Press Room

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Alan Fogg, Director of Communications
afogg@fceda.org, 703-790-0600

Fairfax County Lands First Foreign Venture Capital Firm

California Internet security firm also locates in county

Fairfax County, Virginia, August 29, 2000 — A U.K.-based venture capital firm and an Internet security company from Silicon Valley are among 10 corporations that announced in July that they would expand in or relocate operations to Fairfax County.  The 10 companies will add 605 new jobs to the economy, according to the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA).

CDC India Ventures, part of CDC Capital Partners U.K., is the first international venture capital firm to locate in Fairfax County. The company will invest in technology companies in Northern Virginia and elsewhere in the U.S. Ramesh Ramani and Subba Telidevara manage the Fairfax County operations. Their focus is on early-stage U.S. companies, and the fund can assist U.S. companies to set up Indian operations and secure talent from India."

Foreign capital is identifying Fairfax County as a great U.S. market," said Gerald L. Gordon, president of the FCEDA. "It's recognition that exciting things are happening here, that opportunities are good and that people from India feel comfortable here." About 22 venture capital firms have offices in Fairfax County, according to the FCEDA.

The Internet security firm that moved into Fairfax County is San Jose, Calif.-based Counterpane Internet Security Inc. "Companies that provide security for the Internet want to be close to where the action is with the Internet, and that is Fairfax County," Gordon said. And policy decisions about the future of the Internet are being taken up minutes away in Washington." Another company that located to Fairfax County in July was Santa Clara, Calif.-based SiteSmith Inc, a leading provider of Internet infrastructure management services. Two companies that expanded its presence in July were Global Crossing, which opened a second GlobalCenter Web-hosting data center in Herndon, and CoreExpress, which has developed a national network that allows Internet service providers to share storage and transmission capacity. Gov. Jim Gilmore attended a grand opening for GlobalCenter data center last week.

Six of the 10 announcements are from firms that are new to Fairfax County, and four are international companies. About 150 international firms have operations in Fairfax County. Typically, every new job added spins off two to three jobs in the secondary economy. Some of the largest relocations and expansions during the month were:

* Foreign-owned firm.

For technology companies, Fairfax County offers a state-of-the-art telecommunications infrastructure, access to domestic and international markets through Washington Dulles International Airport, access to sources of capital, a well-educated workforce and an excellent quality of life.        

The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority promotes Fairfax County as a world center for commerce and trade. The FCEDA assists businesses by identifying possible sites and facilities, and is a source for up-to-date demographic and economic statistics.  Visit the FCEDA's Web page at www.FairfaxCountyEDA.org.                                                              

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