Presenting The BIND 4.0 Venture Club

In the latest edition of the BIND 4.0 Basque Industry Acceleration Program, we introduced another value-added resource for our Startups by giving them access to the BIND 4.0 Venture Club. The BIND 4.0 Venture Club is a group of near 20 specialized investors, whose members come from leading European venture capital firms focused on high tech startups in the areas of Advanced Manufacturing, Energy, Health Tech and/or Food Tech, and they promote new investment opportunities for early and growth-stage startups participating in the Acceleration Program.

By presenting extensive industry contacts and new funds aligned with the specializations of the acceleration program, in addition to providing financial advice for funding and negotiation, offering their insight into the advantages of the various funding options, the Venture Club completes the services portfolio of BIND 4.0 for Startups.

“We’re proud of the connections the Venture Club has made due to their expertise and alignment with the industries of our program, we provide viable, young and validated companies and the VC members connect the dots to enable the Startups to accelerate and grow,” said Amaia Martinez, member of the BIND 4.0 Coordination Team.

“Startups need funding to accelerate at the speeds the market requires of them and outside of the client-customer relationships developed in our program. The Venture Club provides funding opportunities for Startups plus guidance in what type of funding is recommended for each stage, and negotiation advice providing a type of financial mentor as needed.”

The Venture Club Adds Value

Providing startups the opportunity to accelerate their business and grow their product while validating their services and collaborating with Industrial leaders is our main goal. The BIND 4.0 Venture Club provides new funds and investment opportunities outside of the Client-Customer relationship already inherent in the acceleration program.

Because the Venture Club is composed of VC firms focused on the same sectors and industries as the BIND 4.0 Program, they are able to plan robust investor outreach and facilitate introductions to target investors. This involvement of the Venture Club in the Program helps reduce the timeline and accelerate Startup growth, by raising capital from strategically aligned investors.

Adding the opportunity to receive additional funding and support means stability and growth for Startups, the well-established Partner Companies and Investors alike. “The Venture Club provides direct contact with several investors, mainly Venture Capital firms, with real interest in the field of activity of the program. In most cases, Companies which validate their business models with relevant customers provided by the BIND 4.0 Program, require funds to consolidate and grow the Company. And the Venture Club provides these potential investors.” said Pedro Muñoz Baroja, Managing Partner of Easo Ventures, active member of the BIND 4.0 Venture Club.

The Venture Club provides additional visibility for the startups by expanding their network and reaching finance entities already specialized in the key areas of the BIND 4.0 program allowing young companies to grow with the financial support they desire.

Program Advantages, Investors Perspective

BIND 4.0 does a rigorous selection process by identifying, attracting and connecting young companies with paid clients ready to put their product or services into use in the market. This qualifying process offers a huge advantage to Investors by providing a market validated investment opportunity, in their fields of interest.

Joseba Sagastigordia of Mondragon Corporation shared how convenient it is for them as investors to find viable investments; “The Venture Club gives us the maximum in terms of efficiency; this is a concentration of new technology based companies in our areas of interest in a condensed format.”

BIND 4.0 attracts startups on the leading edge of technology innovation, including Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cyber Security, Robotics, Infrastructure Tools, etc. areas that are of great interest to Venture Club members. The members not only identify strategic investors but offer advice regarding funding options and negotiation strategies and they invest their time in the young companies and often serve as financial mentors, offering their insight to help ensure the ongoing success of the startup.

“Being actively involved with BIND 4.0 gives us access to nearly 40 Startups every year. That’s a highly curated pipeline of startups for an investor. In return, I feel a strong responsibility to guide and mentor those startups which are in their initial stages to help them find the right fit with investors.” expressed Anindya Saha, Founding Partner of Nero Ventures, BIND 4.0 Venture Club member and mentor of six BIND 4.0 startups so far.

Access, Credibility & Visibility

The Venture Club offers the participating startups access to different verticals, professional financial advice, and additional visibility in their expansive networks with the potential for more partnerships and funding opportunities.

Easo Ventures said one advantage for them as Investors and members of the BIND 4.0 Venture Club, is: “A very interesting deal flow, with Companies already validated by real customers. At the same time, Entrepreneurs receive advice from a really good team of Mentors.” This summarizes the strength of the Venture Club once it is paired with the Mentoring, Trainings, Networking and Client Relationships that BIND 4.0 has worked intentionally to create.

Nero Ventures explained the strength of the Venture Club and the investors’ perspective clearly, “The alumni program has successfully accelerated a total of 108 emerging companies all through the past four editions. Being a member of the Venture Club provides direct access to all these startups. Some of whom have already grown much bigger with international clients and into their Series B and later-stage financing processes. For me, BIND 4.0 has been a multiplying network effect due to its unique sector focus and public-private positioning.”

That’s why we consider the BIND 4.0 Venture Club a newsworthy, value-added service in our already renowned Acceleration Program. If you would like to know more about our program, or to become an investor, mentor or Partner Company, we’d love to hear from you as we continue to grow our successful program each year.