DSD is participating in a new regional fund with strong backers
Validé has created a new pre-seed fund with strong regional backers including Lyse, TDVeen, DSD and the City of Stavanger.
“We are participating in the fund to strengthen the county of Rogaland’s ecosystem for entrepreneurs and investors”, says the group of investors.
The new fund is called Validé Invest II.
The goal is to provide start-ups with both expertise and capital while they are turning their ideas into prototypes, testing prototypes in the market, signing up customers and making their projects attractive to other types of investors, such as seed funds, venture capital funds, angel investors, etc.
“DSD wishes to invest in companies, funds and projects that can convert groundbreaking ideas into reality, create world-leading technology and make a contribution to the society that we belong to. In order to achieve those ambitious goals, you need capital. Since we don’t have the capacity to directly assist lots of companies during the pre-seed phase, we are pleased to be able to support exciting start-ups with local ties by investing in the fund Validé Invest II,” says DSD’s Chief Investment Officer Kjartan Melberg.
Strong investment expertise
The Rogaland investors who are now participating in the fund with Validé AS have lots of investment expertise. Pre-seed funds are specially designed to provide both capital and expertise to companies at a very early stage of their development. The backers of the fund would like more investors to join them.
“We are really proud to have got such strong backers for this important initiative. Lyse, TDVeen, DSD and the City of Stavanger have shown their willingness to support the local business community”, says Anne Cathrin Østebø, Managing Director of Validé AS.
“We are privileged to be working with these investors in a new fund that aims to seek out the best ideas and entrepreneurs. The fund is now ready to make its first investments, and we are also in discussions with several public and private investors about joining the fund”, says Eirik Sønneland, a fund manager at Validé.
Validé Invest II AS
This pre-seed fund was set up on 1 July 2020 with the aim of capturing NOK 30 million of capital.
The fund’s investors are Innovation Norway, Lyse AS, TDVeen AS, DSD AS, the City of Stavanger and Validé AS.
“Successful regional innovation and development is dependent on capital being available during all stages of the business life cycle. In that context, Validé is playing an important role by making capital available at a very early stage, when the risks are high and relatively little other capital is available. The aim behind our investment is that the fund will contribute to developing the next generation of sustainable ideas and prime them for further growth”, says Ørjan Aukland, the head of Lyse’s investment division.
VALIDÉ INVEST II, BOARD OF DIRECTORS: From left: Kjell Skappel, CEO of TDVeen, Johannes Løyning, Chief Investment Officer at Validé, Anne Cathrin Østebø, CEO of Validé AS, Kjartan Melberg, Chief Investment Officer at DSD, Eirik Sønneland, fund manager at Validé and Ørjan Aukland, head of Lyse’s investment division. (Photo credit: Hilde Garlid, Validé)
