Investbx sale heralds new plans for growth
THE head of Birmingham’s former online stock exchange Investbx has vowed to build the organisation up into the kind of funding body it was always designed to be.
Sue Summers, former chief executive of the body, acquired the exchange with business partner and former board member John Handley last month.
The acquisition of the exchange in April by their company, Colmore Row Managed Services, was secured for a token £1 from regional development agency Advantage West Midlands following a bidding process, which saw a number of competing offers tendered.
The move, predicted by TheBusinessDesk.com, had been widely anticipated as part of the disposal of assets at AWM.
The exchange’s holding company appointed accountant Mazars in January to find a potential buyer and an advert was placed in the Financial Times inviting expressions of interest.
In its Asset Liability Plan 2011, which was signed off by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills in April, AWM said its intention was to dispose of Investbx by the end of March to a private sector party using “an open and transparent tender process”.
Ms Summers said that while there may be criticism of the nominal price paid for the exchange, it was secured through a legitimate sale process.
“We now want to build up the exchange and have some very exciting ideas,” she said.
“When the exchange was funded by AWM we were restricted about what we could do but now we have a free hand we are looking to implement change.”
Ms Summers moved to new body Finance Birmingham in December when the non-stock exchange arm of Investbx transferred to Birmingham City Council’s new Business Loan Fund.
The local authority wants to utilise the stock exchange as part of its alternative funding strategy to help high growth businesses in the area.
The exchange was launched four years ago with a view to helping high growth businesses find the funding they needed. Financing of up to £2m could be available with investors using the online platform to trade shares.
However, despite lofty ambitions only three companies have ever been floated – manufacturer Key Technologies; corporate events firm Teamworks Karting; and financial group Early Equity.
