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KDI 경제교육·정보센터

ENG
  • 경제배움
  • Economic

    Information

    and Education

    Center

최신자료
Private Capital Markets and Inequality
CEPR
2026.06.22
This paper examines how expanding private capital markets contribute to rising economic inequalities in the U.S. We show that the share of early-stage financing raised from U.S. high-net-worth individuals tripled from 2004 to 2022. Exploiting the expansion of the QSBS tax exclusion, we find that HNWIs’ investments made startups 5.6% more likely to stay private. Counterfactual simulations reveal that HNWIs’ excess returns on early-stage investments explain 26% of the growth in the top 0.5% wealth share over 2010-2022. Finally, investor entry increased incumbents’ returns and encouraged further investments, generating a self-reinforcing feedback loop between private capital market growth and inequality.