Title: The impact of financial capital, human capital and social capital on the evolution of Business Angel Networks

Authors: Andreas Fili; Björn Berggren; Lars Silver

Addresses: Centre for Banking and Finance, The Royal Institute of Technology, SE – 100 44 Stockholm, Sweden ' Centre for Banking and Finance, The Royal Institute of Technology, SE – 100 44 Stockholm, Sweden ' Umeå School of Business and Economics, Umeå University, SE – 901 87 Umeå, Sweden

Abstract: Business angels are very important for the growth and development of start-ups as they contribute much needed capital and competence to these firms. During the past decades the formation and growth of Business Angel Networks (BANs) has become an increasingly common phenomenon and an important issue for policy-makers in most Western economies. In this paper, we follow the inception and development of three local BANs. The data in this paper come from in-depth interviews with the founders of the networks as well as bankers, civil servants, entrepreneurs and local politicians. The results indicate that capital alone will not guarantee success in a BAN rather it is a combination of the financial capital, human capital and social capital among the founding partners of the network.

Keywords: business angels; financial capital; human capital; social capital; business angel networks; investment; financing; entrepreneurship; Sweden; start-ups.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCG.2013.056259

International Journal of Corporate Governance, 2013 Vol.4 No.3, pp.209 - 228

Received: 19 Jan 2013
Accepted: 06 Jun 2013

Published online: 02 Sep 2013 *

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