Scientific conferences, Transfer of Science or Research

More than 250 students and corporate representatives discussed new business models in the field of financial technology ("FinTech") and the future of the financial industry at the Accelerate@HHL 2015 Entrepreneurship Conference in Leipzig on April 10/11, 2015. The participants had plenty of opportunities to network and exchange ideas in addition to attending guest lectures about start-ups, incubators as well as the corporate environment.

Focus on the investment process of VC firms

As part of the conference, the 5th Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture on the movement of capital in the venture capital industry took place on April 10. Prof. Dr. Andreas Kuckertz, Professor for Entrepreneurship at the University of Hohenheim, was the guest speaker. His presentation focused on the strategies and tactics of venture capital (VC) firms when raising funds from investors as well as joint investments in other VC firms ("syndication"). In this context, Prof. Kuckertz presented a number published and unpublished studies compiled by his work group. This showed the key factors to success with regard to two important steps in the investment process of VC firms. Prof. Kuckertz explained how the process of capital procurement can be structured, how VC firms can compensate for their lack of experience within this process and mainly how new players in the VC industry use syndication to develop successful investment strategies.

Syndication common in Germany

During the subsequent panel discussion moderated by Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart, the Dean of HHL and Holder of the Stiftungsfonds Deutsche Bank Chair for Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship, Prof. Dr. Andreas Kuckertz talked with Simon Schmincke (earlybird VC), Michael Backes (liquid labs), Dirk Kohlen (eCapital) as well as Dr. Dorian Proksch (HHL). Answering the question of success factors, Prof. Kuckertz said, "Our research has shown that only syndication leads to success. In business, we always deal with people. The general rule is that we will be successful if we work together with others." The expert stated that VC firms in Germany are open to joint investment with their peers; some funds are already practicing this strategy on a large scale. Others still have some catching up to do, a view shared by Mr. Kohlen as well. The German market generally still does not offer enough VC capital; particularly in the later financing stages of fast-growing start-ups. Simon Schmincke commented on this gap in financing, "We certainly need more funds in Germany but by no means larger ones. The reason: smaller funds tend to be more successful and it is better to open up new funds rapidly one after the other. Capital exists in Germany in general; however, the majority of VC firms adhere to traditional investors, therefore not growing as quickly as their U.S. counterparts. The panelists agreed that separate funds would not be required with regard to capital procurement in the FinTech industry but the visibility of these new business models has to be increased. At the end of the discussion, Prof. Pinkwart touched on the internationalization strategy of start-ups. Examples from the USA have shown that start-ups there managed to internationalize much sooner and to a greater extent. Dr. Proksch referred to empirical studies conducted by HHL indicating an internationalization rate for German start-ups that is still too low. The researcher considers the lack of VC capital, international patents and sufficiently ambitious growth plans to be reasons for this deficit. Michael Backes pointed out the special of regulation for the FinTech industry. This is why internationalization does play a very big role in the field of FinTech, unlike other high-tech industries.

The English-language entrepreneurship event was arranged by the Accelerate@HHL student initiative; the 5th Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture was organized by HHL's Stiftungsfonds Deutsche Bank Chair for Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship. Supporters of this year's conference include premium sponsors zeb/rolfes.schierenbeck.associates and FinLeap as well as sponsors Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Rheingau Founders, Finanzcheck.de and Möller-Bornemann.

Further information: www.hhl.de/leipzig-entrepreneurship-lecture as well as www.accelerate-entrepreneurship.com.

HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management as a hotbed for entrepreneurs

With over 150 start-ups established by HHL alumni over the past 17 years, Germany's top address for young managers has also developed into an incubator for company creation. The founders' entrepreneurial commitment has created more than 2,500 jobs already, over 1,100 of which are located in the Leipzig region alone. In 2013 and 2014, HHL reached one of three first places for the best entrepreneurial universities in Germany in the Start-Up Radar ranking published by Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft (Founders' Association of German Science) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BWMi). According to the Financial Times, HHL ranks first in Germany and fifth globally for its entrepreneurship focus within the M.Sc. and EMBA programs. www.hhl.de/EntrepreneurialGraduateSchool