Venture capital commonly known as VC or Venture is a type of private equity capital typically provided to early-stage, high-potential, and growth companies in the interest of generating a return through an eventual realization event such as an IPO or trade sale of the company. Venture capital investments are generally made as cash in exchange for preferential shares in the invested company. Often venture capital investors identify and invest in high technology industries such as biotechnology and IT.

The most competent core skill within VC is the ability to identify novel technologies that have the potential to generate high commercial returns at an early stage. By definition, VCs also take a role in managing entrepreneurial companies at an nascent stage, thus adding skills as well as capital hence differentiating VC from buy out private equity which typically invest in companies with proven revenue, and thereby potentially realizing much higher rates of returns.

A venture capitalist or VC firm bring in managerial and technical expertise in addition to the capital thus looking to the growth of the investment .The capital generally is a pooled fund that is primarily invested in enterprises which the standard capital market or bank loans refer as high risk, so it is a high risk versus high profit high loss scenario mostly Venture capital also helps with job creation, the knowledge economy and used as a proxy measure of innovation within an economic sector or geography.

Early stage venture capital is most attractive for new companies with limited operating history that are too small to raise capital in the public markets and are too immature to secure a bank loan in absence of a fixed asset or collateral or complete a debt offering. In exchange for the high risk that venture capitalists assume by investing in smaller and less mature companies, venture capitalists usually get major control over company decisions, in addition to a significant portion of the company's ownership (and consequently value).

Young companies wishing to raise require a combination of extremely rare yet sought after qualities, such as innovative technology, potential for rapid growth, well thought through business model and impressive management team. VCs typically reject 98% of opportunities presented to them reflecting the rarity of this combination.