IT venture capital company off to flying start

South Africa's first venture capital company geared specifically at the country`s burgeoning Information Technology (IT) industry - Archway Venture Partners - has been inundated with requests for capital and assistance following its formation at end-March. And the first four recipients of a R30-million allocation of Archway venture capital funds are expected to be named by end-June. Archway Venture Partners was formed by two JSE-listed companies, Dimension Data Holdings (Didata) and Genbel Securities Limited (Gensec) via its Gensec NSA Fund, to provide venture capital, as well as strategic support to fledgling local IT companies and IT entrepreneurs wanting to grow their companies but needing funding and other resources Didata, the SA-based multinational IT integration company, and Gensec - a leading investment banking group - committed R100-million to a private equity trust, which is administered by Archway Venture Partners and used to provide financial support to qualifying technology ventures. Paul Coningsby, operations manager at Archway Venture Partners, says applications for venture capital flooded in from across the IT spectrum in South Africa and abroad. "Apart from young entrepreneurs starting out, applications also came in from those already in the IT industry for some time and wanting to grow their business," he adds. According to Coningsby, the first R30-million allocation of funds is likely to be shared between enterprises involved in Internet commerce, network management, communications, and the convergence of telecommunications and computer technologies. "Venture capital allocations will range from around R10-million to under R1-million. In addition, the participating business ventures will receive a host of other value-added benefits such as commercial input from people who understand the dynamics of the IT industry, business development opportunities, and access to technologies and technical resources," he concludes.