This thesis focuses on informal venture capital market specially on business angels in European Union and Czech Republic.

<p>Affärsänglar spelar en mycket betydelsefull roll för svenskt näringsliv. De är en viktig</p><p>kapitalkälla för unga och nystartade företag då de bistår med kapital till riskfyllda och osäkra</p><p>projekt som inte attraherar andra finansiärer på marknaden. Syftet med föreliggande studie är</p><p>att förklara varför affärsänglar väljer att gå in med kapital i företag där andra finansiärer</p><p>avstår på grund av risk och osäkerhet. Målet är även att redogöra för hur affärsänglar bedömer</p><p>ett investeringsförslag utifrån ett riskperspektiv. Genom att ta del av tidigare forskning som</p><p>berör utvärderingsprocessen har vi arbetet fram ett antal faktorer som kan påverka</p><p>riskbedömningen. Uppsatsen avser därmed även att beskriva vilka faktorer affärsänglar anser</p><p>mest riskfyllda samt undersöka skillnader i riskbedömningen beroende på om affärsängeln</p><p>investerar ensam eller i nätverk.</p><p>Undersökningen har genomförts genom en enkätstudie som innefattade ett urval på 51</p><p>affärsänglar. För att skapa ytterligare klarhet kompletterades enkätstudien med fyra personliga</p><p>intervjuer.</p><p>Analysen resulterade i slutsatsen att affärsänglar i grunden drivs av möjligheten till finansiell</p><p>avkastning i kombination med intresset att kunna vara med och påverka sin investering.</p><p>Undersökningen visar att människorna i och runt bolaget är det viktigaste momentet att beakta</p><p>under riskbedömningen. Här läggs störst fokus på entreprenörens personlighet samt relationen</p><p>mellan entreprenören och affärsängeln. Dessutom har skillnader kunnat visas i</p><p>riskbedömningen mellan ensamängeln och nätverksängeln.</p>

Affärsänglar spelar en mycket betydelsefull roll för svenskt näringsliv. De är en viktig kapitalkälla för unga och nystartade företag då de bistår med kapital till riskfyllda och osäkra projekt som inte attraherar andra finansiärer på marknaden. Syftet med föreliggande studie är att förklara varför affärsänglar väljer att gå in med kapital i företag där andra finansiärer avstår på grund av risk och osäkerhet. Målet är även att redogöra för hur affärsänglar bedömer ett investeringsförslag utifrån ett riskperspektiv. Genom att ta del av tidigare forskning som berör utvärderingsprocessen har vi arbetet fram ett antal faktorer som kan påverka riskbedömningen. Uppsatsen avser därmed även att beskriva vilka faktorer affärsänglar anser mest riskfyllda samt undersöka skillnader i riskbedömningen beroende på om affärsängeln investerar ensam eller i nätverk. Undersökningen har genomförts genom en enkätstudie som innefattade ett urval på 51 affärsänglar. För att skapa ytterligare klarhet kompletterades enkätstudien med fyra personliga intervjuer. Analysen resulterade i slutsatsen att affärsänglar i grunden drivs av möjligheten till finansiell avkastning i kombination med intresset att kunna vara med och påverka sin investering. Undersökningen visar att människorna i och runt bolaget är det viktigaste momentet att beakta under riskbedömningen. Här läggs störst fokus på entreprenörens personlighet samt relationen mellan entreprenören och affärsängeln. Dessutom har skillnader kunnat visas i riskbedömningen mellan ensamängeln och nätverksängeln.

The interest for venture capital within the financial sector in Sweden has, according to earlier studies, been seen as a growing occurrence. Especially for what is known as informal venture capital. In modern times, private investors who engage themselves in small, unlisted companies, providing informal venture capital are to be known as business angels. They close equity gaps on the financial market by contribute financial capital to start-ups and are therefore an important participant on today’s market. The aim of this study is to generate further understanding and knowledge about business angels and their view on investing equity in companies who are still in their early development phases. Furthermore, the aim is to generate knowledge about business angel’s view on the risks they are being involved in with their investments in companies’ initial development phases. The methodology used is semi-structured interviews. The result is presented from the answers of three respondents, which mainly shows that business angels have to deal with different risks such as financial risks, business related risks and risks associated with the relationship between the business angel and entrepreneur. In conclusion, the risks mentioned previously are all essential for a business angel investment and need to be considered before and after an investment is being completed. Other studies also show similar results. An agency theory approach is also being used in this study to provide a further understanding regarding the risks business angels have to consider with their investments.

No description available.

<p>This study is concerned with business angels’ investments process and which aspects in their choice of target firms are considered important in that process. The problem statement of this thesis is; what aspects play a role in Business angels’ investment decision, and in what way? How do these aspects affect business angels when making investment decisions, and why? The aim subsequently is concerned with discerning what is most important for business angels when choosing their target firms and how business angels make their investment decisions. We also aim to be able to create a deeper understanding of business angels, and contribute to small entrepreneurial firms in their search for financiers. Our research can provide information on how entrepreneurs can attract business angels.</p><p>The study is created with previous studies as a framework, and a wide selection of studies have been used. These have been examined and issues which in those studies have been found to be important for business angels have been reviewed and accounted for in the theory chapter.</p><p>The approach we used for data collection was through qualitative interviews with the use of an interview guide. This is explained by our aspiration to understand business angels’ investment criteria rather than describe them. Due to this, the view of interpretivism along with constructionism was taken on when constructing the interviews and findings. The respondents were found through business angels networks, and the selection of business angels entailed a fair representation of the researched group. This thesis has been conducted in an academically correct manner, and the results are validated and confirmed by the respondents.</p><p>The results we came to from our interviews were that the entrepreneur was most important for business angels in their evaluations, but other aspects also played a role. We analyzed our results with the use of our theory section and hence could see that some things we had come up with were unique, whilst some findings confirmed previous studies. We found that many business angels turn down investments due to their lack of time, which was a rather new emphasize for this study. Some qualities of the entrepreneur the business angels required were that they needed to be sales oriented and not overly optimistic about the future returns and prosperity of their ventures. We have shown that if entrepreneurs are overly optimistic about the value of their own firm it is likely that they will lose the deal. This was also of interest as it has not been stated as clearly in previous studies.</p><p>We conclude the thesis by giving advice to entrepreneurs and business angels, what future business angels should keep in mind and also what entrepreneurs should know before they involve themselves with business angels.</p>

This study is concerned with business angels’ investments process and which aspects in their choice of target firms are considered important in that process. The problem statement of this thesis is; what aspects play a role in Business angels’ investment decision, and in what way? How do these aspects affect business angels when making investment decisions, and why? The aim subsequently is concerned with discerning what is most important for business angels when choosing their target firms and how business angels make their investment decisions. We also aim to be able to create a deeper understanding of business angels, and contribute to small entrepreneurial firms in their search for financiers. Our research can provide information on how entrepreneurs can attract business angels. The study is created with previous studies as a framework, and a wide selection of studies have been used. These have been examined and issues which in those studies have been found to be important for business angels have been reviewed and accounted for in the theory chapter. The approach we used for data collection was through qualitative interviews with the use of an interview guide. This is explained by our aspiration to understand business angels’ investment criteria rather than describe them. Due to this, the view of interpretivism along with constructionism was taken on when constructing the interviews and findings. The respondents were found through business angels networks, and the selection of business angels entailed a fair representation of the researched group. This thesis has been conducted in an academically correct manner, and the results are validated and confirmed by the respondents. The results we came to from our interviews were that the entrepreneur was most important for business angels in their evaluations, but other aspects also played a role. We analyzed our results with the use of our theory section and hence could see that some things we had come up with were unique, whilst some findings confirmed previous studies. We found that many business angels turn down investments due to their lack of time, which was a rather new emphasize for this study. Some qualities of the entrepreneur the business angels required were that they needed to be sales oriented and not overly optimistic about the future returns and prosperity of their ventures. We have shown that if entrepreneurs are overly optimistic about the value of their own firm it is likely that they will lose the deal. This was also of interest as it has not been stated as clearly in previous studies. We conclude the thesis by giving advice to entrepreneurs and business angels, what future business angels should keep in mind and also what entrepreneurs should know before they involve themselves with business angels.

As startups, caracterizadas pela proposta de oferecer um produto ou serviço inovador, com alto grau de incerteza de sucesso, normalmente têm a necessidade de financiamento por capital externo para que consigam atingir seu crescimento. Em razão das incertezas que cercam uma empresa startup, normalmente, são raros os financiamentos disponíveis por bancos ou empresas financeiras. Como forma de suprir este buraco no financiamento de startups, encontram-se os investidores anjo, investidores individuais que caracterizam-se por investirem seu próprio capital em startups, em troca de percentuais na gestão da empresa. O perfil destes investidores anjo têm sido objeto de estudo em diversos países, principalmente no entendimento dos critérios que estes investidores utilizam para chegar à decisão de investimento. Entretanto, pouco se sabe sobre os critérios utilizados pelos investidores anjo brasileiros para decisão de investirem em startups. Desta forma, a presente pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar os critérios que determinam a decisão de Investidores Anjo brasileiros em investirem em startups. A fim de cumprir os objetivos desta pesquisa, a metodologia foi estruturada na natureza exploratório-descritiva com abordagem qualitativa. A coleta de dados foi realizada por meio de entrevistas junto a investidores anjo e especialistas, onde são analisadas a importância dada pelos entrevistados aos 17 critérios de decisão de investimento mais citados por investidores anjo na literatura internacional, bem como os critérios classificados como mais importantes. Observou-se que os investidores anjo brasileiros assemelham-se aos de outros países ao darem importância a grande maioria dos critérios levantados. Os critérios citados de maior importância foram de \"rentabilidade real\", \"interesse e benefícios do produto\", \"inovação e qualidade do produto\" e \"ROI/valorização\". Foi possível identificar similaridade entre investidores anjo brasileiros e investidores anjo de outros países acerca da importância dos critérios de decisão identificados na literatura. A pesquisa identificou limitações acerca do acesso aos investidores anjo brasileiros, de informações na literatura nacional e de informações sobre o perfil dos investidores anjo no Brasil. Notou-se que o investidor anjo ainda é pouco estudado pelos pesquisadores brasileiros, não sendo possível identificar muitas pesquisas sobre este tema. Esta pesquisa contribui ao ser um passo para o entendimento de um contexto ainda pouco explorado, o processo de decisão de investimento de investidores anjo em startups, bem como ao identificar os critérios de decisão de investimento considerados importantes pelos investidores anjo brasileiros. / Startups, characterized by the proposal to offer an innovative product or service with a high degree of uncertainty of success, usually have the need for foreign capital financing to help them reach their growth. Given the uncertainties surrounding a startup company, seldom are there funds available from banks or financial companies. In order to meet this gap in startups financing, one can find business angels, who are individual investors characterized by investing their own capital in startups. What they ask in return is a percentage in the company\'s management. The profile of these business angels has been studied in several countries, especially in the understanding of the criteria that these investors use to reach the investment decision. However, little is known about the criteria used by brazilian angel investors as far as this decision to invest in startups is concerned. Thus, the current study aims at analyzing the criteria that determine the brazilian business angels\' decision to invest in startups. In order to meet the objectives of this research, the methodology was structured in exploratory and descriptive qualitative approach. Data collection was performed through interviews with business angels and experts, where there was an analysis of the importance given by these respondents to the seventeen investment decision criteria most frequently cited by business angels in the international literature, as well as the criteria rated as the most important ones. It was observed that brazilian business angels are similar to those from other countries as they acknowledge importance to the majority of surveyed criteria. The most important criteria cited were \"realistic profitability\", \"interest and benefits of the product\", \"innovation and product quality\" and \"ROI/valuation\". It was possible to identify similarities between brazilian business angels and angels from other countries concerning the importance of decision criteria identified in the literature. The research spotted limitations concerning the access to brazilian business angels, on the national literature and information on the profile of business angels in Brazil. It was observed that the business angel is still little studied by brazilian researchers, what makes it unable to identify a lot of research on this topic. This research contributes for being a step towards the understanding of a still little explored context, the process of investment decision by the angel investors in startups as well as to identify the investment decision criteria considered important by Brazilian angel investors.

<p><em>This study is concerned with business angel investments and how business angels handle their investments during a financial crisis. The problem question is formulated as follows “</em><em>How do business angels in Sweden handle their investments during troubled financial times, more specifically during the recent financial crisis?</em><em>” </em><em>The overall goal of this thesis is to find out in which way the financial crisis influences business angels investments. The goal is consequently to give entrepreneurs a view of how some potential investors, business angels, handle their investment behavior during troubled financial times. Another goal is to look into how business angels perceive the laws and regulations of Sweden in terms of encouraging or discouraging investments. Accordingly we desire to find out if some governmental incentives for business angel investing are called for, and if so this could be of interest to regulative organs.</em></p><p><em> </em></p><p><em>We have used theories on the subject of business angels and studies concerning investments during economic downturns as a framework when developing our study. Factors important in theses studies have then been used in order to develop the theory chapter. </em></p><p><em> </em></p><p><em>The data was collected by conducting semi-structured interviews with five business angels. The respondents were sent an interview guide in advance in order to have the possibility to prepare for the interviews. We chose to conduct semi-structured interviews because we wanted the respondents to describe how they conducted their investments and tell us more about the underlying reasons for their choices. The respondents were found through business angel networks and the selection of business angels characterizes a fair representation of the group. The thesis has been conducted in an academically correct way and has been validated and confirmed by the respondents. </em></p><p> </p><p><em>From our interviews with the business angels we found that they did not to a large extent handle their investments differently during economic downturns. The respondents pointed to that an economic downturn like the on upon us now is an opportunity to make new investments. Some of the result was in conjunction with the theory chapter, while we also found some unique aspects not mentioned in previous studies. </em></p><p><em> </em></p><p><em>The thesis is concluded with providing entrepreneurs an overview about how business angels handle their investments and react during economic downturns. </em></p>

This study is concerned with business angel investments and how business angels handle their investments during a financial crisis. The problem question is formulated as follows “How do business angels in Sweden handle their investments during troubled financial times, more specifically during the recent financial crisis?” The overall goal of this thesis is to find out in which way the financial crisis influences business angels investments. The goal is consequently to give entrepreneurs a view of how some potential investors, business angels, handle their investment behavior during troubled financial times. Another goal is to look into how business angels perceive the laws and regulations of Sweden in terms of encouraging or discouraging investments. Accordingly we desire to find out if some governmental incentives for business angel investing are called for, and if so this could be of interest to regulative organs. We have used theories on the subject of business angels and studies concerning investments during economic downturns as a framework when developing our study. Factors important in theses studies have then been used in order to develop the theory chapter. The data was collected by conducting semi-structured interviews with five business angels. The respondents were sent an interview guide in advance in order to have the possibility to prepare for the interviews. We chose to conduct semi-structured interviews because we wanted the respondents to describe how they conducted their investments and tell us more about the underlying reasons for their choices. The respondents were found through business angel networks and the selection of business angels characterizes a fair representation of the group. The thesis has been conducted in an academically correct way and has been validated and confirmed by the respondents.   From our interviews with the business angels we found that they did not to a large extent handle their investments differently during economic downturns. The respondents pointed to that an economic downturn like the on upon us now is an opportunity to make new investments. Some of the result was in conjunction with the theory chapter, while we also found some unique aspects not mentioned in previous studies. The thesis is concluded with providing entrepreneurs an overview about how business angels handle their investments and react during economic downturns.