A LEADING Scottish biosciences management consultancy and investment fund has pledged a five-figure donation to the Prince’s Scottish Youth Business Trust (PSYBT), to help fund aspiring young entrepreneurs.
ChimaeraBio, based in Crieff, has pledged the funds to PSYBT’s Innovation Fund, which was launched in September last year to help young people aged 18-25 who have an early stage business idea, but lack the resources and expertise to develop and harness the commercial potential of their concept or product.
The Innovation Fund also promotes partnership opportunities across the innovation arena, providing access to NESTA (National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts), ICASS (Innovators Counselling and Advisory Service for Scotland) and academic institutions via Scottish Institute for Enterprise (SIE).
ChimaeraBio was founded by Jim and Karen Reid in 2001 and has invested in ten companies during that time, nine of which have gone on to be commercially successful.
Says a spokesperson: “The sale of Qnostics in 2006 and in 2007 the sale of Aberdeen University spin-out Haptogen, to US pharmaceuticals giant, Wyeth, enabled ChimaeraBio to expand its investment interests in the technology sector with the objective of creating more serial entrepreneurs.”
Commenting on their ambitions to help more entrepreneurs commercialise their ideas, Karen Reid, said: “Entrepreneurs are a key part of the future of Scotland’s economic success. At ChimaeraBio, we try to encourage the development of the entrepreneurial talent pool and we see the Innovation Fund as a major step forward in achieving this and, at the same time, help young Scottish business people realise their ambitions. ChimaeraBio is delighted to support the PSYBT Innovation Fund.”
Welcoming the contribution to the fund, Evelyn McDonald, head of Growing Business PSYBT, said: “The Innovation Fund has been designed to meet the needs of a potentially high-growth niche, offering support where very little currently exists.
“This is a sizable donation that will make a very significant difference to our young entrepreneurs in fast-tracking their outstanding ideas to commercialisation and we are extremely grateful to ChimaeraBio for their kind generosity.”
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For further information please contact Jen Nash, Panache Communications on 0141 589 0514 / email: jen@panachecommunications.co.uk or Margaret Gibson of PSYBT on 0141 342 5942. You can also check out the PSYBT website at www.psybt.org.uk.
To contact ChimaeraBio email chimaerabio@hotmail.com or Telephone: 01764 652 162.
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Contact: Jen Nash
Phone: 07971 466 220
Email: jen@panachecommunications.co.uk
Website: http://www.panachecommunications.co.uk
