Starting a company

Starting a company is something not a lot of people do on a daily basis. At Utrecht Holdings we are the exception to that rule. Since 1996 we have advised and helped numerous scientists in taking the first steps in starting their business. Over the years together with scientists, we started over 50 companies. And when you look at the list of our current companies, you can see how successful we are. Not only do we help scientists in funding their business – often we invest ourselves – we also advice with regard to legal and financial structure, in patenting inventions, in finding business partners and last but not least, in housing the company.

Here are some guidelines if you want to start a company as an employee of the Utrecht University  or the University Medical Center Utrecht.

• Set of Guidelines Dealing with Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) (Dutch / English)
• Guide to Dealing with Knowledge Institutions’ and Employees’ Equilty Interest in Academic Start-Ups (or Spin-offs) (Dutch / English)
• Frequently asked questions (Dutch / English)

Do you have entrepreneurial plans and do you need help executing them, contact us at secretariaat@utrechtholdings.nl or call 030 2535854.

Seeking capital

Since in many cases a lot of development is needed, the initial stage is seeking substantial capital. One option is to attract venture capital in return for shares in the company. The other is to obtain a loan from a bank. Given the uncertainty of the success of the company, banks can be very reluctant in contracting loans. The Dutch government has implemented helpful subsidy programmes in order to help start-ups to survive this difficult initial phase.

In Utrecht start-ups can get a loan up to € 50.000,- from the Rabo Preseed Fund. Find the conditions and all other information at UtrechtInc.