Public policy support for the informal venture capital market in Europe: A critical review

The ability of small firms to access finance is hindered by persistent market failure, which creates funding gaps for new businesses, particularly in technology sectors, seeking small amounts of finance. This has prompted various forms of public sector intervention to increase the supply of both debt and risk finance. For the past decade (longer in the UK) both the EU and its member states have increasingly focused on the informal venture capital market as a means of increasing the supply of early stage venture capital. This article describes the changing nature of the forms of intervention and provides a critical review of their effectiveness. The lack of data on angel investing means that there is very little evidence on the impact of these forms of intervention. The article advocates that governments should invest in appropriate methodologies which can accurately measure investment trends in the early stage venture capital market, and specifically angel investment activity, so that the need for public sector intervention can be demonstrated and the impact of such interventions can be measured

Investment Readiness Programmes and Access to Finance: A Critical Review of Design Issues

Access by SMEs to finance is constrained by demand-side weaknesses. Most businesses are not investment ready. Their owners are unwilling to seek external equity finance and those who are willing do not understand what equity investors are looking for or how to 'sell' themselves and their businesses to potential investors. These weaknesses, in turn, compromise the effectiveness of supply-side interventions, such as initiatives to stimulate business angels or which create public sector venture capital funds. This has highlighted the need for investment readiness programmes that seek to increase the pool of investable businesses. This paper reviews the design and delivery of investment readiness programmes in the UK and draws out lessons for best practice.