We at Foresight are often asked for advice on nanotechnology investing, which we are not qualified to give, so we refer folks elsewhere. Most sources of nanotech investing advice are boosters, so it’s also useful to hear from those taking another view. Over at Nanotechnology Now we get some unusually blunt comments from columnist Pearl Chin, whom some of you have met at Foresight events. An excerpt:
My point is that investing in nanotechnology is a lot more difficult than investing in publicly viewable nanotechnology indices. If it were that easy, we’d all be making money right now investing in them. However, they are currently underperforming the S&P 500 and it will be some time before they outperform it if ever. It will not be easy money and it will not be made tomorrow because those small companies (IBM excluded) listed on the indices are immature…
The ones who will be making money on nanotechnology are not the people investing in those nanotechnology mutual funds or according to those indices. That money has already been made. Those early private investors have just dumped that stock as a public listing on the unsuspecting public sucker so they can make a return on their investment.
Read the whole thing if nanotech investing is on your mind. You may agree or disagree, but it’s a perspective to be aware of. Although I know little about investing, even I’m aware that it’s very risky to invest in companies which are not yet making profits, whether they are public companies (i.e., they sell stock to the public) or not. Better to leave those risks to angel investors and venture capital firms. —Christine
