Chance to pitch for £1m funding

Feb 26 2009 by Peter McCusker, The Journal

INVESTORS from as far afield as the Middle East are eyeing up the region’s technology firms ahead of a major conference which could pump up to £9m into the North East economy.

In April, technology businesses will have the chance to bid for between £250,000 and £1m in investment from financial backers from across the country and overseas at the Secure Futures Investment Conference in County Durham.

And organisers of the event are in the region today at the first of a series of workshops to help hopeful entrepreneurs and companies perfect their pitch at the Newcastle offices of one of Connect North East’s partners, NorthStar Equity Investors.

The conference, which aims to connect tech firms in the security sector with vital funding, have already won the backing of several heavyweight investors from the North East and London, and are also hopeful of bringing investors from Dubai and France to the conference.

So far Connect North East has received interest from around 30 companies, but is urging other technology-based businesses with big potential and in need of funding to come forward.

Connect, including its partner North East-based North Star Equity Investors, will whittle down the number of interested firms to nine, and each one could then stand to win up to £1m in investment from the circling financial backers as they make their pitch at the event at Hardwick Hall Hotel, Sedgefield, on April 28.

The selection process, which will be based on the level of future potential a company has, officially gets under way today at the launch of the first of a series of workshops to help businesses perfect their pitch.

London-based technology investor Andrew Hegarty is in the region to take part in a question-and-answer session with Caroline Theobald, managing director of networking group Bridge Club, which is organising the CE project.

The workshop is designed to give businesses an insight into what Mr Hegarty and his peers call the sweet spots of the technologies in demand from investors and government buyers.

For more information, go to www.connectnortheast.com