Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • October 30, 2017 • Hartford Business Journal 5 percent annually. "Three percent is nice — any company would like to see 3 percent," Anne Evans, the commerce agency's Middletown-based district director, commented on the report. Despite the dollar being strong overseas and Connecticut products being more expensive, "in light of that, we've done incredibly well," Evans said, noting that Pratt & Whitney's jet engines are a significant piece of the region's exports. "The geared turbo fan has opened up a lot of those markets and with our supply chain." CTDOT releases proposed fares for new Hartford rail line The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) is proposing an $8 one- way fare between Hartford and New Haven and $12.75 between Springfield and New Haven on the new CTrail Hartford Line opening in May. Ticket costs were released as part of a proposed fare structure recently announced and subject to a 35-day public review period ending Nov. 27. Discounts will be available, including $4 one-way fares between Hartford and New Haven and $6.25 between Springfield and New Haven for seniors and the disabled. Discounts also are proposed for weekly, 10- trip and monthly plans. The train also will stop in Wallingford, Meriden, Berlin, Windsor and Windsor Locks, with different fares for each. The Hartford Line initially will offer 17 daily roundtrips between New Haven and Hartford and 12 between New Haven and Springfield using CTrail and Amtrak trains. The proposed fares only apply to CTrail trains. VentureClash's top $1.5M award goes to Netherlands firm FRISS, a company based in the Netherlands that uses analytics software to provide fraud, risk and compliance services to the insurance industry, won the top $1.5 million award at Connecticut's VentureClash — a $5 million global investment challenge for early-stage companies. Connecticut Innovations, the state's quasi-public venture investment arm that ran VentureClash, announced the winners Oct. 23 after they were selected in a "Shark Tank"-like event at the Yale School of Management. VentureClash awarded six companies with investments, mentoring, customer introductions, grants and other services to help them grow in Connecticut. The winning companies, chosen from nine finalists from seven countries, are required to establish a presence in Connecticut. Second-place winners, which receive $1 million investments each, included: • SCADAfence, based in Israel, secures industrial networks from cyber threats. • Vouchr, based in Canada, is a secure, payment-agnostic tool that allows users to bundle transfers of funds with photos, videos, social networking and gamification. Three others will receive $500,000 investment awards: • Buzzmove of the United Kingdom, a price-comparison and instant-booking platform for services related to moving and the right level of insurance needed to cover moving-related services. • Davra Networks, based in Ireland, provides an IoT platform that allows customers to define, build and bring to market IoT applications while collecting and easily sharing data. • EAVE, based in the U.K., is developing hearing protection and communication technology, utilizing noise cancellation and speech enhancement to eliminate noise-induced hearing loss. CT, Hartford area home sales mixed in Sept. Hartford area home sales rose in September while median sale prices slipped, Realtors say. Sales of single-family houses in the region rose 2.8 percent last month to 1,106 units vs. 1,076 sold in Sept. 2016, the Greater Hartford Association of Realtors said. Median price for those houses fell 3.5 percent last month to $221,000 vs. $229,000 a year ago, GHAR said. Meantime, statewide Connecticut home sales fell in September, but their median pricing was mixed, Realtors say. There were 3,095 single-family dwellings sold statewide last month vs. 3,328 sold in Sept. 2016 — a 7 percent decline, the Connecticut Association of Realtors said. Median prices for those houses sold eased 1.6 percent to $249,950 vs. $254,000 the same month last year. Bank deposit, transaction banking services, and lending products and services are provided by Santander Bank, National Association ("Santander Bank, N.A." or "Santander"), a Member FDIC. Services such as securities underwriting and securities sales and trading are provided by Santander Investment Securities Inc., a registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC. This material does not constitute an o„ er to sell or a solicitation of an o„ er to buy any investment product. Important Investor Information: Brokerage products are: • Not FDIC Insure • Not Bank Guaranteed • Not A Deposit • Not Insured By Any Federal Government Agency • May Lose Value. Santander Bank, N.A. is a Member FDIC. ©2017 Santander Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Santander, Santander Bank and the Flame Logo are trademarks of Banco Santander, S.A. or its subsidiaries in the United States or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 80401_– 09/2017 W O R L D W I D E E X P E R T I S E I N A B A N K N E A R YO U. With our global network and resources, we can use our expertise in fi nancing, treasury management, risk management, capital markets, and international growth to make sure your business finds success wherever you are. Whether your goal is to grow your business locally, enter an international market, or expand to multiple new markets, our goal is simple: to help you achieve it. As a part of Banco Santander, one of the largest and most internationally active banks in the world, Santander brings over 150 years of experience in meeting the local and international banking needs of commercial clients. To start a conversation about partnering with Santander Commercial Banking, call Paul Larsen, Market Manager at 1.203.252.9581. Matthew McCooe is the CEO of Connecticut Innovations, which just completed its VentureClash. PHOTO | HBJ FILE Home sales remain uneven in Connecticut. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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