EBAN 10th Annual Congress & 5th Awards Ceremony  

April 15/16th, Istanbul, Turkey

Dear Alix de Bressy,

The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds, and other Early Stage Market Players - EBAN  is proud to announce the 10th EBAN Annual Congress and 5th Award Ceremony to take place on April 15th and 16th 2010 in Istanbul – Turkey. The event is hosted by the Middle East Technical University’s Technopolis’ Business Angel Network – METUTECH-BAN.

The EBAN Congress, along with the Award Ceremony, is the leading awareness raising event for the early stage investor community in Europe. The theme of the event is “A Cross-Road for Continents, Cultures and Early Stage Investors” and aims to share best practices, raise awareness and build relations among investors and other financial actors involved in closing the equity gap and interested in collaborating and investing together. Very exciting speakers have now confirmed their presence to the event. Find more about confirmed speakers and topics for discussion in the programme enclosed. This event will also offer unlimited numbers of networking and learning opportunities, including a cruise on the Bosphorus, a cocktail party and a gala dinner organized in the framework of the 5th EBAN Award Ceremony.

The EBAN Awards Ceremony has been organized since 2006 to celebrate individuals or organisations that have made a successful and significant contribution to the early stage investment market Europe in 2009/2010. The competition for this year’s 5th European Awards Ceremony is now open! Business angels, business angels networks and early stage funds Europe-wide, both EBAN members and not are welcome to participate in the Ceremony.

The winners will be announced during the EBAN Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner which take place in the framework of the EBAN 10th Annual Congress 2010 on the evening of day 1 April 15th at Esma Sultan Yalisi in Istanbul, Turkey.

The following categories will be celebrated this year:
1.         Most promising exit
2.         Business angel of the year
3.         Early stage fund manager/team of the year
4.         Business angel group leader/team of the year
5.         Best investment in a social enterprise

Details for each category are to be found in the Awards application document enclosed. Submissions should be sent by filling in the application enclosed (compulsory) jointly with any supporting documents and testimonials (optional) to Silvia Santos at info@eban.org by March 20th2010.

The best 4 entries per category will be selected by jury members and these will be published on the event website as well as in the awards ceremony booklet to be distributed to participants during the Awards Ceremony on April 15th. Circa 200 participants are expected to take part in the Awards Ceremony which will gather representatives from the early stage investment market in Europe and worldwide. A profile of all the winners is produced by EBAN after the event and winners are posted on the event and EBAN website as well.

More information related to this year’s Awards, including names and profiles of appointed jury members, will be available soon at the dedicated EBAN Congress website at: http://congress2010.eban.org/

Do not hesitate to circulate this opportunity to your interested contacts.
We hope that many of you will join in this event and or competition this year!

Best regards,

Alberica Marzotto Caotorta
Project Manager
EBAN - The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds, and other Early Stage Market Players
Rue Vautier 54 | 1050 Brussels | Belgium
T: +32 2 626 20 60
F: +32 2 626 20 69
E: Alberica.marzotto@eban.org
W: www.eban.org

EBAN 10th Annual Congress & 5th Awards Ceremony
15/16 April 2010 |  Istanbul | Turkey | http://congress2010.eban.org/

A pan-European organization gathering more than 100 members, including business angels networks and federations of networks, early stage venture capital funds (investing less than 3 million euros per transaction and interested in co-investment opportunities with business angels) and other early stage investors, EBAN strives to create a better environment and professional services for EBAN  members. Would you need more information please visit www.eban.org or contact us. 

EBANAwards2010_Categoriesandsubmissions.doc
EBANCongress2010_ProvisionalAgenda_040310.pdf