Oxford Innovation

Europe’s leading technology Investment Network announces Results

Pipeline of deals agreed under Co-Investment Programme

Results announced by Oxford Investment Opportunity Network (OION), Europe’s leading technology business angel network, show that it has marked another successful year of helping innovative companies to raise funding. The OION Network has also announced a pipeline of additional deals agreed under the Co-Investment Programme which it runs with Bank of Scotland Growth Equity.

The OION Network is headquartered in Oxford and assists growing companies from across the UK to secure funding from £150,000 to £2 million. Its investor members include individual business angels as well as venture capital trusts, funds and corporate venturers.

OION has also recently launched a Co-Investment Programme under which the Bank of Scotland has set aside £2m to invest alongside OION’s investor members during 2008.

Around 100 guests at the Network’s Annual Dinner heard Investment Networks Director, Don McLaverty, announce that OION’s investor members invested £1 million in 13 companies during the past year. This direct investment enabled the investee firms to leverage an additional £7 million of funding from other sources.

Mr McLaverty said: “We’re delighted that OION remains Europe’s most successful technology business angel network with a consistent track record of assisting innovative companies to secure funding needed to realise their growth potential.

“The major highlight of the year has been the launch of our Co-Investment Programme with Bank of Scotland. I’m very pleased to report that we have already completed two deals under this Programme with a total of £480,000 invested by OION investors and Bank of Scotland as part of investment rounds totalling £1.6m.

“A further six deals have been approved by the Bank of Scotland Growth Equity team, which will result in an additional £2.1m of direct investment from OION angels and Bank of Scotland Growth Equity once the investment agreements have been signed. This is extremely good news for all the parties involved.”

Malcolm Kpedekpo, Associate Director at Bank of Scotland Growth Equity, said: “We have been delighted by the success of the Co-Investment Programme. The OION Network offers an excellent selection of high quality companies seeking investment and Bank of Scotland Corporate is pleased to be able to support the entrepreneurs and our co-investors with additional funding through this unique initiative.”

Guests at the Annual Dinner, who included business angels, serial entrepreneurs and fund managers, also enjoyed hearing Guest Speaker, Nick Cross, co-founder of Milton Park, one of Europe’s leading mixed-use business parks, and a founder investor in high technology firms, including Oxford Asymmetry International and Oxford Semiconductor, describe his diverse activities as a serial founder entrepreneur and the challenges of growing technology start-ups into substantial businesses.

OION is one of three Investment Networks managed by Oxford Innovation, the UK’s leading operator of Innovation Centres. Oxford Innovation manages 13 Innovation Centres providing flexible office and laboratory space for over 300 growing companies.

- ENDS – Editors Notes
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