Shaping the 2018 Agenda of the world equity markets
(Istanbul) Drawing together hundreds of the world’s top business leaders, WBAF 2018 will shape the global agenda of the world early and post-early stage equity markets in the year ahead. For the first time ever, The World Business Angel Investors Forum Annual Congress 2018, the world’s biggest annual gathering of early stage equity and investment markets will have 5 important summits running concurrently and will host more than 1000 delegates from around the world on 18 – 20 February 2018 in Istanbul.
The official partner of the WBAF World Congress 2018 is Central Europe’s V4 – the Visegrad Group (The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). The Visegrad Group, also known as the ‘Visegrad Four’ or simply ‘V4’, reflects the efforts of countries of the Central European region to work together in economic, social and cultural development. IFC – International Finance Corporation is one of the strategic partners of the Congress.
Quick Facts - The WBAF World Congress 2018:
1200 participants from 74 countries, 124 speakers from 35 countries, 26 panel discussions, 17 keynote speeches from 17 legendary leaders, 9 fireside chats, 5 presentations, 1 governmental meetup, 2 workshops, 2 master classes, 1 short course
The WBAF Annual Conference 2018 will focus on angel investors partnering with family offices and wealth management institutions. Start-ups, scale-ups and angel investors will be able to connect at the TAKE INVEST SUMMIT. The CEO-PRENEURSHIP SUMMIT will focus on transforming CEOs into angel investors, while the FINTECH SUMMIT will deal with issues of financial inclusion and ways to democratise access to finance. Generating innovative ideas to mobilise private and public capital for the social good will be discussed at the IMPACT INVESTMENT SUMMIT. WBAF will also salute the global successes of the year at the World Excellence Awards & VIP Gala Dinner at the Swissotel The Bosphorus Istanbul.
As a global organisation, the World Business Angels Investment Forum brings together key players of the equity market to discuss the benefits and challenges to the angel investment community’s achieving successful growth for their businesses and to discuss what more can be done to connect the early-stage market ecosystem and to discuss what more can be done to facilitate the democratization of finance by expanding access to and participation in every level of society.
In the wake of the global economic crisis, it was far from easy to reach out for any kind of finance, smart or otherwise. The importance of the early-stage investment market in the creation of new jobs and social justice in their countries has encouraged the implementation of new regulations that provide tax incentives for angel investors, corporate ventures and start-ups. The World Business Angels Investment Forum focuses on developing innovative financial instruments for entrepreneurs and SMEs as a part of its global agenda.
Angel investment is booming worldwide
More than 90% of the early-stage investments in Europe come from angel investor capital. The angel investment market size is more than €6.8 billion in Europe and more than US$26 billion in the US and Canada. The total size of the world’s early-stage investment market is expected to exceed $50 billion by 2020. The $50 billion market for angel investment promises a $150 billion exit in the next 5 to 7 years.
OECD reports show that more than 96% of the world’s economy is driven by SMEs, entrepreneurs and start-ups. Many governments have understood the importance of the early-stage investment market in the creation of new jobs and social justice in their countries and have therefore implemented new regulations that provide tax incentives for angel investors, corporate ventures and start-ups.
Promoting how innovation and sustainable industrialization requires easy access to finance and financial services that facilitate investment, the panelists will provide a regional focus by discussing the V4 early stage investment market and the importance of connecting the international Visegrad Fund with Global Capital Markets. Also discussed is WBAF’s excitement on being a new investment instrument for Islamic finance, revealing their 100% compatibility with the Islamic investment principles, and the possibility of co-investment funds with Islamic finance in the future.
There is an impressive list of global leaders and industry experts speaking at the TAKE INVEST SUMMIT, the CEO-PRENEURSHIP SUMMIT, the FINTECH SUMMIT and the IMPACT INVESTMENT SUMMIT, all of which can be found at the event website - http://www.wbaf2018.istanbul/
International sponsors, important strategic partners and global media partners are engaged with WBAF 2018’s global mission
Main Sponsor and Official Partner 2018: Visegrad 4; Co-sponsors: Istanbul University’s ARI Teknokent and the BNP Paribas TEB Angel Investment Platform; Sponsors (in alphabetical order): Albaraka, Bilkent University’s Cyberpark, Fintech Istanbul powered by BKM, Fineksus, Intel, Invest in Istanbul, Nexchange, Peppers & Rogers Group, the Republic of Turkey Prime Ministry Investment Support and Promotion Agency, the Qatar Development Bank, and Workinton; Global scientific partners: UNIDO and TUBITAK; Media partners: TRT World, AA, Dunya Daily, and Para Weekly; Official airline: Turkish Airlines; Strategic partners: IFC, SME Finance Forum, IASP, EBAN, ABAN, MBAN, and TBAA.
Speaking ahead of the event, WBAF Chairman Baybars Altuntas comments:
“Building on the success of the 2017 World Business Angels Investment Forum (WBAF), this year’s forum will focus on the theme ‘Unlocking the Potential for Innovation: Angel Investors Partnering with Family Offices and Wealth Management Institutions.’ The discussions will explore how family offices and wealth management institutions can foster open innovation and deliver more business value through partnerships with angel investors, start-ups, scale-ups, high-growth businesses and SMEs.
“By working together across borders, with a common vision, and with these smart dynamics in mind, we are well placed to create positive change in the global economy.”
EVENT AND SPEAKER DETAILS: Further details on the event, including the event agenda, speakers and proposed topics call all be found at http://www.wbaf2018.istanbul/
About World Business Angels Investment Forum
The World Business Angels Investment Forum (WBAF) is an international organisation aiming to ease access to finance for businesses from start up to scale up, with the ultimate goal of generating more jobs and more social justice worldwide. It is committed to collaborating globally to empower world economic development by creating innovative financial instruments for innovators, startups, and SMEs. The Forum interacts with leaders in all areas of society, first and foremost in business and political spheres, to help assess needs and establish goals, bearing in mind that the public interest is of paramount importance. WBAF engages a wide range of institutions, both public and private, local and international, commercial and academic to help shape the global agenda.
