Seedrs – Investing in Seed-Stage Startups

Seedrs is an online platform that early-stage investors can use to provide financial support and advice to the startups they believe in. Entrepreneurs, meanwhile, can use Seedrs to raise equity capital for their businesses and put their companies in a position for financial success.

Investing in startups can be lucrative, but it’s not without its risks. When you join Seedrs and become a member, you’re asked to complete a brief questionnaire in order to demonstrate that you understand the potential risks involved in this type of investing. Assuming you’re aware of what you’re getting into, Seedrs will provide you with a list of startups seeking investors. Research each startup thoroughly, making sure to look at the terms of its offerings and the total investment sought, before making a decision on where to put your money. You can also reach out to entrepreneurs themselves to ask questions and settle any lingering doubts. Once you’ve made up your mind, you can transfer anywhere from £10 to £150,000 into a secure client money account. Seedrs will ensure the entrepreneur you’ve selected receives his or her money, and the web-application will buy shares of the associated startup on your behalf.

Of course, nobody would invest if there wasn’t the chance of a payout. Seedrs holds each company’s shares as your nominee and manages investments on its users’ behalves. When Seedrs receives money from the shares it’s holding, it passes the money along to you and takes a 7.5% cut off any profits from the investment.

Practical Uses:

• Invest money in a new web platform you believe in
• Raise capital for your new startup
• Talk to entrepreneurs before deciding whether to invest in their projects
• Have Seedrs manage your investments

Insider Tips:

• People can invest between £10 to £150,000
• Membership is limited to UK residents ages 18 and older
• Startups must be UL-registered and pre-revenue to participate in Seedrs
• Investors earn equity returns if a business is sold, floats, or pays a dividend

What we liked:

• People can invest in a wide range of startups, including tech ventures and traditional businesses
• Users must take a questionnaire to ensure they understand the risk involved with this type of investing
• Investors can serve as advisors to the companies they’ve put money into
• With Seedrs, almost anyone can become a technology investor

What we didn’t like:

• Seedrs is currently only available to people who live in the United Kingdom

Alternatives:

• CapLinked – https://secure.caplinked.com
• Go4Funding – http://www.go4funding.com
• Go BIG Network – http://www.gobignetwork.com

Company Info:

• Launched: July 2012
• Privately Held
• Headquarters: London, England
• Founded by: Jeff Lynn and Carlos Silva
• Web site: http://www.seedrs.com

Costs:

• Investors pay Seedrs 7.5% of any profits from their investments