MIAMI, USA: Serial entrepreneurs and technologists Ben Way and Rye Akervik have teamed up to launch SickCompany, a ‘not for profit’ resource aimed at matching distressed companies with the capital needed to save them amidst the COVID−19 crisis.
The online matching platform enables companies all over the world to register their details including description, location, size, revenue and the size of investment required to save them. Once registered, companies are then plotted on a global map and given colour coded ratings according to distress level − Black (Dead Company), Red (Immediate Distress), Yellow (A few weeks to survive) and Green (We need help). Potential investors are invited to review companies and match with those they are interested in putting forward offers of financial assistance to.
SickCompany is the brainchild of Ben Way and Rye Akervik. Ben 39, Miami, USA has spent the last twenty five seeking out, developing and investing in new technologies and has advised some of the world’s leading institutions including the White House(Clinton Administration) he was one of the original Dot Com millionaires before loosing everything in the Dot Com Crash after this he started Europe’s first incubator The Rainmakers. Rye 26, Miami, USA is a fellow innovator and entrepreneur, having spent his career in emerging technologies, building emerging software for VR and computer vision, and AI. Both say they want to make the world a better place through techological innovations and saw the current crisis as an opportunity to put their skills and experience to good use.
“The world economy transformed seemingly overnight due to this virus and is heading for a depression” says co−founder Ben Way. “Millions of organizations employing tens of millions of people risk financial devastation from COVID−19. Rye and I created SickCompany as a ‘not for profit’ resource and our mission is to connect distressed companies with the capital needed to save them. We hope that our small, but focused, contribution can positively impact the livelihoods of the tens of millions affected in this global crisis.”
“We have created & helped hundreds of companies over the years and already just in the last few weeks some are on the brink of collapse, it will make the Dot Com Crash look like child’s play”
Rye points out that several sectors are likely to be more impacted from the crisis than others; Particularly vulnerable are enterprises that are highly susceptible to down−turns in local (physical) customer traffic, that have limited cash−flow, andƒor that are already strapped for capital. “Our primary concern is connecting investors to worthy enterprises that are in desperate need of a leg up during this trying period. Such networking is important under normal circumstances; but these connections have become all−the−more imperative during an economic downturn in which social−distancing measures are in place. Our mission, then, is to facilitate the resurgence of faltering companies by ensuring they can find investors ready to provide capital infusions. Now more than ever, savvy capital allocation is vital to the survival of nascent enterprises−−especially those with minimal capacity to absorb temporary setbacks.”
As well as matching companies with lifeline investment, SickCompany promises to also provide companies with inside information and regular updates on what impact this event will have on them in real and practical terms.
To register your company or if you are interested in offering investment, go to
ENDS
For more media information and images or to interview Ben and Rye, please contact Julia at Toast PR on juliamitchell@toastpr.co.uk 00447867 638373
