Geographical location of the VC and Private Equity firm

Our statistical survey amongst our customers that are looking for Venture Capital financing show that many of them put a very strong emphasis on the geographical location of the VC company or the Private Equity firm.

With the business world developing and the globalization, there are many firms that do not care so much about the physical location of the company they invest in, as long as it is a good and sustainable business. In fact, the “Far Eastern” market has developed immensely in recent years due to the aforementioned. For example, one of our recent researches shows that many companies, such as Intel, have invested millions of dollars in China.
Duane Kuang, director at Intel Capital China, has recently indicated that Intel regards China as a significant hub of investment activities for Intel, so they feel it is the right time for them to have a dedicated fund investing in this market. Intel has announced that: “The Intel Capital China Technology Fund is a US$200 million investment program to help stimulate local technological innovation and the continued growth of China’s IT industry. Investments will be made in Chinese technology companies developing innovative hardware, software and services.”
Intel Capital has invested $4 billion in about 1,000 companies in more than 30 countries since 1991. Today about 40% of Intel Capital’s $130 million in investments goes to non-U.S. companies, significantly higher than the 5% share in 1998, the year the company started investing in Asia. Asian companies received almost half of the $52 million invested in non-U.S. companies last year.
Kuang furthermore mentioned that Intel sees China as a “powerhouse” for technology development and as an expansion market for Intel products.

Another computer company that has directed more money to the East is Microsoft.
Microsoft Hong Kong Limited and The University of Hong Kong’s Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure Development (CECID) a few weeks ago announced a partnership to enhance efficiency and growth of the local logistics sector, one of Hong Kong’s leading-edge industries, through the development of common software protocols. Creating new opportunities for local independent software vendors and companies throughout the logistics supply chain
Anmar Alani, Director, said: “Microsoft is very pleased to be involved in this R&D project with CECID as a way to support the further development of the logistics industry, with the promotion of an open standards-based environment to accelerate cost savings and enhance industry-wide efficiency.”
This R&D initiative allows for the more cost-effective development of logistics-specific applications in Hong Kong and contributes to the growth of the Hong Kong economy.

”The growth of many logistics companies in Hong Kong is stymied by the current high cost of setting up to conduct business electronically, while the industry as a whole is disadvantaged by the lack of standards and infrastructure supporting data exchange between organizations.”

So, before you dismiss the possibility of finding an investor in a different city or a different country than your target geographical area, please remember that there are potentially millions of dollars waiting to be invested in your company in other geographical areas.