Connect Taiwan club must attract venture capital

Written 16.08.2005 16:50 by Esther Russell Print Send article

The Taiwanese Institute for Information Industry launched last month a private business club, "Connect Taiwan", that shall aim to link Taiwan's entrepreneurs with local and overseas venture capital firms, in an attempt to internationalize Taiwan's high-tech sector.

The "Connect Taiwan" Club is expected to aid the nation's entrepreneurs in locating capital, talent and technology in the global arena and vice versa.

The club models itself on the "UCSD Connect" club, stemming from the University of California, San Diego.

Mary Walshok, associate vice chancellor of UCSD Connect, attended the inauguration ceremony. She said UCSD Connect was established in the mid-1980s and has since helped over 800 high-tech companies raise 1.3 billion US dollars in research funds and 1.2 billion US dollars in venture capital. The establishment of UCSD Connect has turned San Diego into the largest wireless communication cluster and the third largest biosciences cluster in the US, in a city whose main industries were tourism and national defense. It is hoped that "Connect Taiwan" shall produce the same effect and transform it into a cluster rich and competitive country.

"As many as 80 percent of the nation's high-tech companies are small and medium-sized enterprises that enjoy flexibility and creativeness but lack sufficient connections," said the institute's president Ke Jyh-sheng.

The institute is targeting the software, biotech and digital content industries as sectors to receive assistance from the club.

So far the club has attracted some 50 local firms, including high-tech firms seeking access to capital and some traditional manufacturers hoping to transform themselves into high-tech players.

The club shall also benefit from the nation's tens of billions worth of funds with the participation of the Taiwan Venture Capital Association.

This model has been copied and used in 13 other countries, including Australia, Germany, the UK and South Korea.

Source: Taipei Times