Global Chairman’s Remarks 2022
World Business Angel Investors Week 2022 will be a great platform from which to campaign for solutions to such critical issues and other worldwide concerns at the United Nations, the European Union and in G20 countries and regional and local economies.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, business transformation was a concern of big companies, but now it is imperative, and not just for large enterprises. Even the smallest companies and organisations must transform their business as a matter of urgency in order to cope with dynamics of the post-pandemic business environment.
Surveys reveal that most small companies and entrepreneurs in the startup economy are suffering financially. Their plight will become even more serious if they have not been able to complete their business transformation before the ‘new normal’ sets in.
The challenge is this: Business transformation is not a cheap process. How realistic is it to encourage entrepreneurs to invest in business transformation when they are struggling just to meet their short-term expenses?
Given this situation, the World Business Angels Investment Forum invites policymakers to develop smart policies that will provide financial support to startups, scaleups, SMEs and all entrepreneurs to help them transform their business. WBAF believes that more public–private partnerships (PPP) should be mobilised for this purpose. And governmental recovery plans need to include financial support for entrepreneurs’ business transformation efforts.
Governments must be alerted to the fact that unless small companies receive financial support for transforming their business, they will not be able to survive in post-pandemic times. This means their capacity to create more jobs and social wealth for economies will be lost.
I would like to thank in advance all the stakeholders and partners who will be contributing to World Business Angels Investors Week 2022. They will be highlighting the importance of business transformation for post-pandemic times, the theme of this year’s event. I believe, to grow and thrive in a post-pandemic world, swift business transformation into a pandemic-proof organisational model is vital, if we are to ensure the sustainability of world economies in the ‘new normal’.
I would also like to thank the organizing committee and the colleagues who will be taking roles as continental chairs, country chairs, global partners, keynote speakers and panel discussants. Their combined efforts will create value for the world’s startup economies, not only during this week but in the future as well. They will focus on harnessing the collective knowledge of the world’s most influential women leaders, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and artists with a view to addressing critical issues of early-stage equity markets in the ‘new normal’.
World Business Angel Investors Week 2022 will also be a great platform from which to campaign for solutions to such critical issues and other worldwide concerns at the United Nations, the European Union and in G20 countries and regional and local economies.
The ultimate goal of all of the Week’s keynotes, discussions, presentations, and workshops is to agree on a common roadmap for entrepreneurs, startups and SMEs that will enable them to emerge from this pandemic period even stronger than they were before.
I am confident that each participant in World Business Angel Investors Week will benefit from the collaboratives ideas, know-how exchange, training programs and workshops, and global networking opportunities that are offered. I believe that, by working together across borders, with a common vision, and smart dynamics in mind, we are well placed to bring about positive change in the global economy.
Yours sincerely,
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Baybars Altuntas
Global Chair, World Business Angel Investors Week
Executive Chairman, World Business Angels Investment Forum
An affiliated partner of the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI)