Billionaire Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s right-hand man, says a lot of venture capitalists screw their investors

Billionaire Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s right-hand man, isn’t shy about his dislike for venture capitalists. In 2014, the legendary investor told the Wall Street Journal that it would be better for venture capital funds to light their money “on fire with an acetylene torch” than to invest in internet startups. Now, at the age of 99, soon to turn 100 on Jan. 1, he has another message for venture capitalists: “To hell with them!” Munger, vice chairman of the famed holding company Berkshire Hathaway and one of the world’s most successful investors, discussed his disdain of venture capitalists, as well as his obsession with Costco, the state of the global stock market, and the concept of investing versus gambling, on the podcast Acquired on Sunday. “You don’t want to make money by screwing your investors, and that’s what a lot of venture capitalists do,” Munger said on Acquired. “You really shouldn’t be in the business of charging extra unless you really are going to achieve very unusual results,” Munger added, referring to the higher fees venture capitalists charge compared to other kinds of investments and the promise of venture capital providing bigger returns. “Of course, it’s more easy to pretend that you can get good results than actually get them, and so it attracts the wrong people.” The average annual return for venture capital investments over the past 20 years was 11.8%, versus 12% for the Nasdaq Composite, according to Cambridge Associates.