“Alliance to provide seed money for area companies”

NashvillePost, by Nicki Wood, June 19, 2001

Technology-driven companies seeking private investment got a boost today from the Nashville Technology Council's new Technology Funding Alliance (TFA), a network of private investor members who are interested in start-up and early-stage, technology-driven company investments.

“Growth of new technology companies in Middle Tennessee depends on the success of local entrepreneurs in securing capital,” David Condra, president of the Nashville Technology Council, said in a release. “Technology entrepreneurs need access to seed capital, typically $100,000 to $1 million to allow a company to develop and prove a business concept. The Technology Funding Alliance was created to provide that assistance.”

The objective of the TFA is to facilitate the matching of local technology entrepreneurs with seed funding sources. Benefits to members of the TFA private investor network include the assistance of TFA staff in screening prospective investments. Benefits to entrepreneurs include a more efficient process of finding suitable outside investors.

The TFA will operate under the direction of a Selection Committee composed of members elected to a three-year term. The initial Chairman of the Selection Committee is Townes Duncan, president of Solidus Company, a private investment partnership with equity of $30 million to pursue a strategy of long-term investing in both the private and public equity market. (Solidus Company is an investor in NashvillePost.com.)