Report: KC needs (a lot) more venture capital
October 15, 2015 | Ashley Jost
The Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute released a report that says Kansas City needs more venture capital for its biotech industry.
Just how much venture capital? That is up for debate.
Wayne Carter, Life Sciences Institute CEO, said $100 million is the common amount thrown around in conversation regarding Kansas City’s need, and while “it’s a good place to start, it’s not enough,” he said.
“Saying we need $100 million in venture capital funding is not the end game,” he said. “We need to create an entire ecosystem of funding.”
Despite a growing life sciences community that is recognized for drawing interest, risk capital investment is a weakness in the Kansas City area Carter said, summarizing the findings of the report that Life Sciences Institute and Deloitte released this month.
The report identified and prioritized opportunities for the region to be more successful in life sciences, and investment was a primary strategy.
“It’s almost like we’re pushing companies away,” Carter said. “We just don’t have money here. If you’re an early stage business in Kansas City, you’re probably going to start with meeting investors in regional states, but more than likely you’re going to have meetings in California or Massachusetts.”
And what happens if Kansas City doesn’t get to that magic number of $100 million in venture capital?
Carter said it’s likely the region will continue to grow, but at a much slower rate. Furthermore, if outside investors sign a deal with area companies, the businesses almost always relocate, meaning the region will miss out on prospective jobs, revenue and other economic opportunities.
Featured Business
2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Downtown space levels up with ‘Novel Coworking’ name change
About seven months after arriving in Kansas City, one of the area’s newest coworking spaces has announced a name change. Chicago-based Level Office — which opened a studio in downtown Kansas City in February — announced Monday a rebrand to become Novel Coworking. The revamp more accurately represents the company’s mission to amplify its customers,…
Photos: KC Coworking Day sings virtues of big ideas in startup spaces
KC Coworking Day is a celebration of people whose vision exceeds their circumstances, said Bob Martin. “If you’re an entrepreneur, and you have a vision, I hope your vision is so big that you’re uncomfortable sharing it with everybody — that there’s only a handful of people to whom you’re going to say, ‘This is…
Digital Sandbox startup Fast Democracy building non-partisan social database for tracking legislation
Today’s political climate demands not only a better-informed public, but accurate tools to help voters arm themselves with timely information, said Sara Baker, co-founder of Fast Democracy. The Kansas City-based startup — one of four early-stage businesses recently accepted into Digital Sandbox KC — aims to help people “touch their democracy” through its non-partisan web…
Tech Scouts: Your pitch ideas could help defend the US; Aug. 12 application deadline nears
The U.S. Department of Defense isn’t just bullets and bombs, said Jack Harwell. A five-day October event — “Encountering Innovation,” which is organized by the DoD and the Small Business Development Center’s Kansas office — gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch innovative solutions to a panel of the DoD’s “tech scouts,” said Harwell, advisor at…