The necessity and willingness to do closer cross-border collaboration has been a hot topic in the Nordics and Baltics. With mutual international syndication programs, such as the Nordic Angel Program, and joint angel trips to several destinations around the globe, the Nordic and Baltic angel networks have taken several concrete steps already. Now this collaboration is deepened even further, as all board members from FiBAN, DanBAN, EstBAN, LitBAN and LatBAN can get a full membership in each other’s networks with no extra fees. This makes it easier to share deal flow, exchange best practices, and build investor relations across borders. “We all know that syndicates are a matter of forming good relationships and it is even more important for cross-boarder syndicates”, explains Rein Lemberpuu, a true board-expert in the New Nordics, as he is a board member of EstBAN and NordicBAN. “Most of the BANs have the most active angels as board members, which means that if they will be more connected to what is happening in neighboring regions: then it is a matter of time when we can expect joint deals to follow”, he concludes.
This initiative is just one of many activities that angel investors have taken to build Northern Europe into one, big market place, where both money and startups can move freely. “FiBAN is proud to be in the center of cross-border collaboration in the New Nordics – both geographically and mentally”, states Janne Jormalainen, Chair of Board of FiBAN.
The next cross-border angel meet-up is at Slush in Helsinki, 3-5 December. All angel-relevant side events are gathered by the FiBAN office here.