Is crowdfunding the answer for Scottish technology companies requiring significant start-up capital? This is the question that will be addressed by experts at an Alba Innovation Centre and Edinburgh Science Triangle joint event this Tuesday (26 November).
Crowdfunding Impact in Technology is a half day seminar exploring whether early stage companies, particularly those with their roots in technology development, can take advantage of the relatively new phenomenon of asking the public to support early-stage technology ventures.
Although Brewdog, a well-known Scottish company, is widely regarded as having been at the forefront of pioneering the concept of equity-based crowdfunding in previous years, Scotland continues to lag behind the curve.
Nesta estimates the UK crowdfunding market was worth £200 million in 2012, rising to £300 million in 2013. However, a Glasgow Chamber of Commerce report found that less than £1 million was raised in Scotland in 2012, and describes this as ‘well short of the sums potentially available’.
Peter Andrew, Head of incubation and innovation support at Innovation Centres Scotland, which manages Alba Innovation Centre on behalf of Scottish Enterprise, says: “There is capacity for Scottish tech companies to take advantage of crowdfunding so this event will give people the chance to find out more about what it means and whether or not it is something that could help them to grow their business.”
Speakers include Kevin Miller, CEO of RunRev, developers of the LiveCode app creation platform, and Felipe Bustos Sierra from Debasers Filums, an award winning film production company from Edinburgh, both of whom have succeeded in raising funding via crowdfunding. Stewart Whyte, partner in McClure Naismith, and Jude Cook, co-founder and managing director of Sharein, the UK’s first tech-focussed equity crowdfunding platform, will also be on hand to provide advice.
