AVCAL calls for continued govt support for Innovation Investment Fund

The Australian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCAL) has called for the federal government to make a clear policy commitment to the Innovation Investment Fund (IIF) beyond this round of funding.

The government announced yesterday that it would pump $100 million into the IIF, which supports venture capitalists and fund managers who invest in early-stage companies to assist them in commercialising new products and technologies.

AVCAL welcomed the recent injection of $100 million into the fund by the federal government, which is higher than the $60 million that was the remaining allocation for the programme.

However the government has made no commitment to continue the fund after the current tranche, which concludes 2 July 2012.

“The Government commendably spends over $8 billion a year on research and development but very little on helping to commercialise that investment,” said AVCAL CEO Dr Katherine Woodthorpe.

“The IIF has been a vital program in the commercialisation effort but a lot more work is needed if we want Australia to capitalise on and retain its innovation for national growth and employment.”

According to Woodthorpe, VC fund managers take on the financial risk to help innovators commercialise their concepts, and she stressed the need for greater policy support for these commercial “enablers”.