Angel funding to help create 700 jobs, says HBan

Angel investment will help to create 700 jobs around Ireland by 2017, a result of €30 million in funding rounds last year.

According to the Halo Business Angel Network (HBan), the jobs will be created in 38 companies supported by the organisation, which is a joint initiative of InterTrade Ireland and Enterprise Ireland set up to promote business angel investment. The group supports the early-stage entrepreneurial community throughout Ireland.

The group said €9.5 million of 2014’s funding came directly from angel investment, with the remainder from public and private funds, ranging from Enterprise Ireland to venture capital companies.

Among the companies that benefited from HBan support were Galway-based medical devices company Embo Medical; software company Treze; and Dublin-based Lumafit, which is developing interactive fitness.

The amount of angel investment has risen over three years, with figures from 2011 showing €12 million in investment across 29 companies. It supported 344 new jobs that year.

"HBan is well-positioned to help business angels find the right type of early-stage company and maximise their chances of a successful investment. We offer a lot of support to them in terms of advice, networks and syndicates. The success of this is reflected in our strong annual results and our recruitment of new angels following the series of talks last October," said John Phelan, national manager for HBan. "We recognise the growing importance of business angels as catalysts in start-up companies, particularly in the technology and knowledge economy and sectors associated with it, like MedTech, FinTech and AgriTech."