Ben Cocoracchio’s Post

The Americas Partnership Investor Network event, hosted by Endeavor Miami, was in part a celebration and partner-and-investment showcase to highlight the networks unifying goals to unlock and increase early-stage investment in Latin America and the Caribbean. Sonen’s Founding Partner, Raul Pomares was part of the evening’s keynote panel that discussed the region’s sectors and trends, entrepreneurial ecosystem, and how to work together to scale investment. Speaking about the most effective way to scale, Raul stated, “In this room, we are fortunate to have visionary investors. However, to truly address this challenge, we must focus on education and collaboration to engage the broader mainstream investor community. Without their participation, we risk missing the opportunity to achieve the partnership’s objectives and drive meaningful change throughout Latin America.” The APIN is an initiative established by Uruguay, Canada, and the United States under the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity, and it aims to boost entrepreneurial investment and awareness about the region’s opportunities and potential. Today, the Network has grown to include 26 investors with $1.5 billion committed to investing in Latin America and the Caribbean through 2030—momentum that underscores the power of collaboration to create lasting impact. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gpG87GW6

🔍 Taking a look through this BBC News article it's clear there is much to do in encouraging more investment in businesses in NI's start-up ecosystem. 📈 However, the positive news is the continued growth of inward investment year on year. Shoosmiths alone has helped numerous investment funds from outside of NI invest in NI businesses and, in the last number of months, three of those invested in NI for the first time. Other potential first-time investors are keen to hear about the movers and shakers at risk of missing out. 🦄 As the number of success stories increase, the more interest there is around the ecosystem. It does feels like it's only a matter of time before a unicorn appears in NI but, as Steve Orr mentions in the article, £bn companies are not the be all and end all with exit proceeds being recycled to spur on the next wave of innovative businesses. 🚀 There are many and greater things to come. #investment #venturecapital #privateequity #norniron

Glad to see 400 EBAN - European Business Angel Network members in #Estonia for their annual investor conference. #WelcomeToEstonia What are the growth challenges of "future unicorns" in Northern-Europe? 1) VISION 🎯 - "Unicorn Founders" should have a big ambition - tackle big enough problem (climate, transport, energy, health, education, food etc) so you can build a large global company longer term. It's also fine to choose a narrow niche and build a great profitable business there, founders have choices! 2) TALENT 👩👨 - we have less "top global experienced" leadership talent here in the Baltics, but if you have a great mission and good value proposition, it's possible to attract talent and also relocate them here. Ukraine war makes it harder, but still possible. Lets keep supporting Ukraine and invest in defence, to make sure we never have to start a real war with Ukraine and Baltics! 3) CAPITAL 💰 - we have plenty (maybe even too much) of early stage funding in the Baltics. But not enough growth capital for larger A-rounds and B/C/D rounds. Great companies can attract global investors, weaker ones get stuck around A-rounds. If you business starts growing well, build relations with your top target investors early on! Share your annual goals and report back when you deliver, after few years of such reporting and growth, investors start paying attention and you can open up a dialogue for larger investments! That's what helped us to attract Fidelity, Sequoia and others. 4) EXIT - are necessary for the ecosystem. BUT don't sell your company too early! We have more startups in Europe than in US, but much less scale-ups. Keep building for 10-15-20 years and bring "bigger value" home and to your country/region. We need more role model for next upcoming founders. That's what we are also aiming with Bolt, build one of the biggest tech companies in Europe. 🚀 What's your thoughts of Baltic and European #competitiveness? What would you expect from new European Parliament?

Excitement is building for the 0100 Conference Mediterranean! Join us for an insightful panel discussion on Investment into Tech Companies: Key Differences Between the US, EU, MENA, and Asia Strategies. 🌟 The panel will tackle some major questions: Is Europe’s regulation-heavy approach holding it back from competing with US tech giants? Are its focuses on sustainability and profitability slowing down unicorn growth? And how do regulatory environments in MENA and Asia impact their tech markets – could the lack of regulations actually be an advantage? 💼 Panelists: Igor de la Sota, General Partner at Cardumen Capital – nearly two decades of experience in corporate finance and private equity. Roel Janssen, Former Partner at Global Founders Capital & Founding Partner at Undivided Capital – responsible for key investments in Europe and Asia. Hugo Bongers, Partner at Motive Ventures – focused on venture capital strategies in the Netherlands and beyond. Medea Nocentini, Senior Partner at Global Ventures – specialized in cross-industry investments with 20 years of experience. 🧑🏫 Moderator: Michael Brehm, Founding Partner at Redstone VC – with a background as CEO of StudiVZ, bringing deep tech and investment insights. 📅 Join us October 28-30, 2024, in Milan! Don’t miss the chance to attend these dynamic panels and network with 500+ industry experts. Prices will go up TODAY – register now using the link from the comment section to save up to €600! __ #PrivateEquity #TechInvestment #Networking

https://lnkd.in/emuHCqBd A high-quality event was organized by Scaleup Flanders and Frederik Tibau in Antwerp, showing that Belgium is moving in a positive direction. Great stories emerged from companies like Henchman, part of LexisNexis, and Pitchdrive | Early-stage VC 🚀 an early-stage VC firm 🚀, which have created new, valuable support for founders and angels in the region, despite the difficult period of last year. It seems that the economy is recovering, as evidenced by the figures from various participants. I took notes with my GoPro camera—the quality isn't perfect but is acceptable for internal publication to a small audience. Here, I share the pitches and discussions I've recorded, either in full or in part, which might be interesting. It's a pity I only brought two batteries, which ran out fairly quickly. Nonetheless, it's definitely worth watching for those interested in the Belgian investment landscape. There's plenty of information about the current situation, who is investing how much, company valuations, and so on.

Bridging the gap between pre-seed and seed investment is essential for founders looking to scale their businesses in Northern Ireland. At our recent Investment Fund for Northern Ireland Round Table event, Dr. Pragya Sharma, CEO of Gran Lab Ltd., emphasised the need for better support for founders beyond the idea stage. 🌟 Key higlights: · Early-stage grants are helpful, but not enough to support scaling. Founders need access to larger funding, especially for crucial expenses like equipment. · Angel investment plays a critical role in accelerating business growth. · More focus is needed on building a robust angel ecosystem. · Proposals like extending SEIS and EIS tax reliefs could incentivise more angel investors to support early-stage companies.

Here are the key takeaways from our CEO after participating in the Rare Founders Demo Day this week: 👉 Innovation captures global attention: There’s a growing interest from both target markets and investors for innovative solutions that tackle everyday challenges in waste treatment. Now is the time to share our story. 👉 Belgians need to be bolder: In the UK, companies start pitching very early in their process. The result? Faster feedback, quicker access to growth capital, and stronger networks. We can definitely learn from that! 👉 London is the place to be: With its central location and countless initiatives, it’s a hotspot for entrepreneurial growth. For Flemish companies, House of Flanders is an incredible space to organize events and open new doors. Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) – we’ll get back to you on this one 😉. 🔋 Sustainability and greentech are the future. Alongside us, 8 other companies pitched in this field – all of them relevant and necessary. It’s clear that the focus on sustainable innovation is growing stronger every day. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲? 💥 For our target market, we foresee an exciting collaboration between technology and sustainability, where impact and innovation go hand in hand. And that’s exactly what we do by integrating our AI tools into waste management companies. Together, we’re building a greener future, step by step. #rarefoundersday #investors #wastemanagement #wastetreatment #investorspitch

*OPPORTUNITY FOR INVESTORS* “We’re doubling down on the New Nordics strategy” — I’ve heard this over and again from investors I work with and have been intrigued to investigate exactly why and what this trend means. Along with notable LPs like Church Commissioners for England to GPs excited to invest in and from Helsinki, I was thrilled to be part of the Venture Nordics program by Helsinki Partners — the perfect cheat sheet! From the collaborative culture of the Finns, to the unicorns under the radar they’ve been churning out we’re all benefiting from — like RELEX Solutions and Rovio Entertainment Corporation (yes Angry Birds!), there’s so much more than meets the eye that you need to experience to understand. And you’re in luck as they’re doing a repeat after the success of the first iteration — and you’ll get access to the LP track at Slush 2024 and a free ticket at that! APPLICATIONS CLOSE AUGUST 18: https://lnkd.in/dtMzkQkZ REPOST this to share with investors you know! Program Duration: November 15–21, 2024 #VentureNordics #Helsinki #Finland #InvestInFinland #VentureCapital #DeepTech #Sustainability #Investment #Europe #Nordics Cameos by: Helsinki Partners Linn-Cecilie Linnemann Matthew Hicks Ashish Kumar

🌟 We had the honor of hosting Sarah Chen-Spellings at the Venture Nordics first edition this past June… Curious about her insights and why international investors like YOU should be part of this groundbreaking program? Don't miss out – check out her thoughts and see why Helsinki 🇫🇮 and Venture Nordics are the place to be! 🚀✨ #VentureNordics #Innovation #Investors #Opportunity #Investorprogram

The Nordic PE market recorded its second-best year for total deal value in 2023, defying the slump that has become widespread across Europe. Up 3.7% YoY, it was driven by a record year for take-private deal value, according to our 2024 Nordic Private Capital Breakdown. The region’s venture market was not so lucky, with total deal value falling 47.1% YoY to stand at €5.9 billion (about $6.5 billion). Sweden has historically been the driving force behind the Nordic VC ecosystem, and Stockholm overtook Berlin last year as the third-largest hot spot for all of Europe in terms of deal value, a rank it has not held since 2016.