24 October 2018
Auckland, 24 October 2018 – Technology Investment Network (TIN) has named the ten Spark Early Stage Companies featured in this year’s TIN Report, launched tonight at a gala awards event in Auckland.
The TIN Report monitors the performance of New Zealand’s 200 (TIN100 and Next100) largest technology exporters in the areas of Information and Communications Technology (ICT), High-tech Manufacturing and Biotechnology. It is sponsored by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Spark, EY, Absolute IT, James & Wells and Simmonds Stewart.
The Spark Early-Stage Companies category recognises promising TIN companies that are in an early stage of the company lifecycle (development, pre-commercialisation or in market stages) from the 2018 TIN100 Report. These companies have been selected based on an assessment of the innovation of their technology and the potential market opportunity.
“Aspiring founders can learn from the experiences and success of the start-ups profiled this year and in previous TIN Reports,” said Aaron Small, Investment Manager, Spark Ventures, sponsor of the Spark Early-Stage Companies category. “Many of these companies have gone on to partner with large multinational companies or raise significant funding rounds to fuel their growth.”
“Startups play an important role in New Zealand’s future success, accelerating our economy through innovation to create new, high-value jobs and intellectual property. As an investor, customer and partner to New Zealand startups, Spark continues to be inspired by the ambition, talent and energy shown by this sector and we look forward to helping them unleash their potential,” added Mr. Small.
2018 has been an exciting year for the 500+ Early Stage technology companies that are currently tracked by TIN. Early stage New Zealand companies continue to attract significant investment with total angel investment increasing by 15.7% to $75.9 million in 2017*. However, investment has concentrated on a smaller group of companies. In 2017, there were 92 angel deals, nine fewer deals than in 2016. Average deal size has subsequently grown to $824,548; a 27% increase. This suggests that investors are becoming more selective when choosing their investment, but they are contributing greater capital per deal as a result.
The 2018 TIN Report shows that turnover for New Zealand’s top 200 (‘the TIN200’) technology companies increased by 11% to reach $11.1 billion in the past year; the second billion-dollar growth result in three years and the driver behind a record profitability** rise for this group of companies.
Copies of the TIN Report are available in eBook or hard copy and can be ordered from www.tin100.com. More details on the 2018 TIN Report and a regional breakdown is available on https://tin100.com/media/
Spark Early Stage Companies 2018 (listed alphabetically)
The award recognises promising TIN companies that are in an early stage of the company lifecycle (development, pre-commercialisation or in market stages) from the 2018 TIN100 Report. These companies have been selected based on an assessment of the innovation of their technology and the potential market opportunity.
Notes to Editors
*Angel investment figures are for the 2017 calendar year. Source: Angel investment data: NZVIF (2018)
**Profit is measured as EBITDA unless otherwise stated
For more information please contact:
Media Enquiries: Kate Dobbin Mob. +64 21 522 103
kate.dobbin@tinetwork.com
Greg Shanahan, Managing Director, Technology Investment Network
Ph. +64 9 445 0362 Mob. +64 27 435 6045
greg.shanahan@tinetwork.com
About the TIN Report
The TIN Report is produced by Technology Investment Network with sponsorship from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Spark, EY, Absolute IT, James & Wells and Simmonds Stewart. The TIN Report is a critical reference for benchmarking the performance of New Zealand’s 200 largest globally focused technology companies. The size of the tech industry has grown significantly since 2005 and in recognition of this,TIN sent surveys to approximately 700 companies in 2018.
About Technology Investment Network
Technology Investment Network (TIN) is a private company established in 1999 to facilitate the growth of the technology export sector in New Zealand. The company’s goal is to contribute to the New Zealand economy by supporting the growth of, large, sustainable, New Zealand based, global technology businesses. For more information visit www.tin100.com