With cutting-edge and ground-breaking systems and technologies, the need for dependable funding is always a concern. What’s more, if funding is available to create an innovation, it’s not always there to scale the innovation from prototype to pilot.
Add in the challenges of gaining funding for a pilot project overseas and innovators need serious support to succeed.
Shortlist of Indian investors in innovation
In response to these challenges, ITES has created a shortlist of Indian investors who are most likely to invest in UK innovators working in the cleantech, renewable energy, and mobility sectors. All the shortlisted investors have been thoroughly researched to ensure they have a keen interest and knowledge/experience in investing and have made significant investments in the sectors already.
Using its depth of experience and extensive Indian contacts, ITES identified known investors and then categorised them in terms of their potential likelihood to invest in ITES innovators (or indeed, sponsor ITES itself). The research involved information on each investor’s focus, their activities, and market presence.
Why create a mapping tool?
ITES is focused on supporting innovators in the cleantech sector, with a particular focus on zero carbon transport. ITES wants to support India in its goal to be Net Zero by 2070. With two such compatible goals, creating a mapping tool that can link clean energy innovators with potential investors is a win-win for both parties.
Challenges with investment
UK SMEs seeking Indian investors face several challenges, including regulations that need careful navigation. The ITES mapping includes an outline of methods to approach Indian investors that circumnavigate certain issues and build trust in the process of investing in UK start-ups.
By building a relationship with Indian investors, ITES can regularly share a portfolio of hand-selected green-tech companies with them, explaining more about their technology and investment possibilities. ITES can also offer a primary interview with potential investors to pique their interest and explain key questions such as their main sector of interest, the type of investment they wish to make (equity, venture, debt, etc.) and what they wouldn’t invest in.
This process opens the door for UK innovators to be showcased to interested investors and make an initial presentation. In turn, ITES can help devise the best investment strategy, whether a pilot, offtake agreement, licensing, joint venture (JV), and other modes of operation. Alternatively, SME innovators can approach an investor directly, citing any Indian contacts or references available.
Modes for SMEs to raise investment in India
Indian investors are allowed very limited investment into UK or international start-ups, due to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) rules. This is the main reason why some Indian investors have their funds overseas to allow for more flexibility.
ITES can help SMEs explore other funding modalities available, including advice on how:
- A UK start-up can enter a JV and licensing model with an Indian start-up/SME/company and then the Indian investor can invest in them.
- Indian corporate venture capital companies (CVC) can invest in UK technology start-ups, as they’re not controlled by SEBI rules.
- A UK start-up can license their technology for India or Asia.
- Innovators can form partnerships whereby a UK investor of a UK start-up acts as a local vetting agent, and an Indian investor is the partner for the local market. A localised company can then raise capital locally, as it would meet VC expectations with regards to the intellectual property (IP) residing in the same country.
Andrew Stokes, ITES UK Lead and Business Leader – International at Energy Systems Catapult, is particularly proud of the mapping research and results.
“This mapping allows UK SMEs and innovators to be matched to specific investors interested in the cleantech solutions they are creating.
This ensures that SMEs are not wasting time researching investors who are not active (or interested), and the investors themselves have a ‘fast track’ access to some of the most exciting and innovative cleantech and clean energy solutions on the planet.
At ITES we are constantly striving to create exceptional resources for SMEs on our program, and this is a world-class example of what we can produce that facilitates investment as quickly as possible.”
To find out more about how ITES can support innovators, please contact us at info@ites.org.
