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By Erin Griffith
When the coronavirus pandemic first hit in March, many tech companies prepared for the end as business shrinked, venture capitalists warned of the dark times ahead and restructuring experts predicted the start of a “big streak” after a decade. Boom. Array
Five months later, those apocalyptic warnings resulted in the drastic turmoil that many expected.
Funding for start-ups has remained strong, especially for giant companies. Some of them, such as the percentage trading app Robinhood and Discord, the social networking site, have attracted heaps of millions of dollars in new capital in recent months, expanding their valuations. And the initial public offerings of generation corporations have returned, along with the increase in the inventory market.
“Things are far greater than our worst fears 90 days ago,” said Rich Wong, an investor in Accel, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm.
However, it is a turbulent time for some companies. Getaround, a start-up of cars-sharing, started the year by firing 150 workers and cutting some operations. Two months later, with the spread of the coronavirus, the business worsened, with new layoffs.
But in May, the business was recovered when other people started the start-up cars to get back on the road. Getaround’s earnings in the United States for the year are now 40% higher than a year ago. Last month, he took all his license workers and began hiring again.
“We’ve noticed a very, very immediate recovery,” said Sam Zaid, managing director of Getaround, adding that it is now expanding more liquidity. “It’s a bit of a crazy race.”
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