Cambridge Enterprise Reports Successful Year  

More than £1 billion in funding has been raised by companies with roots in Cambridge research, according to year-end results from Cambridge Enterprise, the University’s commercialisation arm. The company works with University inventors and entrepreneurs to get young, high-risk companies to the stage where they can attract outside investment, through mentoring, planning advice and seed funding.

The £1 billion funding figure included in the report indicates that many go on to flourish despite the uncertain basis on which they start out. The three-year survival rate for companies is also given an as 80% compared with the national average of 58%.

One of the most successful companies in the Cambridge Enterprise portfolio is BlueGnome, which was co-founded by Dr Nick Haan, a former PhD student and post-doctoral researcher in the Department of Engineering.

The company developed technology which has been shown to increase IVF success rates by 65% over current methods. In September 2012, it was acquired by US-based life sciences company Illumina for $95 million.

The University’s proceeds from the sale will be returned to the ‘evergreen’ seed funds managed by Cambridge Enterprise, and will support the next generation of Cambridge spin-outs.

Cambridge Enterprise’s total income from licensing, consultancy and equity transactions for the year ending 31 July 2012 exceeded £9.1 million, with £7.5 million of that amount returned to the University, departments and researchers. The team completed 84 licences, signed 201 consultancy contracts and returned more than £162,000 to its seed funds.