But without capital, he knew his StarMedia Network would amount to nothing more than a good idea. He traveled the U.S. begging venture firms to invest, but he says nobody north of the border could grasp the potential of Latin computing. By the time Mr. Espuelas came to pitch Chase Capital, he had collected rejection letters from nearly 40 other venture firms and he wasn't expecting much. Chase loved the idea. And they had deep pockets.
Nobody has the network.
Of course, today's hot market for new listings makes winning look easy. Chase bought into Triton PCS, a cellular-phone technology company that recently went public. These are, in the final tally, still the guardians of deposits that are putting their capital into an extremely volatile business, one that is highly dependent on a buoyant stock market. It is fine while markets support new stock listings. Chase concedes it may have too much of a good thing.