Pyrodex Awarded Pre-Seed Capital from TEDCO
TEDCO and The Harbor Bank of Maryland CDC Invest Into Three New Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund Recipients
BALTIMORE, Md. (December 15, 2017) — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, and The Harbor Bank of Maryland Community Development Corporation today announced its new Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund (MBPF) investments for the organization’s recently launched funding program.
The MBPF program, created in February 2017 to provide pre-seed capital to underrepresented tech entrepreneurs in Maryland to drive economic development in the state, is under TEDCO’s Gateway Services. TEDCO and The Harbor Bank of Maryland Community Development Corporation, will make investments of up to $40,000 to help minority entrepreneurs take a technology-based idea or concept that represents a viable business opportunity and develop it into a product that can be tested. MBPF is a pilot program for African-American entrepreneurs in Maryland.
“These minority-founded businesses represent the audacious ideas that make Maryland such a thriving technology ecosystem,” said George Davis, CEO of TEDCO. “MBPF is competitive, and only the best ideas supported by a thoughtful commercialization plan receive an investment – these awardees are among the best of the best.”
“The Harbor Bank of Maryland Community Development Corporation’s investment into these companies represents our commitment to supporting the best ideas and entrepreneurs in the region. We know that catalytic investment is vital to the growth of the local economy,” said John Lewis, Executive Vice President of The Harbor Bank of Maryland CDC.
The winning businesses for the MBPF current round are: kweliTV, PYT Funds Inc., and PyroDex LLC.
- PyroDex, LLC, based in Baltimore, is a business-to-business biotech company that offers a focused service of rapid, comprehensive detection of pyrogens or fever-causing contaminants in injectable or implantable medical drugs and devices, using technologies that do not rely on animal testing or animal products. Using a proprietary formulation resulting in a test that is 2 to 30 times more sensitive than the commercially available endotoxin-specific detection and other MAT kits, PyroDex is able to return test results in 2 days for a premium price or in less than 5 days for its standard price, to enable clients to release products for clinical applications.
About TEDCO
TEDCO provides the resources and connections that start-up technology and life sciences companies need to thrive in Maryland. Funded by the state but operated independently, the organization is led by executives and staff who understand the challenges faced by entrepreneurs because they have been there themselves. TEDCO operates the Maryland Venture Fund and the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund, as well as many other funds and programs to help growing companies succeed. Learn more at www.tedco.com.
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Technical.ly: These 3 entrepreneurs just got funding from TEDCO's Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund
It's the second round for the program from TEDCO and Harbor Bank Community Development Corporation.
And though no formal competition was held for the last set of investments, Maryland Technology Development Corp. also announced three new awardees for its Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund. The fund was designed to help inject money into startup ideas from black entrepreneurs who may not have access to traditional funding sources, like friends and family capital, and is operated in partnership with Harbor Bank of Maryland. Harbor Bank provides half the seed money, as well as access to incubation office space for participating startups. This marks the second round of entrepreneurs to receive funding through the TEDCO program.
The Daily Record: TEDCO gives pre-seed funding to 3 more minority entrepreneurs
TEDCO and The Harbor Bank of Maryland Community Development Corp. announced the awards for the three companies from the Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund, each of which will receive up to $40,000.