Conditions for venture capitalists to relocate to Ireland ‘top class’


24 Sep 2010

It’s a “great time for international venture capitalists to locate in Ireland”, according to director general of the Irish Venture Capital Association (IVCA) Regina Breheny.

The IVCA welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Batt O’Keeffe to draw top investors to Ireland under a €500m venture capital fund.

“Innovation is at the top of the Irish Government’s agenda, as evidenced by the willingness to provide additional capital through the Innovation Fund Ireland,” said Breheny.

“The venture capital infrastructure in Ireland is top class.

“Since 2003, Ireland has consistently been in the top three rankings in Europe as measured by the tax and legal environment favouring the development of venture capital and entrepreneurship. It’s the ideal location for a European base,” she said.

Breheny added that IVCA members already co-invest with many international venture capitalists.

“We will be very happy to deepen this relationship to complement the existing ecosystem and to attract further funding into the indigenous Irish economy,” she said.

Breheny believes the Irish technology sector is an area in particular that should interest US investors as it has already attracted a much greater proportion of venture capital funding than the European average.

Research from UCD has found that venture capital investment in tech companies accounted for 84pc of all Irish VC investment.

This is the highest technology weighting in Europe, where the average is 17pc.