IDA Ireland said today that working closely with venture capital firms to identify potential future inward investment targets is becoming an important aspect of its work.
Speaking ahead of the UK & Ireland Tech Tour which comes to Ireland this week, the head of the IDA’s Emerging Business division Barry O’Dowd explained: “The business models of all VCs involve investing in leading edge companies with a clear plan to scale up rapidly, and often internationally.
“Ireland helps those companies, and their VC backers, to achieve these ambitions. As a result IDA has set an ambitious programme in coming months to engage even further with this community, and that includes this weeks Tech Tour,” O’Dowd said.
So far more than 1,000 companies have selected Ireland as their strategic European base.
Recent arrivals include Squarespace, Engine Yard, Ancestry, Indeed, Hubspot and Zendesk.
Union Square Ventures invested in several successful companies that have made the move to Ireland including Indeed.com and 10gen.
The UK & Ireland Tech Tour involves 27 privately-held companies being introduced to key investors, including an estimated 60 venture capitalists.
Etsy, an e-commerce website buying and selling handmade and vintage goods, is an example of a company experiencing growth in the EMEA region. Etsy is funded by a number of high profile venture capital companies, such as Union Square Ventures, Accel Ventures and Index ventures. For these VCs, Etsy’s speedy and efficient start-up of its European HQ brings value to Etsy’s global business.
