Getting Started

How to raise Venture Capital

The ability to raise Private Equity or Venture Capital can vary greatly depending on the stage of your business, requirement for Venture Capital, and ultimately the financial return to the investor or investors.

Your presentation and offer of investment in your venture needs to be well planned, clear and to the point.  Investors want to know what their return on investment will be and when they can realise their return.  If this is not clear and realistic it will be unlikely that your investment opportunity will be accepted.

Don't underestimate how long it will take for you to raise Venture Capital.  In some instances this could be up to one year or more.  The length of time will ultimately depend on; your offer to investors, how advanced you're business opportunity is, your experience in raising capital and being 'investor ready'.

CapitalMatch has three advertisement packages, 1-month, 3-months and 6 months - choose a plan that suits your capital raising strategy.  If you are nearing the expiration of your advertisement you can always extend your advertisement for a further term by logging into your account.

Suggestions

• Be realistic about the amount of investment you require
• Be realistic about the equity or shares offered to investors
• Be realistic about the return on investment offered to investors
• Prepare accurate financial projections and accounts
• Demonstrate how investors will achieve a return on investment
• Seek professional advice from your accountant and lawyer
• Give yourself time to raise the capital you require

Are you 'Investor Ready'?

Before you advertise your investment opportunity with CapitalMatch you need to be investor ready.

Being investor ready will ensure that your investment opportunity will be well received by investors and places you in the best possible position to attract investment.

• Do you have a summary of your investment opportunity?
• Do you have a business plan and marketing plan?
• Do you have a registered business or company entity?
• Do you have up to date financials or income projections?
• Do you have an Information Memorandum or Prospectus?
• Do you know how much money you need to raise?
• Do you know how much equity you will offer to investors?
• Do you have an exit strategy for your investors?

If you answered 'no' to any of the questions above you may not be investor ready.  To find out more please contact CapitalMatch or your business advisor.

Venture Capital

Venture capital (VC) is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies.

A venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as biotechnology, IT, software, etc.

The typical venture capital investment occurs after the seed funding round as growth funding round (also referred as Series A round) in the interest of generating a return through an eventual realization event, such as an IPO or trade sale of the company.

In addition to angel investing and other seed funding options, venture capital is attractive for new companies with limited operating history that are too small to raise capital in the public markets and have not reached the point where they are able to secure a bank loan or complete a debt offering.

In exchange for the high risk that venture capitalists assume by investing in smaller and less mature companies, venture capitalists usually get significant control over company decisions, in addition to a significant portion of the company's ownership.

Private Equity

Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange.

Private equity investments are primarily made by private equity firms, venture capital firms, or angel investors, each with their own set of goals, preferences, and investment strategies, yet each providing working capital to a target company to nurture expansion, new product development, or restructuring of the company’s operations, management, or ownership.

Among the most common investment strategies in private equity are: leveraged buyouts, venture capital, growth capital, distressed investments and mezzanine capital.

In a typical leveraged buyout transaction, a private equity firm buys majority control of an existing or mature firm. This is distinct from a venture capital or growth capital investment, in which the investors (typically venture capital firms or angel investors) invest in young or emerging companies, and rarely obtain majority control.

Angel Investor

An angel investor or angel (also known as a business angel or informal investor) is an affluent individual who provides capital for a business start-up, usually in exchange for convertible debt or ownership equity.

A small but increasing number of angel investors organise themselves into angel groups or angel networks to share research and pool their investment capital.