SmartCap introduces upcoming deep tech fund in Estonia
SmartCap, a venture capital fund manager owned by the Estonian state, will open up a market consultation to introduce the indicative terms of a new fund. The aim of the fund is to improve the financing opportunities for deep tech companies with a longer development cycle.
According to Sille Pettai, the deep tech fund call has reached the market consultation phase, which is the last stage in preparing the terms of the fund. “We have held consultations about the concept of the fund with Estonian universities, market players, and venture capital professionals from Estonia and abroad. Today, we have reached the final phase of the preparations for the call and would appreciate feedback to the terms from potential deep tech fund managers,” Pettai said.
The fund will invest in deep tech companies whose product or service and business model are based predominantly on scientific research and development and commercialization of intellectual property. SmartCap will be the cornerstone investor with €15 million and the new fund manager will have to raise additional capital from private investors.
“We want to find a fund management team who can turn tech companies into genuine success stories. This can be either a first-time team or an existing fund manager. For us it is important that the team has know-how, competence, and experience to support our goals,“ Pettai added. SmartCap is supported by Troy A. Weeks, an expert with long-term experience in private equity and venture capital investments, to assist in the preparation of the call and selection of the fund manager.
The market consultation phase of the deep tech fund call will last from 2nd to 23rd November. The aim is to receive direct feedback about the indicative terms which can be found at www.smartcap.ee/deeptech. The call for finding a suitable fund manager will be announced at the end of December. The new fund manager will be selected in the second quarter of 2021.
SmartCap is small fund manager registered with the Financial Supervisory Authority, and since 2017, SmartCap is operating as a subsidiary of Foundation KredEx. The venture capital fund assets managed by SmartCap are invested in venture capital funds which, together with private investors, place capital into research and technology-intensive early-stage small and medium-sized companies with large international growth potential, mainly located in Estonia.
Further info:
Fund Manager
SmartCap
sille.pettai@smartcap.ee