Business Incubation to Crowdfunding Conference Malta
On the 23rd of October, Dr Maria Chetcuti Cauchi attended the Business Incubation to Crowdfunding Conference. The discussion of this conference focused on business incubation and crowdfunding. The European Crowdfunding Network attended the event as key note speaker, presenting crowdfunding and its evolution in Europe.
The event opened with a welcome address by Mr Mario Spiteri, the President of the Malta Business Bureau. This was followed by a very practical presentation and discussion presented by Ing Ray Muscat, Group Corporate Services Officer at Toly Group. Mr Muscat discussed the potential of Malta becoming a Silicon Island by going through the milestones that we have to go through to nurture a start up ecosystem on the island, including incubation families, financing, innovation management and a start up mentality that nurtures and cherishes invention and creativity and any managing any risks that can ensue.
The second Business Incubation to Crowdfunding Conference presentation was delivered by Dr Anton Bartolo, the director of The Corporate Research and Knowledge Transfer Centre at the University of Malta. Dr Bartolo discussed the support that university is offering to start ups through Takeoff, the training offered by mentors that are part of this initiative and success stories that ensued through the Take off initiative. Dr Maria Chetcuti Cauchi is an official mentor on the panel of trainers at the University of Malta Incubation Centre.
The panel discussion that ensued tackled the challenges and opportunities for start ups in the current divers incubation centres spread around Malta, namely ISIS Innovation backed up by Oxford University, Take Off which is the University of Malta Incubation Centre and Smart City's Start Up solutions.
The second half of the Business Incubation to Crowdfunding seminar centred around crowd funding and it's fast growth within the European market. Mr Oliver Gajda, President of the European Crowdfunding Network explained that crowd funding is essentially the practice of funding a project or venture by raising monetary contributions from a large number of people, typically via the internet. He explained that this is very close to other financial instruments that is vital in today's economy.Mr Gajada also discussed the need and important for a framework for crowdfunding in terms of education, regulation and research.
The second and last panel debate, moderated by Vanessa MacDonald, Editor of The Business Observer, tackled the possibility of crowdfunding as the up and coming alternative financial instrument.
Matters discussed included due diligence, local and European regulation, the need for a Maltese framework, funding, financing and Malta's role in this area.
The seminar was concluded with a Closing Address from the Hon. Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Business, Chris Cardona. Dr Cardona emphasised the administration's positive outlook to innovation, start ups, creativity and innovation.
He emphasised that even though crowdfunding is in it's infancy, yet Malta should not shy away from it but should take this as an opportunity and should be encouraged.
This should be an investment in our future and should definitely enhance economic growth and future positive results.
