The web has a new destination for cleantech businesses and entrepreneurs, investors, experts and resources for those who are interested in it.
Ongreen.com last week announced that after a successful beta run the website is now officially launched. According to the publishers, the beta site attracted 250 start-ups from more than 35 countries, representing $1.9bn in funding opportunities. More than half of those entrepreneurs received investor inquiries, a company survey found out.
The company is using its recent series A funding to provide investors with deal vetting and to expand its China marketplace.
“The nature of today’s global cleantech market is that innovation doesn’t always occur where capital is available,†said OnGreen CEO Nikhil R. Jain. “As a global platform, OnGreen overcomes the physical separation between innovation, capital and expertise and helps speed the time from idea to commercialization.â€
Structure
The OnGreen platform is divided into three key areas: Deal Marketplace, where entrepreneurs seek funding for their cleantech businesses and investors make use of the search and filter capabilities to streamline deal flow; Patent Exchange, where inventors and companies post their intellectual property for sale or licensing and allow outside investors and enabling service providers to review them; and Expert Community, where business and technology experts promote their expertise, collaborate with their peers, engage in opportunity evaluations, share due diligence and make themselves available for mentoring, contract work or even employment.
Funding
OnGreen is backed by China Southern Hong Kong Investment Ltd. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles and has satellite offices in Shanghai and Mumbai, with plans to open offices in other locations during 2011.
Partnership
OnGreen has also partnered with the University of Michigan and Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy (JUCCCE) as part of its strategy to bridge cleantech professionals and investors from around the world. The project will involve working with Chinese companies to invest in University R&D and patents in exchange for which they would acquire joint rights to the associated intellectual property.
According to JUCCCE’s Co-Founder Peggy Liu, “China has a gap between their desire to save energy and reduce pollution, and their capability to go green as fast as they are building. This joint research project would not only bring positive trade flow into the U .S. from China and create jobs, but also potentially help the U.S. bypass historic patent infringement issues in China.â€
