Investor Readiness in the Western Balkans: challenges, opportunities and practical experiences. Andrea Basso EU4TECH, MITO andrea.basso@mitotech.eu Eva Baltar JRC, European Commission Eva.BALTAR@ec.europa.eu Page 1
What is investor Readiness Characteristics that an investee should have to become an appropriate funding opportunity (Gregory et al., 2012). Minimal Viable Product (MVP) Strong competitive advantage Commercial traction Big and growing market Validated business model Credible and experienced team Able to properly present the business idea Wiliness to accept investment in exchange of equity Page 2
Opportunities - investments in WB The long-term EU perspective Strong macroeconomic stability Strategic geographic location Diverse economies Favorable tax regimes Low unit labor costs Well-educated population. Page 3 EY / inno/ T 3 I Ltd / MITO consortium https://www.ebrd.com/news/2016/how-the-western-balkans-can-catch-up.html
Innovation types Page 4
Challenges in Investor Readiness in the WB Equity aversion: potential advantages of equity as funding and investor knowledge. Equity finance is only marginally used in the region Fundability: capability to demonstrate a viable revenue model, market traction, IPR issues, have a competitive strategy, etc. Presentation skills: effectively pitch their business ideas Networking: matching between entrepreneurs and investors. Page 5
Investors or Entrepreneur fault? Lack of supply of equity finance Lack of readiness of entrepreneurs to attract financing Page 6
Boosting Investor Readiness Capacity building practical training programs Mentoring and coaching Institutional commitment government bodies, public organizations, universities and research centers Coach Investors on the peculiarities of technology-based projects to support better informed decision making, Page 7
Overview of EU4TECH Key objective: to support and strengthen the technology transfer and innovation ecosystem in the countries of the Western Balkans Coverage: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia Duration: January 2017 December 2019 Contacting authority: DG NEAR with technical support from JRC Consortium: EY (lead), Inno, T 3 I, MITO Technology Page 8
People on the ground KE1/TL Dr. Julia Djarova (Key Expert 1: Team Leader) Mobile: +31 6 2908 4883 Email: julia.djarova@nl.ey.com KE2 Dr Lisa Cowey (Key Expert 2 Technology Transfer Expert) Mobile: SR: +381 61 6468 181 Email: l.cowey@t3i.co.uk Skype: lisacowey oxford UK Dr. Andrea Basso (Early Stage Investment Expert) Email: andrea.basso@mitotech.eu Page 9
Overview of the project components 0 Inception/ Capacity Building Strategy 3 S&T Parks and Incubators 1 Tech Transfer Training 4 Financial Instruments policy platform 2 Contract Research 5 Investor readiness training and matchmaking Target Groups Technology Transfer Offices of Universities and Public Research Organisations/ HEIs High technology SMEs Science Parks Incubators Ministries responsible for research and innovation policies Local and international financial intermediaries such as business angels, venture capital firms and the private equity sector Page 10
The EU4TECH IR program holistic and lean approach focused on Fundability Presentation skills Networking three specific tools: business model canvas review (mainly for early stage and running operations teams), the development or refinement of an investor pitch, development of an investor proposal. early stage, initial revenue generation startups, and a more articulated one for startups/smes in the scaling up phase. Page 11
5 Investment Readiness (Start-ups/ spinoffs) BEG 125 35 100+ Pitch WS BEG BEG PRN Investor Forum Crowdfunding WS Investor mem. WS Page 12
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Stage of company Page 14
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THANKS! Andrea Basso EU4TECH, MITO andrea.basso@mitotech.eu Eva Baltar JRC, European Commission Eva.BALTAR@ec.europa.eu Page 17
Contract Research 15 PROs strategic plan/ road map for each group. instruments to accelerate and support industry-academia collaborations 2 Technology transfer For targets groups linked to the 15 PROs 2 Summer Schools on TT Researchers Individuals offering Tech Transfer support Mentoring support to CTTs (or similar) 1 support activity per country 1 S&T Parks and incubators International and regional networking Workshops/ meetings/ conferences Regional level focus Possible capacity building for PoC activity 3 Policy Platform Design of new regional level instruments to support TT and increased TRL. Proof of concept Seed funding Blended instruments 4 Page 18