IIT Madras launches research centre on start-ups, risk financing

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], June 23 : Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) has launched a Centre for Research on Start-Ups and Risk Financing (CREST) to provide academic and thought leadership in innovation, entrepreneurship and risk capital.
It will also create a data repository on Indian start-ups and ventures to address a major hurdle for engaging in high-quality research. IIT-M said this information resource will be made accessible for researchers and policymakers.
With risk capital investment in Indian technology start-ups touching USD 68 billion (about Rs 4.7 lakh crore) in 2011-20, academic research and thought leadership can play an important role in sustaining and furthering this growth in entrepreneurship.
IIT-M said insights and evidence from the rigorous academic research will support policy-making as well as increase the effectiveness of managerial and investment decision-making in entrepreneurship.
"There is a need to build trust between scientists and business leaders. Amazing technology is coming out of the labs but the condition to get the maximum out of such innovations is not there," said Prof Tarun Khanna.
IIT-M was established in 1959 by the government as an institute of national importance.