get found. get funde .d
Financing options for European startups
Investment landscape has changed significantly over the past few years, especially at the early stage, where new investment
vehicles and platforms have been created
Pre-seedAn idea, a working prototype and funding that will allow the entrepreneurs to focus full time on the project.
FFF: Friends, family & fools
Accelerators
Successful entrepreneurs
Mentorship, office space and capital in exchange for 5 to 10 per cent equity
Previous startup founders who have had exits and decide to invest their money in their new venture
• Get the company running and find product-market fit.
• Seed rounds in Europe range from €250K to €750K/€1MTraditionally: Angels,
super angels & Venture Capital firms
Alternatives: Crowdfunding
Angel syndicates
Two types:
• Reward-based crowdfunding: users provide capital and get goods/services in return
• Equity crowdfunding: investors provide capital and get equity in return
• Lead angel investors allow other angels to co-invest in deals.
• Online platforms connect angels & startups
Seed
Series A• Established
product and capital to scale and set business model
• Series A rounds in Europe range from €2M to €5M
Venture Capital firms lead Series A investments
Challenges in Europe:
• Series A crunch: only 6% of European companies managed to secure an A round (2009-2014)
• Big gap compared to Series A in the US
Data from Christian Hernandez & Stephen Piron
Series B• Scaling and
growing
• Series B in Europe: €6M to €10M
Often led (or participated) by US-based VC firms
Challenges in Europe:
• Very few companies reach this stage, and a fewer % compared to the US
• Only certain European VC firms have the capacity to lead Series B rounds
• The number of Series B deals in Europe remained flat over the period while it grew 37 percent in the U.S. - Christian Hernandez & Stephen Piron
Series C/D• Mature
companies and revenue in the millions
• Series C/D in Europe: tens to hundreds of millions
Private Equity firms and investment banks join the game
End of the road?
Three main ways to ‘exit’:
• Acquisition of other startups to grow
• Get acquired by bigger companies, providing exit to investors and founders
• IPO: NASDAQ, LSE
Thanks for your attention!
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