History

Minority Angel Investor Network is an outgrowth of an initiative of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP-SEP) (www.sep.benfranklin.org), a Commonwealth of Pennsylvania funded economic development organization that invests in early-stage technology companies. Several years ago BFTP-SEP, in an effort to increase the percentage of minority-owned or minority-led companies in its investment portfolio, appointed an advisory board, the Minority Technology Advisory Board (MTAB), to assist in the development of a strategy to achieve this goal. In the process of strategy formulation the MTAB identified three issues that contributed to the insufficient number of high-growth minority entrepreneurs:

• Lack of Education (both entrepreneurs and investors)
• Lack of Capital
• Lack of Qualified Resources

When the issues were prioritized, it was decided that the lack of capital should be the target of the group's initial attention. A focus group held in February 2004 revealed significant interest among a small group of accredited investors in forming a network of angels to invest in high-growth minority owned or minority led companies. Minority Angel Investor Network's founders include: Terrence Hicks - Vice President Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Tim Reese - Chief Executive Officer, Xcelis Communications, Todd Pride - Chief Executive Officer, Sullivan Community Capital, and Sushma Raj - General Partner and Co-Founder, Threshold Partners. Minority Angel Investor Network was officially launched in June 2004 and commenced operations in November 2004. Minority Angel Investor Network currently has 15 accredited investor members and meets monthly to review investment opportunities. Minority Angel Investor Network, is a member led organization, with members assuming active roles in network administration, member recruitment, deal screening, etc.