Funding
Section 5
Your spin-out company will not succeed without finance. This can come
from various sources. Some may come in kind, such as the provision of
premises for a limited period, say, by your institution but the most telling
type of funding will be money. You may be in a position to provide some
financial backing yourself or you may have family and friends who are
willing to support you with funds. However, bearing in mind the hundreds
of thousands of pounds required to launch and develop a successful
company you will almost certainly need to turn to external sources of
funding. These will be your Investors.
Investors put in cash for a return. As your company will be new it is a risky
investment for them and so they expect to receive a large return. Investors
have different expectations to you. They are looking eventually as to
how they will exit from your company and make their money. Your IP
commercialisation organisation will be able to help you find suitable
investors.
Typical Investors
n
Your research institution
n
Early-stage funders and specialist IP investing companies, eg University
Challenge Fund, Regional Enterprise Fund and Seed Funds
n
Business Angels
n
Venture Capitalists.
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