Crowd2Fund has raised GBP2m from a range of UK and international investors, placing a national market value of GBP10m on the business which launched in August 2014.
The ‘Series A' investment round attracted the interest of a number of global family offices, including some highly influential entrepreneurs based in China, the Middle East and Europe.
Founder and Chief Executive Chris Hancock, says: "Crowd2Fund has taken on some well-connected Chinese investors which will not only help open the door to the Asia Pacific P2P market, but will also facilitate investment into the European market from China.
"Based on the slowdown of growth in China, we expect more Chinese investors to be looking for opportunities in Europe. Working with international family offices gives us greater flexibility and immediate access to a global network of investors that can be leveraged as the business grows."
Hancock also revealed that Crowd2Fund is in talks with a number of the High Street banks with a view to forming strategic partnerships. "By offering five crowdfunding models under one roof, our proposition is designed for a more mainstream P2P and crowdfunding market which we believe will make us a more attractive option for the banks when they are looking for partners", he says.
Crowd2Fund has successfully funded over GBP1m of deals in the last three months. It has also pioneered the Revenue Loan, a new crowdfunding model based on providing finance to early stage companies through loan – with repayments based on financial performance – rather than equity. The first Revenue Loan – a GBP40k facility for the Glen Rothay Hotel in the Lake District – closed in the second week in March.
