Regents of the University of California at Riverside
Attracting Capital for Entrepreneurism in Riverside County
Riverside, CA
Seed Fund Support
Federal Share: $300,000.00
Local Match: $300,083.00
Regents of the University of California at Riverside’s (UCR) Office of Technology Partnerships will launch the Attracting Capital for Entrepreneurism in Riverside County (ACER) program to lead a three-pronged approach for supporting entrepreneurship in Riverside and the greater Inland Empire. Resources will be invested in securing and deploying the second $5.5 million phase of investment of early-stage venture capital Highlander Fund; building and activating an angel investor network bringing together regional accredited investors and UCR alumni to focus on new company formation and job creation; and experimenting with innovative financing models for early stage entrepreneurs. ACER will initiate at least 20 investments via these funding mechanisms which will deploy at least $6 million during the three-year grant period. Further growth is expected two years post-grant to 55 investments cumulatively and over 140 investments within five years post-grant.