The Financing of Early Staged Technology Based Firms in Malaysia

The establishment of various agencies to support and finance researches in universities and research institutes capable to grow technology based firms (TBF) was due to the Malaysian government's recognition of technology entrepreneurship as an avenue to develop the economy industrially. The government agencies and their ministries make available certain chunk of early capital dedicated to funding research and development (R & D), patenting, licencing and prototype development of technology entrepreneurs who are successful in coming out with innovative ideas. TBFs have been widely accepted by researchers as a key influence in the economic development, wealth generation, employment and creation of new innovations. Although, despite huge investment in research and development (R & D) and other public support from government to these group of firms, they still encounter difficulty in accessing the right and adequate amount of investment capital required to grow their firms to successful and global companies. The objective of this particular research is to find out the financing sources for TBFs in Malaysia. The researchers interviewed 28 technology based firms and 19 venture capital firms in Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia through a qualitative approach to data collection. The data collected was transcribed, analyzed and coded with the aim of identifying the emergent themes relevant for the theme development for the study. Conclusions are drawn from the study findings and recommendations made.