Cisco Announces Venture Capital Initiative in Central and Eastern
Europe
'3TS-Cisco Growth Fund III' to Support Technology and Communications
Start-Ups
SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwire - November 12, 2007) - Cisco® (NASDAQ:
CSCO) today announced a venture capital initiative targeting the
technology industry in Central and Eastern Europe(1). Cisco will
pursue investment opportunities in technology-related start-ups in
the region, both directly as well as indirectly through a regional
venture fund.
In collaboration with 3TS Capital Partners, Cisco is making the
anchor investment in the Technology in Central and Eastern Europe
S.C.A. SICAR fund (to be informally called '3TS-Cisco Growth Fund
III'), which will initially close at 30 million euros. 3TS Capital
Partners, one of the leading private equity and venture capital firms
in Central and Eastern Europe, will seek and manage the fund's
investments. The target companies for the fund primarily include
high-growth small and medium-sized companies in the technology,
media, and telecommunications sectors.
"Cisco helps drive entrepreneurship in Central and Eastern Europe
through initiatives such as the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute, as well
as through project financing, leasing programs and, most recently,
the venture fund partnership being announced today. New businesses
are a key driver of growth in emerging economies and of jobs in local
communities," said Kaan Terzioglu, Cisco's vice president for Central
and Eastern Europe. "Countries in the region innovate across a broad
range of technologies, including broadband, wireless, security, and
communications technologies. They also lead in the adoption of VoIP
applications, multimedia and gaming, mobile content, and
entertainment delivery. The opportunities in the region are therefore
immense."
To date, Cisco has deployed more than $2 billion in venture capital
investments and has been an active equity investor in major markets
such as China, India, Israel and Europe, in addition to the United
States. Through a combination of direct and indirect funding
vehicles, Cisco is a strategic investor in start-ups and venture
funds around the world and focuses on finding and investing in
companies that have innovative technologies and business models.
Cisco has appointed Yoav Samet, head of Israel and Emerging Europe
Corporate Business Development, to lead this important investment
initiative.
"Investing in geographically focused venture funds like the 3TS-Cisco
Growth Fund is another strategic tool in our global investment
portfolio that fuels ICT market growth through investment in the
innovation economy," said Hilton Romanski, senior director of Global
Corporate Business Development for Cisco. "This strategy will help
catalyze and accelerate tech innovation in Central and Eastern Europe
and take technology investment in the region to the next level."
About the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute
The Cisco Entrepreneur Institute is building on Cisco's 10-year
history in education with the Cisco Networking Academy®. While
networking academies are providing technology skills, the Cisco
Entrepreneur Institute is focusing on entrepreneurial skills. The
objective of the institute is to teach local entrepreneurs the skills
needed for running a small- or medium-sized business (SMB)
successfully. The curriculum, based on Cisco's iExecutive Education
Program (iExec), as well as My Own Business, an educational program
developed in the United States and endorsed by the World Bank,
includes strategic and business planning, financing, the development
of venture capital relationships, and the use of information and
communications technology (ICT) to achieve better business results.
Cisco is rolling out Cisco Entrepreneur Institutes across Central and
Eastern Europe, in cooperation with leading educational institutes
operating in the individual countries.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking that
transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate.
Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For
ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. Cisco equipment
in Europe is supplied by Cisco Systems International BV, a wholly
owned subsidiary of Cisco Systems, Inc.
About 3TS Capital Partners
3TS Capital Partners (www.3tscapital.com) is one of the leading
private equity and venture capital firms in Central and Eastern
Europe operating in the whole region through offices in Budapest,
Bucharest, Prague, Vienna and Warsaw. 3TS is the exclusive adviser of
funds totaling EUR 200 million targeting investments in growth
sectors including Technology & Telecoms, Media & Marketing, Services
and Environment & Energy. Investors in the Funds include 3i, Cisco,
EBRD, KfW and Sitra among others.
Cisco, the Cisco logo, Cisco Systems and Networking Academy are
registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its
affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All
other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their
respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a
partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. This
document is Cisco Public Information.
(1) Including, but not limited to: Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic,
Croatia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia, Ukraine and Turkey.
For direct RSS Feeds of all Cisco news, please visit "News@Cisco" at
the following link:
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/rss.html
Cisco Public Relations
Contact:
John Noh
+1 408 242 3852
jnoh@cisco.com
Cisco Investor Relations
Contact:
Andreas Goldau
+44 20 8824 8209
agoldau@cisco.com
Cisco Analyst Relations Contact:
Sharon Robinson
+27 21 413 4577
sharobin@cisco.com
Cisco PR CEE
Contact:
Judit Sinko
+36 1 225 4650
jsinko@cisco.com