Graduation Year

2024

Date of Submission

12-2023

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Economics

Reader 1

Florian Madison

Abstract

Over the past several years, search funds have been growing as a medium of entrepreneurship and as an alternative asset class. The search fund is a relatively new asset class and there has been a drastic rise in search funds’ popularity for both searchers and investors. Thus, search funds have begun to spread across the globe, but with a limited presence, especially in emerging markets. This paper aims to outline what a search fund is; search funds’ respective economics, variations, lifecycle, etc.; the observations of search funds within North America; the observations of international search funds; the respective differences between North American and international search funds; and the potential implications the search fund model may have in emerging markets. By outlining and explaining the respective components of the search fund model while discussing the observations of the search fund model between North American and international search funds, I deduce that – while there is limited data available – the search fund model would be able to perform well in emerging markets due to factors like strong macroeconomic headwinds, “idea arbitrage”, scarcity of talent, and limited private equity competition. While this paper does contain significant processed data, a large portion of the analysis on whether the search fund model would be applicable in emerging markets is qualitatively-based.

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This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.

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