EUROPEAN BUSINESS ANGELS INVESTMENT FORUM

HOSTED OVER 200 ANGEL INVESTORS FROM 36 COUNTRIES IN TURKEY

European Business Angels Investment Forum brought together  the best European SME, public and corporate early stage market players currently working  in collaboration to ease the access to finance for SMEs and entrepreneurs on the 15th and 16th of December at the Istanbul’s Shangri La Bosphorusin Turkey. The forum also introduced new collaborations between SME’s, entrepreneurs and public organisations to address equity gap challenges and solutions.

EBAN, TBAA – Business Angels Association of Turkey, Forbes l Para Conference and Borsa Istanbul – The Stock Exchange of Istanbul aim to keep the momentum going and will work together to develop new financial in instruments to bring more access to finance for innovators, entrepreneurs, start-up sand SME’s across Europe.

Mr Baybars Altuntas,Chair of the European Business Angels Investment Forum,EBAN Vice President& TBAA Presidentstatedthatthisyear’sthemawasnotableforglobalentrepreneursandstartups: Access to finance from start up to early exits.

The Forum hosted 284 participantsfrom 36 countries, featured2 International Investment Forums, had 22 jurymembersfrom 16countries, hosted16 startupspitchingsfrom 8 countriesand6 panelswith 33 speakers, showcased1 firechatwith 3 speakers, enjoyed13 key-notespeeches, organised2 EBAN InstituteTariningswithover 50 participantsand1 workshop. The Forum alsoincluded a  visit toInnovation Center of Istanbul Technical University.

 

Important Messages from Global Leaders

Jonathan Ortmans – President of Global Entrepreneurship Week, Arminta Saladziene – Vice President of Nasdaqand David S.Rose, Emeritus President of New York Angels sent their special video messages for the opening session of the Forum.

Award Ceremony of TBAA Excellence Awards , Forbes Round Table on Entrepreneurship and Closing Ceremony of BAW – Business Angels Week& GBAD – Global Business Angels Day were all spectacular parts of the Forum.

In the Gala Dinner of the Forum on the 15th of December, TBAA – Business Angels Association of Turkey’s Excellence Awards for South East Europe were conveyed to the winners.

TBAA Excellence Awards for South East Europe

With its Excellence Awards for SE Europe, the TBAA looks beyond Turkey. It seeks to promote and nurture start ups, angels, and a dynamic business community through out the region. From business angels to policy makers to academics, the Awards salute those who standout in imagining, discussing, and shaping the future of an entrepreneurial South East Europe.

Among the bests of South East Europe are Sir ketortagim BAN of Turkey – The Best Business Angel Network, Kosova Business Angels Network of Kosovo – The Most Promising Business Angel Network, Borsa Istanbul of Turkey – The Best stock Exchange Supporting Start ups, Crimson Capital of Macedonia – The Best Start up Fund, Istanbul Technical University Innovation Center – The Best Innovation and Acceleration Center, The Financial Sector Relations& Exchange Directory of the Turkish Ministry of Finance – The Best Policy Maker, Start Tech Ventures of Greece – The Best Incubation Center, Turkish Airlines of Turkey – The Best Start up Friendly Company, MBAN of Montenegro – The Youngest Business Angel Network, The Royal Family of Serbia – The Royal Family Supporting Entrepreneurs Most, Aktif bank of Turkey – The Most Start up Friendly Bank and Ms. Nora Haxhiu – The Most Promising Woman Entrepreneur.

 

Key-findingsthe European Business Angels Forum

Allkey-findings of EBAF2014 – European Business Angels Forum will be declared at the Special EBAF2014 Session of the World Entrepreneurship Forum in theNovember of nextyear in China.

1. Reliability of the local ecosystem is very important to get the cross-border investments from angel investors. So, stock markets can play an important role by opening its doors to create a reliable platform for local start up sand angel investors.
2. A good way to create such kind of a platform is to open a Private Market for start up sand entrepreneur where they will be registered by stock exchanges and meet the registered accredited angel investor sand be able to access to finance in a secure environment.
3. To create a success full ecosystem, the Platform provided by stock exchange should be armed by mentor shipper o gram sand service providers like independent audit firms, law companies should be part of it to allow start ups to take advantage of some cost cutting services.
4. Developing co-investment funds is very important to develop early stage investment market. Banks should also be accepted as public entities sand should be forced to make start up investments with angel investors. So, a certain amount of their profit severe year (for example 0,01%) should go to co-investments by law.
5. Privateinvestorsshould be licensed as ‘Liabeltomakeco-investmentwithPublicFunds’
6. Policy makers must be trained to show the best practices, pros-con sand how-to s of co-investment funds. EU should finance these training’s.
7. Start ups need demote show angel investors while the year pitching. So, crowd funders should be accepted as mini-BA and accepted as a seed funding structure all over the world.
8. Stock Exchanges and crowd funders are in complimentary distribution. One of them occurs where the other one does not. So, they are in a co-operation position rather than competition.
9. Crowd funders are supporting start ups at the beginning stage of the entrepreneurial journey where stock exchanges are in the final stages of that path. So, think-tanks should be set up with the participation of stock exchange team sand crowd funders to look for better under standing and cooperation to ease access to finance for start ups.
10. Start ups need more than money. They also need network, know-how and mentor ship. Public can just provide finance but not know-how, networking and mentor ship. So, it will be a good strategy for public to cooperate with Business Angels to convert public money to smart money.
11. Thefirst step torealisethispolicy, an accreditationschemeforqualifiedangelinvestorsshould be set up. Publicauthoritiesshouldrecognisethequalifedangelinvestorsandcreate a ready-pooltoinvest in startups.
12. Second step is release a law to put minimum same amount of money if the accredited angel investor decides to invest in a start up. So, public money will use the expertise of the angel investor in this method.
13. Turkish angel investment ecosystem is very dynamic and fresh. Angel investor sand Business Angel Networks are aware of the fact that in a few years later, they will be in a position to convince the start up ecosystems with successful exits. Otherwise, market will loose its energy.
14. BANs in Turkey have to develop their connections with the global angel investment market to ease the exits. So, following global events and creating links with the global players are very important for fresh markets like Turkey.
15. Turkish Business Angels seetheforeignangelinvestors as ‘mentor’ of themselves.So, Turkish Business Angels are fostering policy makers to give more  incentives to foreign angel investors who completed successful exits in Silicon Valleyor in another market to be able to act together with them in their co-investments in Turkey and transfer the ‘making exit’ know-how to Turkey.
16. Accelerators will be come more important than today in the very near future.Angel investors will for ward start up applications to acceleration centers where they will be checked professionally to under stand if they are investment ready start ups.
17. Acceleration centers are going  to be accepted as an institutional angel-investor in the future since they are realizing all functions of angel investors.
18. Start ups will not come to angel investor first but will go to acceleration centers first in the future. Because they will under stand that acceleration centers are high ways of the access to smart money (angel investors).

More information about the forum is available at:

www.european-business-angels-investment-forum.com

 

Foryourquestions:

Mr Baybars Altuntas

Chair, European Business Angels Investment Forum

Baltuntas@deulcom.com.tr