Start-ups want funds to turn their ideas into something tangible but they won't get funding as they've

"Start-ups want funds to turn their ideas into something tangible, but they won't get funding as they've got nothing that's tangible," he says.There is also a flexible approach to payment - start-ups can either defer fees or agree to pay according to success. Or they can give up a stake in the business.Hewlett-Packard's involvement is seen as particularly valuable because it can help evaluate the business potential, put together a technical strategy and, in some cases, offer its own technologies to assist with the development of the idea.. ROYAL Bank of Scotland Group made a hostile offer for National Westminster Bank, trying to outbid Bank of Scotland Its offer values NatWest at 1,506p a share. Bank of Scotland's bid - which includes cash, stock and a special dividend - is worth about 1,584p a share. "I'm disappointed and surprised that Royal Bank's bid is so low," said Charles Plowden, who helps manage pounds 15bn at Baillie Gifford.The Scottish banks - both less than half the size of NatWest - are trying to exploit their superior profitability to create Britain's biggest bank after HSBC Holdings. To do that, the eventual winner of the biggest takeover battle in UK banking will probably have to raise its offerRoyal Bank is more likely to win because it can offer up to 100p a share more, said Simon Willis, an analyst at Charterhouse Securities. He said Bank of Scotland could probably add 50p a share to its bid."We're hearing Royal Bank could pay up to 1,700p a share because it has scope for more cost savings than the Bank of Scotland," said Hugh Priestly, manager at Rathbone Laurence Keen.NatWest, plagued by poor acquisitions and an expensive retail network, has underperformed its UK banking rivals, reporting an average return on equity of 14 per cent in the past five years.If successful, Royal Bank promises to wring pounds 1.18bn in annual savings from the merger and expects pounds 390m in extra revenue. That exceeds the Bank of Scotland's promise to cut costs by pounds 1.02bn a year.Bank of Scotland's offer price includes a special 120p dividend to be paid next year after selling assets.

It criticised Royal Bank for planning to retain so many businesses, saying such a strategy would not solve NatWest's underperformance.NatWest has proposed its own programme to cut costs, sell assets, and return money to shareholders in an attempt to remain independent.. THE pound may extend last week's 1.2 per cent gain against the euro as quickening growth and the prospect of higher interest rates draws investors to the UK. The pound could also get a boost as money managers shun the euro amid expectations that the European Central Bank will not act to halt its decline. The single currency fell to its weakest level against the pound and dropped below $1 for a second day on Friday. "Sterling and the UK economy are still very buoyant," said Simon Miles, a senior currency dealer at Exchange Direct, which provides foreign exchange for companies in the UK. Meanwhile, "the outlook is precarious [for the euro]", he said.The pound climbed as high as pounds 0.6244 to the euro on Friday, bringing its rally this year to 12 per cent.

One pound now buys the equivalent of DM3.13, Fr10.5, or Pta266. Against the dollar, the pound was little changed on Friday at $1.6012. It dropped 0.3 per cent in the week.Improved economic growth is good news for sterling because it may draw overseas investors to UK assets such as stocks and the pounds needed to buy them. The prospect of higher Bank of England lending rates to ensure that growth doesn't feed inflation also aids the pound because it means the return on money-market deposits increases.Bank of England policy makers are likely to raise interest rates again soon, analysts said, although any increase is not likely to come when they convene on Wednesday and Thursday for their monthly meeting. All 19 economists in a Bloomberg News poll forecast the bank will keep the repurchase rate at 5.5 per cent after raising it twice since September.The cost of borrowing in the money market has already risen because of concern that computers won't recognise the calendar change to 2000, which may disrupt financial markets.In the latest indication of quicker growth, the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said on Friday that its main index of service-sector activity rose for the first time in four months in November. Prices in the industry rose at their fastest pace for two and a half years."The strong rise in the activity index and a rise in the prices-charged component should support sterling," according to Neil Parker, a treasury economist at Royal Bank of Scotland.Other reports in recent days have highlighted expanding manufacturing and construction industry in the UK and growing retail sales. Surveys on housing for November showed the annual growth in prices was at more than 10 per cent.The euro sank to its weakest level last week after the European Central Bank indicated that it is not poised to buy the currency to help bolster its value.

European Union officials also said they were not concerned by the decline."It doesn't look particularly good for the euro," said Neil MacKinnon, senior currency strategist at Merrill Lynch."The foreign exchange market feels that the European Central Bank and the EU finance ministers are not that worried about the euro. There is a risk of much further weakness."Last week the pound rose against the euro for three straight days, trading at its strongest against the mark since 1989.. JAPANESE telecommunications stocks such as NTT Mobile Communications Network could rise if investors say last week's near 10 per cent decline was overdone, given the potential growth in the industry. Investors will watch Monday's release of July-September gross domestic product figures. If these show the economy is not growing as fast as people expect, Nippon Steel Corp and others whose fortunes depend on a healthy domestic economy may decline. "I don't expect GDP to be strong enough to suggest sustainable economic growth," said Hajime Yagi, a portfolio manager at Meiji Dresdner Asset Management. "Investors' focus will fall on telecommunications, which have rosy earnings prospects."The Topix index of all issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section lost 3.5 per cent last week to 1611.25.

The Nikkei 225 stock average slipped 2.8 per cent to 18368.14.The telecommunications sub-index was the biggest loser in the Topix sub- indexes last week, falling 9.9 per cent. But investors may regard the decline as overdone as demand for mobile phones and services continues to grow.Telecommunications shares may gain on any buying from five mutual funds, which collected capital of 86bn on 30 November. They are likely to target this sector and internet-related shares."Mutual fund managers seem to have been slow injecting money in the past week, but some are likely to see recent declines as a buying opportunity," said Mr Yagi.Some of these shares could come under selling pressure on concerns that potential difficulties associated with Y2K computer problems - where machines may mistake the year 2000 for 1900 - could prompt investors to offload shares."As the year-end approaches, foreign investor activity tends to slow," said Paul Migliorato of Commerz Securities. "The slow- down in foreigner activity suggests upside will be limited this month."He noted that last December net buying was 77 per cent below November's figure.. IT WAS a week of swings for the US stock market. After starting off with drops of 0.8 per cent and 2.5 per cent on Monday and Tuesday, the Nasdaq jumped 5.5 per cent over the remaining three days of the week.