Swedish business incubator Iqube closes its doors
A high-profile business incubator that many hoped would bring forward a new generation of Swedish entrepreneurs has shut its doors.
Iqube, set up by well-known businessman Johan Staël von Holstein, announced on Friday that it was winding up its operations. The company will continue as a holding company to manage the portfolio of companies in which it has shares. Iqube currently has shares in around 100 companies.
According to Staël von Holstein, who made his name in the IT boom, the move would enable Iqube to "best take advantage of the value of the existing portfolio."
The decision will mean Iqube leaving its premises in Stockholm's Östermalm, where many of its companies have offices. In an email to those affected, Staël von Holstein said that the decision was taken "against the background of the current market situation and the economic climate."
"It's a business decision that needed to be made," Staël von Holstein told The Local. He said that he had spent much of the past year trying to raise the necessary capital to keep the incubator going, but the recession had meant he had only raised about half the money he needed.
Despite the setback, Staël von Holstein said the idea would live on, and that he was already working on 'Iqube 2'.
Iqube owns a minority share in The Local Europe AB, publisher of The Local. The latest developments will have no effect on The Local.
Iqube's success stories include mobile software developer Kennet Works, which was sold to Yahoo in 2006 for $22 million.
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Iqube, set up by well-known businessman Johan Staël von Holstein, announced on Friday that it was winding up its operations. The company will continue as a holding company to manage the portfolio of companies in which it has shares. Iqube currently has shares in around 100 companies.
According to Staël von Holstein, who made his name in the IT boom, the move would enable Iqube to "best take advantage of the value of the existing portfolio."
The decision will mean Iqube leaving its premises in Stockholm's Östermalm, where many of its companies have offices. In an email to those affected, Staël von Holstein said that the decision was taken "against the background of the current market situation and the economic climate."
"It's a business decision that needed to be made," Staël von Holstein told The Local. He said that he had spent much of the past year trying to raise the necessary capital to keep the incubator going, but the recession had meant he had only raised about half the money he needed.
Despite the setback, Staël von Holstein said the idea would live on, and that he was already working on 'Iqube 2'.
Iqube owns a minority share in The Local Europe AB, publisher of The Local. The latest developments will have no effect on The Local.
Iqube's success stories include mobile software developer Kennet Works, which was sold to Yahoo in 2006 for $22 million.
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