Funderbeam, a global funding and trading platform, has raised USD4.5 million in a Series A funding round, led by UK-based Accelerated Digital Ventures (ADV).
The round includes new investors such as GK-Plug and Play Indonesia, Pandan Ventures, with existing investors including Draper Associates, Draper Venture Partners, IQ Capital, and Mistletoe also taking part.
Funderbeam aims to fill in the gap in venture and SME capital markets by providing access and liquidity to growth investments. The company has introduced trusted structures and technology to provide global access to the service 24/7. To date, Funderbeam has 37 high-growth portfolio companies on marketplace, onboarded more than 10,000 verified investors across 119 countries. USD 2.2 million worth of investment shares have exchanged hands on it’s secondary marketplace.
The funding will help the company develop a strong secondary market offering as well as further expansion into key markets such as Asia, starting from Singapore; and to continental Europe.
“Liquidity is fundamental to venture capital. Without a viable liquid market early stage investment is constrained and company growth is negatively impacted. Funderbeam is building a platform which enables liquidity, maintaining the momentum of companies and allowing investors to go again. We share the vision of the Funderbeam team and are excited to partner with them on a journey which could change venture forever,” says Lee Strafford, CEO of ADV.
Funderbeam recently launched in Scandinavia and the UK, helping founders to raise private funding from a global network of investors. Founders are then able to choose who can invest and therefore retain control of their cap table. For investors, Funderbeam provides access to a community of curated, ambitious growth companies and the option to trade their investments at any time, facilitated by blockchain technology. This provides investors with unique liquidity not available on any other platform. A robust due diligence process and lead investor acting as an ambassador for every round ensures the high quality of companies on the platform.
“When I was leading NASDAQ Tallinn, I hated the fact that because of the large central European intermediaries, Estonian investors and companies had very limited access to global capital markets. We were just too small for big players. And when I set up Funderbeam in 2013, it was hard to get access to growth capital and we had to move our HQ closer to money. Those two sides of one story is the heart and soul of Funderbeam – to serve private investments and growth companies no matter where they come from,” says Kaidi Ruusalepp, founder and CEO of Funderbeam.
“The GK Plug and Play Indonesia and Pandan Ventures investment in Funderbeam is not only an investment in a market leading FinTech company, but also an investment in the platform that we intend to use for our future investments. Funderbeam will enable us to offer a unique evergreen venture capital fund structure to align the interests of our investors, the fund, and our portfolio companies. We will be able to provide patient capital to our startups, while simultaneously offering our investors shorter lock up periods and real-time values on the entire portfolio,” adds Pandan Ventures Managing Partner Christopher Aw.
Co-founder Urmas Peiker will leave the company to focus on his mission to change the capital markets in developing markets with a focus on Brazil. “Urmas has been contributing a lot to Funderbeam’s business model and success. We thank him and wish all the best in his new journey,” adds Kaidi.
“As an author of Funderbeam investing platform I am very pleased to see where the company has reached and what it has achieved. New investors add even more power to the growth,” says Peiker.
