SEARCHING FOR AN ANGEL In association with Entreprise Ireland

Brendan Flood, Divisional Manager, Entreprise

Help is at hand for start up Irish firms, writes Brendan Flood

For anyone on the entrepreneurial path, finding the right source of finance to fund the development of your business can all too often mean the difference between success and failure. The halo Business Angel partnership (BAP) could sound like a heavenly answer to the prayers of many an Irish entrepreneur. A joint initiative between Enterprise Ireland, InterTradeIreland and the Irish Business and Innovation Centres, the halo Business Angel partnership was established to develop and foster the growth of private equity and business angel activity in Ireland. The Partnership works by matching private investors with pre-screened investment opportunities in start-up, early stage and developing businesses.

What is a business angel?

Business Angels, also known as ‘informal private investors’, are private individuals who invest capital in companies during their early stage of development. In addition they contribute their know-how or experience in company management and can offer valuable expertise and guidance. Business Angels generally invest in the region where they live and in areas in which they have greatest expertise or knowledge. Angels usually seek active participation in the company in which they invest. The Angel will normally require an equity stake in the business and may wish to provide a managerial contribution, perhaps as a non-executive director or chairman.

About Halo

The halo BAP operates on a nationwide basis with dedicated offices in Dublin, Waterford, Cork and Galway. The programme is co-ordinated nationally by the Dublin Business Innovation Centre (BIC) and managed by Lar Burke. Peter Bennet manages activities on behalf of the Cork BIC, Gerry Mackey in West BIC and Aidan Shine in South East BIC.

According to Lar Burke, there is €20 million currently available to firms through halo’s panel of Business Angel investors. “Individual investment to date has typically ranged from €25,000 to €100,000. For example, five companies in the past six months have each received a cash investment totalling €570,000. This provides the finance to significantly fund their growth and expansion plans” This, Burke explains, highlights the aim of the Partnership, to fill a gap in the market for early stage companies that have major potential but that may be outside the radar of traditional venture capital companies. “In tandem with providing firms with this essential finance, we offer investors, in return, alternative opportunities for investment in ambitious, early stage companies that have strong growth prospects,” he advises.

How The Programme Operates

The halo BAP works on a confidential registration basis. All investors, companies and advisers (accountants, solicitors and others working with high net worth individuals) pre-register and provide the Partnership with specific information and assurances. The Partnership then works to match investors with any suitable investment opportunities that have been registered with the programme. Once a suitable investment match has been identified, the halo contacts the investor directly. Investors and advisers initially see a brief, an eight to ten line outline of the business and the investment opportunity. If interested, they can then access a more detailed summary giving key information about the business and its promoters. Any requests for additional information and/or specific questions are then forwarded to the company in question.

Following this, halo will arrange and facilitate initial meetings between investors, companies and advisers, and will continue to monitor and facilitate exchanges between all the parties involved. Opportunities for companies, investors and advisers to network are also organised by hosting seminars on topics of related interest.

“Angel investment is well established in other countries, such as the US, where it has proven very successful in facilitating the creation of a strong, entrepreneur-led enterprise base,” adds Lar Burke. “We are confident that we can replicate that success here by harnessing the experience of our entrepreneurs and investors, many of whom have already built successful businesses in Ireland, and teaming them with today’s start-ups, the successful Irish firms of tomorrow."