SBA Develops ACE-Net

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has developed the Angel Capital Electronic Network (ACE-Net) to link small companies and investors through the Internet. Entrepreneurs will be able to put their prospectus on a secure database that can be searched by approved individual or "angel" investors. The goal of the network is to improve access to equity capital for small companies that need capital in the $250,000 to $5 million range.

All offering listings will be available by an on-line search engine that will permit the "angels" to identify companies in which they want to invest. The investors can look for a specific type of company, technology or market, investment size, geographic location, and minority-/women owned status. ACE-Net will also permit investors to place specific search criteria on the network and it will send an e-mail when a company is listed that meets their interests.

Info on ACE-Net is available on the World Wide Web at <http://www.sbaonline. sba.gov> and <http://ace-net.unh.edu>

More information is also available by contacting Jere Glover, Chief Counsel, SBA Office of Advocacy, at 202/205-6533.

The University of New Hampshire's Center for Venture Research is the lead organization responsible for maintaining the Ace-Net Internet database and home page. Interested companies and investors can gain access to the password-controlled network by contacting regional network operators.

The two network operators currently open are Technology Capital Network at MIT and The Capital Network, Inc. in Austin, Texas. The following organizations have been designated as network operators and will be offering access soon: Accelerate Technology Small Business Development Center (California); UCSD-CONNECT (California); North Carolina Biotechnology Center; Ben Franklin Partnership (Pennsylvania); Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation; Advanced Technology Development Center (Georgia).