Business article Index >> Angel Network helps Businesses Take Wing ACE-Net links venture capitalists, small-business owners via Internet The U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy has designed a dramatic initiative - a nationwide Internet network that will provide new options to small companies looking for investors and investors looking for promising opportunities. Developed at the recommendation of the delegates to the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business and announced by President Clinton in October 1996, the Angel Capital Electronic Network (ACE-Net) is a precedent-setting national Internet listing of the securities offerings of small companies with password control providing access only to accredited investors (angels). ACE-Net will improve the ability of entrepreneurs to network with angel investors throughout the country, as it answers a critical need for small innovative companies, particularly those owned by women and minorities, who do not have the same access to investors as those in the his torically strong venture and investor markets. Until ACE-Net, small businesses have been severely limited in their ability to link with angels on a national basis. Businesses owned by women and minorities will now have access to a level playing field in t he competitive equity capital market across the country and a potential solution to the problem of raising equity capital in the $250,000 to $5 million range. Approximately 250,000 angels invest about $20 billion in more than 30,000 ventures each year, w hile 50,000 startup companies and 300,000 growing firms need $60 billion of angel-type financing each year. It is estimated that there are five to 10 times as many potential angels interested in entering the market. Participating angels and entrepreneurs gain access to ACE-Net by contacting one of the regional network operators. The operators are not-for-profit, often university- or state-based entrepreneurial development centers experienced in mentoring entrepreneurs and in outreach to angels and venture companies. The Internet home page for ACE-Net and the central computer system is operated by the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire and will be connected to each of the network members via the Internet. A current list of Network Operators and information about how to reach them is available on the ACE-Net Internet site at http://ace-net.unh.edu. Investors interested in participating in ACE-Net must subscribe for a password from the nearest Network Operator to access the Entrepreneur Database. The Investor Subscription Form is brief, and all information is confidential. While ACE-Net is designed to accommodate individual investors, participation is open to all accredited investors, including Small Business Investment Companies (SBICs) and other venture funds. All companies interested in having their securities offering information listed in the ACE- Net Entrepreneur Database must complete an Entrepreneur Subscription Form and submit it to the nearest Network Operator. In a ddition, each business is required to satisfy the federal securities registration requirements, as well as state securities registration requirements. Additional information and subscription forms are available at the ACE-Net Internet site, which can be a ccessed directly at http://ace-net.unh.edu or through http://www.sba.gov. Reprint from 1998 Northern Colorado Business Report. Business article Index >> News I Health I Wellness I Exercise I Profiles I Business I Links I Women ROCK! Product Review I To the Point I Contact I Home Created by: Art Street Design Studio. © Concerning Women Communications, Inc. all rights reserved.