InvestHK's 2014 StartmeupHK Venture Programme "goes global" with entries from 47 economies
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     Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) today (August 5) announced that its 2014 StartmeupHK Venture Programme has drawn 550 entries from entrepreneurs in 47 economies worldwide, including Hong Kong.

     The largest number of entries came from Hong Kong (178), followed by the US (65), Israel (53), India (46) and the UK (30). Entries are diverse in terms of their business and models but half of them were from the innovation and technology and information and communications areas. Some two-thirds of the entries are concept to prototype stage ventures with the remainder early to growth stage ventures with revenue and/or users.

     Assessors will now select semi-finalists, and after face-to-face interviews in September, the 12 winners will be picked to participate in the StartmeupHK Week from November 10 to 14 in Hong Kong. At the Venture Programme Forum on November 11, three Grand Award Winners will be chosen from the 12 finalists by a panel of judges and Forum attendees. There will also be special awards for the best ventures in FinTech, SmartCity and Data Analytics.

     InvestHK's Director-General of Investment Promotion, Mr Simon Galpin, said he was delighted by the number of entries, which he said was a clear indication of Hong Kong's continued appeal for start-up businesses.

     "I am happy to see the increasing popularity of our competition as evidenced by the almost 40 per cent increase in the number of entries submitted," Mr Galpin said.

     He added, "I am also very pleased to see that the competition has reached more entrepreneur-led businesses in more overseas economies. Hong Kong offers an ideal foothold and a great opportunity for them to scale up and 'go global'. I'm glad to see that our message about Hong Kong's rapidly developing start-up ecosystem is spreading, which is one of the purposes of our StartmeupHK brand initiative and competition."

     The StartmeupHK Venture Programme is well supported by a number of generous sponsors, who are providing prizes worth in excess of US$500,000. These sponsors include Baker Tilly, CoCoon, CWL Partners, Dorsett Hospitality, EastFunding.co, Fintrade-Mercer Advisor Limited, Fintrade-Mercer Corporate Law Limited, Hong Kong Commons, KPMG, Loft, NEST, Orangefield, PaperclipHK, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Soft Layer-IBM, Schneider Electric, Tanner De Witt and WYND Co-Working Space.

     Details of the StartmeupHK Venture Programme 2014 are available on the dedicated website www.startmeup.hk. The site offers a one-stop portal to the city's start-up community, and is the first such Hong Kong Government portal on start-ups. It also lists the latest start-up events and signposts users to various government incentive and incubation schemes.

About InvestHK

     InvestHK is the department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government established in July 2000 to attract Foreign Direct Investment and support overseas and Mainland businesses to set up or expand in Hong Kong. It provides free advice and customised services to help businesses succeed in Hong Kong's vibrant economy. As at June 2014, InvestHK has completed over 3 300 investment projects creating more than 36 400 new jobs in the first year of operation or expansion and over HK$88 billion of investment. For more information, please visit www.investhk.gov.hk.

Ends/Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Issued at HKT 17:00

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