Tech Sector Summits
Stockholm 

The Tech Sector Summit conferences, Mobile Access Solutions and eCRM were combined with the European Investment Forum (EIF), the European Venture Academy and the Connect Nordica Investment Forum (CNIF) to create an unprecedented series of 5 events in 3 days.

Held in Stockholm, from the 8th to 10th April and organised by Europe Unlimited, these events were supported by the European Commission’s Information Society Technologies programme and private sponsors, with the EIF and CNIF receiving approximately 200 attendees each day.

The series began on April 8, with the European Venture Academy, an intensive, invitation-only coaching event, helping entrepreneurs to sharpen their business and presentation skills, and preparing them for the fundraising process and presenting to potential investors, called by Time Magazine a "bootcamp for European technology entrepreneurs."

Run concurrently, the Mobile Access Solutions and eCRM conferences continued the theme, gathering together over 80 selected professionals, including Ariadne Capital’s Bundeep Singh Rangar, in an interactive workshop to promote partnerships, investment and knowledge exchange between the most innovative growth companies, leading corporates and specialised VCs in the sector.

Technology companies seeking development and expansion capital were given the opportunity to present to Scandinavian and European investors and advisors at both the Connect Nordica Investment Forum (in association with Connect, the leading Scandinavian network for technology companies and finance) and the European Investment Forum (EIF). An initiative of the European Commission's IST programme, the EIF has been run in Vienna, Helsinki, Berlin, Nice, Milan, Brussels and Stockholm. On average, 1 in 4 presenting companies has raised venture capital as a direct result of contacts they made at the EIF, for an average of 44 million euros raised per edition.

Europe Unlimited’s Elisabetta Favero, said, "With the majority of the participants saying that they would gather again at the next edition of the Tech Sector Summit we believe we have provided what was missing in the market: a selective European platform for Sector focussed discussions & specialised networking opportunities".

The next edition of the EIF takes place in Copenhagen on the 4-6 November 2002.