Belgian Federal Holding Company Invests in ESA's Open Sky Technologies Fund

NOORDWIJK, The Netherlands, Sept. 23 /CNW/ - Movement in the venture capital market: The Belgian federal holding company has invested a substantial amount in the EUR100 million OSTF - Open Sky Technologies Fund. Initiated by the European Space Agency (ESA) through its Technology Transfer Programme (TTP) in March, the OSTF is the first and only one of its kind. Its goal is to rear high-potential start-ups that utilize applications and technology originally developed for space and commercialize them in high-growth industries on Earth.

The early-stage investment fund is ideally positioned to access one of the biggest, top-notch innovation pools on the planet - space technology and applications. Through its unique link to ESA, the OSTF has a pole position to source the best businesses for start-up and growth financing. ESA is a prime origin for deal-flow through its fleet of European ESA Business Incubation Centres and its wide range of international technology transfer and network activities such as the upcoming ESA Investment Forum taking place on October 5th in Milan.

Dr. Bernd Geiger, OSTF fund manager of Triangle, is convinced that space-enabled applications such as location-based services (LBS) are among the hottest topics of the decade.

"Space applications such as LBS are a booming market for investors. Having information about your location is like adding another dimension to everything that exists in information technology - that's something you can only achieve with the support of space technologies," says Geiger. The OSTF already has made its first two investments into LBS companies and is currently screening a multitude of promising opportunities.

"Belgium is already a strong supporter, helping startups by hosting several space-related incubators, OSTF was keen to attract the federal holding company as an investor. They understood that the OSTF offers a unique chance to tap into a growing market," stresses Head of ESA's Technology Transfer Programme Office Frank Salzgeber. "We are convinced that many other investors will follow."

OSTF manager Triangle is one of the most highly recognized European VCs, and is a true early-stage technology investor, focusing on research spin-offs. Triangle's co-founder Uli W. Fricke currently serves as Chairwoman of the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (EVCA), which represents 1,243 members from across Europe with EUR335 billion under management. Ms. Fricke was recently named Europe's most influential person in private equity and venture capital.

For further information: Interested? Contact Triangle about the OSTF: [email protected], [phone]