Keiretsu angel-investor group to gather in Sun Valley

Keiretsu Forum, said to be North America’s largest network of “angel” investors in promising companies, plans to host a meeting July 15-18 at Sun Valley Resort.
Members and guests are slated to review presentations from four companies that seek funding. Organizers plan various networking and recreational events.
Keiretsu Forum includes 16 chapters and more than 750 accredited investor members. According to information from the group, the Keiretsu Forum since September 2000 invested more than $180 million in more than 200 companies with high growth potential in fields including technology, health care / life sciences, consumer products and real estate.
“Our members possess and share diverse industry expertise, from software, telecom and life sciences to retail and information technology,” the Forum says on a Web page that describes Keiretsu Forum and the Boise / Idaho chapter: www.k4sunvalley.com/about. htm. “Presenting entrepreneurs have the opportunity to enjoy exposure to our accredited private equity investors, venture capitalists and resource partners, access to a wealth of feedback and insight, and a portal into the markets, relationships and executive talent found within the Keiretsu network.”
“One of the things we need to do in Idaho is to support and connect our young businesses with capital,” Phil Syrdal, acting president of the Boise / Idaho chapter, said in an interview. Keiretsu Forum, through multiple chapters in the West, is “able to connect companies that need capital to a much larger funding universe. It’s very important for Idaho companies, even if they get their initial seed rounds, to be able to raise additional funding in later stages. The Forum can provide companies with funding at the various stages that they go through in order to grow into a large, successful company.”
Keiretsu Forum’s approximately 200 members who reside in the Northwest invested around $17 million in companies in 2007, Syrdal said. They fund more than 40 percent of companies that make presentations – although the companies are allowed to present only after making it through a multi-stage screening process and proving that “they are at a stage where that money can take them to the next specific endpoint.”
Forum members “come from virtually every area of business, have very broad expertise, and they’ve been successful,” he said. “When an investor is looking at a prospective investment, he has all of that talent and experience to draw on from within the Keiretsu network. It allows us here in Idaho to have a great deal of expertise in everything from computer gaming to forestry.”
The Boise-Sun Valley chapter has been very active in helping local companies to get the assistance and the funding they need, said Phil Reed, general partner in Highway 12 Ventures, a venture-capital firm based in Boise. “A lot of times we will have a company not quite ready for venture capital, and we’ll refer them to the Keiretsu Forum,” he said.
“We view them as a collaborative partner in helping young companies get up and running here,” Reed said.

Highway 12 is active in the Boise Angel Alliance / Boise Angel Fund and the Keiretsu Forum.

Syrdal said angel investment “has been a very risky proposition. Keiretsu Forum significantly increases the odds of making successful angel investments compared to a small group or individual.”

The Keiretsu Forum Boise / Idaho chapter usually meets monthly. Non-members come by invitation only.

Information about the Sun Valley event is available from Gina Sullivan of Keiretsu Forum Northwest at 206-529-3687 or by e-mail at gina@keiretsuforum.com; or from Syrdal at 208-850-2268 or psyrdal@keiretsuforum.com). Dave Chase, Sun Valley director of the Boise / Idaho chapter, can be reached at dchase@keiretsuforum.com.