisk. Slutsatsen visar härmed att riskkapitalisternas inverkan på svenska börsbolag är värdeförädlande utan att äventyra den finansiella statusen.</p> / <p>Background: The Swedish blue chip companies are performing better than ever, but have been strongly criticised for being too slow in their excess fund allocation. Companies with overcapitalised balance sheets and no investment needs are potential targets for activist funds’ business idea of more aggressive capital structures and financial restructuring. In media, this debate has raised criticism against these so called short-sighted, greedy asset-strippers that destroy company values and increase the companies’ risk of default. In prior cases where activist funds have taken actions, the market has responded positively through increasing the share price. However, sceptics argue that the higher share price is merely a response to a speculative reaction with no fundamental argument supporting the upgrade in market capitalisation.</p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to establish a view of the phenomenon of activist funds and their impact on blue chip companies’, listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, credit rating, capital structure and valuation.</p><p>Method: To fulfil the purpose of our master thesis, a qualitative approach has been applied based on three cases involving the activities of activist funds. The empirical findings have been retrieved via personal communications with stock- and credit analysts, and the study also relies on articles and news coverage from media, stock market data and annual reports from each of the chosen companies respectively.</p><p>Conclusion: The study has regarded the period of time which has been the investment horizon of the activist funds – explicitly and implicitly. Analysing their active ownership, the conclusion can be drawn that these activist funds have clearly had a positive impact on each of the blue chip companies’ performance and intrinsic value respectively. The financial restructuring has - contrarily to the criticism – strengthened the credit ratings in the cases of Lindex and Volvo. In the Skandia/Old Mutual-case, a marginally higher default risk was detected. Thus, the study has concluded that activist funds indeed add significant shareholder value without jeopardising the companies’ financial statuses.</p>