European technology fund to target information technology innovation
US-based technology fund TechFund Capital has announced the launch of a new capital risk fund, TechFund Capital Europe, to tap into information technology innovation and an increasing spirit of entrepreneurship in the EU. The Paris-based fund will focus on providing private equity capital for early-stage 'core technologies' such as telecoms, particularly wireless and optical transmission, networking, storage and multimedia. It will target France and Germany first of all, aiming ultimately to extend its business to other European countries. Jean-Michel Barbier, managing partner of TechFund Capital Europe, said that investment opportunities are 'numerous in Europe today,' and that the new fund aims to tap into opportunities created by as yet unexploited technology reserves in public and private laboratories. TechFund Capital Europe also said there has been a growth in entrepreneurial spirit among Europeans, both on an individual level and among large industrial groups. The company said that European industry is now more ready to invest in technology on a long-term basis or outside their core field of activity.