Job creation target for €17m fund

A €17 million fund for firms, aimed at creating jobs, will be launched today by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Batt O’Keeffe.

The Bank of Ireland start-up and emerging sectors equity fund aims to help entrepreneurs turn ideas into new products and services for export markets.

The fund will be managed by Delta Partners on behalf of Bank of Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, for whom this is the second fund for start-up and early-stage growth firms.

Bank of Ireland is investing €15m in the fund, with €2m provided by the Government through Enterprise Ireland. The fund will target investments of between €100,000 to €500,000.

Minister O’Keeffe said: “Our banks have a key role to play in economic recovery and initiatives such as this will allow innovative firms to leverage new capital in scaling their businesses and creating jobs at home.

“To create a thriving high-value indigenous enterprise sector, we must broaden the funding base to turn good ideas into sustainable jobs.”