Butte native, Steve Huntington pioneers investments in Montana businesses

Steve Huntington is a pioneer.

"I’ve always had a penchant for doing something that somebody said couldn’t be done," the 49-year-old Butte native said. "Over time, I’ve done an awful lot of different things." Most recently, Huntington broke new ground on Montana’s business front by helping steer a venture capital fund — a pool of investors’ money used to finance creative, growing companies — toward successful investments in businesses, from an airline in Billings to a nutritional lab in Missoula.

While venture capital is not a new concept, it’s a tough money-maker in this state.

"You’re buying part of the business with the notion that ownership shares are going to appreciate over time and you’re going to sell them," which can be tough here, Huntington said. "This region is just maturing as a region where venture capital can be successfully invested." But it can be done.

Huntington is a managing partner in the Butte-based Northern Rockies Venture Fund, which has 17 limited partners in Butte and Boulder, Colo. The fund opened with $2.1 million for investment in up-and-coming companies in 1995. The fund invested in 10 companies, seven of them in Montana. This year, the fund met its 10-year lifespan and investors are smiling.

By Erin Nicholes of The Montana Standard

Full Story: http://www.mtstandard.com/articles/2005/05/03/featuresbusiness/hjjejfgjhhfgej.txt