Investment Banking Annual Conference 2009

The 16th annual Investment Banking conference took place on the 8th and the 9th October in Newcastle. The event is the largest small-cap investor conference to take place outside of London and is consistently well-attended each year. The two day event started with over 30 fund managers making the journey from either London or Edinburgh to Newcastle to visit a range of companies in the North East and Scotland, providing them with an opportunity to meet with management and see first-hand how the businesses operate. The day culminated in a dinner at the Hilton Hotel, Newcastle for 113 people, of which 35 were investors and 37 were senior company representatives. The after-dinner speaker, comedian Jason Manford, was a great success and provided plenty to talk about in the bar afterwards. The following day, 60 pre-arranged, formal one-to-one meetings between investors and company management took place. The event is a great opportunity to entertain clients and thank them for their support over the last year, but the aim is primarily for the companies to network informally with existing and potential shareholders and for the fund managers to catch up with current investments as well as seeking out new opportunities. Feedback about the event has been excellent from all parties.