Light At The End Of The Tunnel For Start-Up In Gloomy Budget Week.
The latest success story from entrepreneurial-spark has seen a biotech start-up gain crucial investment in the form of seed money after only 4 months of doing business.
Online, March 26, 2013 (Newswire.com) - The company, named Taragenyx, specialises in orthopaedic and dental implants and was founded by Iain McDougall and Raman Bedi last year and is considered one of the most successful companies to date to have passed through e-spark - Scotland's accelerator hub.
It is understood the funding will help with promoting their business, market research and product development.
The investment has come from three big capital companies; Kelvin Capital, Lancaster Capital, and the Scottish Investment Bank. Iain Mcdougall said: "This is a really special time for us. For a medical technologies start-up to raise one of Scotland's largest seed rounds is a real testament to the team we have put together and the strength of our underlying proposition."
Taragenyx, named after the Hindu god for healing, was accepted into entrepreneurial spark's Glasgow "hatchery" last November for a 12-month residency. The company is currently developing the first of a new class of biologic implant coatings that combine osteostimulatory and bioactive qualities.
The news is a welcome boost to the Scottish economy in a week overshadowed by the latest budget release from Westminster. Latest figures show that budget week saw a rise in unemployment over the UK, of 53,000. That leaves the figure at an unhealthy 2.5m, with over a third of this figure accounting for 18-24 year olds. Scotland showed encouraging signs in the same week, with unemployment falling below the UK average of 7.8%, to just under 200,000.
Entrepreneurial spark, founded by Jim Duffy in 2011 and backed by some of Scotland's leading entrepreneurs, has experienced success and enjoyed a lot of exposure in the local and national media. The start-up accelerator has three centres in Scotland with around 15-30 start-ups based at each 'hatchery'. One of its backers, Sir Willie Haughey, who owns his own charitable trust, said: "I am totally committed to the great work at Entrepreneurial Spark. I look forward to seeing the projects and start-ups grow and mature, and would encourage others to get involved in supporting Scotland's start-up renaissance".