It seems to me that the problem with public markets isn't so much the timing but the presence of a profit motive. Trying to beat the S&P 500 over any period from 1 year to 50 years seems like a daunting task.
Being in public markets forces a company to care about maximizing the return on capital. Different CEOs have different abilities to communicate the timeline investors should actually expect returns. Bezos seems exceptionally talented at extending the expected timelines of profitability when communicating to investors.
The real benefit of private companies appears to be the secrecy and the freedom to do things without any hint of a profit motive. SpaceX stands as a shining example. Their goal is to get to Mars. They won't go public unless they already regularly go to Mars or maybe if they desperately need the money.
Another example is Chick-fil-A, the third-largest fast-food chain in the US. They close their restaurants on Sundays due to religious reasons. This costs the company almost 15% of revenue. Whether or not you agree with the policy, it's hard to imagine it would last long if Chick-fil-A was public.
The real value of staying private is not disclosing financials and getting to do whatever you want. The goal of your private company doesn't have to be maximizing returns if you don't want it to be.
An LTSE seems to only offer value for CEOs who have trouble communicating the strategy and long term vision of the company. Amazon doesn't have any trouble with that communication. Neither does Alphabet. Maybe placing your company in an LTSE will providing useful signaling but I'm not sure about the real impact it'll make outside of the retail investment market.
Being in public markets forces a company to care about maximizing the return on capital. Different CEOs have different abilities to communicate the timeline investors should actually expect returns. Bezos seems exceptionally talented at extending the expected timelines of profitability when communicating to investors.
The real benefit of private companies appears to be the secrecy and the freedom to do things without any hint of a profit motive. SpaceX stands as a shining example. Their goal is to get to Mars. They won't go public unless they already regularly go to Mars or maybe if they desperately need the money.
Another example is Chick-fil-A, the third-largest fast-food chain in the US. They close their restaurants on Sundays due to religious reasons. This costs the company almost 15% of revenue. Whether or not you agree with the policy, it's hard to imagine it would last long if Chick-fil-A was public.
The real value of staying private is not disclosing financials and getting to do whatever you want. The goal of your private company doesn't have to be maximizing returns if you don't want it to be.
An LTSE seems to only offer value for CEOs who have trouble communicating the strategy and long term vision of the company. Amazon doesn't have any trouble with that communication. Neither does Alphabet. Maybe placing your company in an LTSE will providing useful signaling but I'm not sure about the real impact it'll make outside of the retail investment market.