Seedrs Explained

Seedrs Limited
Type:Subsidiary
Industry:Crowdfunding
Founders:Jeff Lynn, Carlos Silva
Hq Location City:London
Hq Location Country:United Kingdom
Area Served:UK, Europe
Key People:Jeff Kelisky (CEO)
Parent:Republic

Seedrs is an online equity crowdfunding company, headquartered in East London's Tech City, founded in 2009[1] and launched by Jeff Lynn and Carlos Silva in 2012.[2] [3] Since 2022 it has been a subsidiary of American crowdfunding company Republic.

In 2020, Seedrs announced that 250 startups had raised funding through its crowdfunding platform during 2019.[4] [5] By 2022, Seedrs reported that over £1.9billion had been invested through the company.[6]

History

The company was founded in 2012 by Jeff Lynn and Carlos Silva as part of an MBA project at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford.[7]

In March 2012, Seedrs raised $1 million in seed funding from private investors including venture capital firm Draper Esprit.[8]

In May 2012, Seedrs became the first equity crowdfunding platform to receive regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority.[9]

In July 2012, Seedrs launched its platform to the public.[10]

In November 2013, Seedrs raised £750,000 in funding through its own platform.[11]

In June 2015, professional tennis player Andy Murray joined Seedrs in an advisory role, having previously used the platform as an investor.[12] [13] [14]

In June 2017, Seedrs launched a secondary market, becoming the first equity crowdfunding platform to allow investors to buy and sell shares in unlisted companies.[15] [16] [17]

In August 2017, Jeff Lynn stepped down as CEO to take up a position as Executive Chairman. Former COO Jeff Kelisky was promoted to CEO.[18] [19]

In August 2017, Seedrs raised £4 million investment for challenger bank Revolut.[20] [21]

In October 2017, Seedrs announced it had raised £10 million in funding.[22] [23]

In December 2018, Seedrs launched a venture capital fund aimed at passive startup investors.[24]

In August 2019, Seedrs raised £4.5 million in funding.[25]

In 2020, Seedrs and Crowdcube agreed to a merger.[26] This was abandoned on 25 March 2021 after the Competition and Markets Authority raised concerns about the deal.[27]

In December 2021, Seedrs announced that it had agreed to be acquired by Republic, a US-based equity crowdfunding platform, for $100 million.[28] The acquisition was criticised by some of Seedrs' small investors over preferential treatment given to large shareholders.[29]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Seedrs Limited . Companies House . 27 August 2022.
  2. News: Silver. James. 2012-07-07. East London's 20 hottest tech startups. en-GB. The Guardian. 2020-06-04. 0261-3077.
  3. Web site: Just some of the investors you'll run into at #TheEuropas, June 13, London. 2020-06-04. TechCrunch. 24 May 2017 . en-US.
  4. Web site: 2020-01-06. Seedrs says amount invested on its platform jumped 49 per cent in 2019. 2020-06-04. CityAM. en-GB.
  5. Web site: Fintechs help deals on Seedrs jump nearly 50 percent. 2020-06-04. AltFi. en.
  6. Web site: Republic – Seedrs Ramp Up Cross-Listed Securities Offerings . Crowdfund Insider. 16 June 2022 . 27 August 2022.
  7. Web site: New Oxford Saïd research to study the economics of equity crowdfunding . 2018-08-02 . Saïd Business School . en.
  8. Web site: Russell. Jon. 2012-07-06. Seedrs Launches in the UK, Allowing Anyone to Invest in a Startup. 2020-06-04. The Next Web. en-us.
  9. News: 18 August 2012 . FSA warning over crowdfunding sites . The Independent . 20 August 2012.
  10. Web site: Eating Its Own Caviar, UK Equity Crowdfunding Platform Seedrs To Crowd-Raise £500K As It Expands To Europe. 2020-06-04. TechCrunch. 25 November 2013 . en-US.
  11. News: Sparkes. Matthew. 2013-11-25. Crowdfunding start-up Seedrs raises £750,000 through its own website. en-GB. 2020-06-04. 0307-1235.
  12. News: Dann. Kitty. 2015-06-08. Andy Murray joins crowdfunding firm Seedrs. en-GB. The Guardian. 2020-06-04. 0261-3077.
  13. News: Sweney. Mark. 2015-08-19. Andy Murray uses crowdfunding firm to invest in UK startups. en-GB. The Guardian. 2020-06-04. 0261-3077.
  14. News: Press Association. 2017-05-15. No1 Seedr? Andy Murray backs more UK startups. en-GB. The Guardian. 2020-06-04. 0261-3077.
  15. Web site: 2017-05-08. Start-ups might be about to receive a boost after Seedrs announces launch of secondary market. https://web.archive.org/web/20170511095526/http://www.independent.co.uk/Business/indyventure/seedrs-announces-secondary-market-launch-equity-crowdfunding-investment-boost-start-ups-investors-a7724416.html. dead. 11 May 2017. 2020-06-04. The Independent. en.
  16. Web site: Seedrs lifts cap on size of share lots in shakeup of its secondary market. 2020-06-04. AltFi. en.
  17. Web site: CNBC.com. Neil Ainger; Writer at. 2017-05-08. Seedrs to launch secondary market for crowdfund investors. 2020-06-04. CNBC. en.
  18. Web site: CEO switch for equity crowdfunder Seedrs. 2020-06-04. AltFi. en.
  19. Web site: 2017-08-31 . Jeff Lynn steps down as CEO of Seedrs to become executive chairman . 2020-06-04 . Startups.co.uk . en.
  20. News: O'Halloran. Barry. Andy Murray among Revolut investors on Seedrs. 2020-06-04. The Irish Times. en.
  21. Web site: Revolut's $5.3 million crowdfunding campaign is oversubscribed. 2020-06-04. TechCrunch. 30 July 2017 . en-US.
  22. Web site: Bounds. Andy. 2017-12-17. Crowdfunding a mission to save capitalism from itself. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/ZcmyZ . 4 March 2023 . subscription . live. 2020-06-04. FT.com.
  23. Web site: Seedrs valued at £50m after crowdfunding raise. 2020-06-04. BusinessCloud.co.uk. 4 October 2017 . en.
  24. News: Evans. Peter. Seedrs serves start-up fund. . en. 2020-06-04. 0140-0460.
  25. Web site: Alois. J. D.. 2019-08-30. Seedrs Confirms £4.5 Million Funding Round, Larger Raise to Follow. Seedrs Users May Gain Access to Round. 2020-06-04. Crowdfund Insider. en-US.
  26. News: Butcher. Mike. 5 October 2020. Crowdcube and Seedrs agree to merge, creating a significant private equity marketplace. TechCrunch. 8 March 2021.
  27. News: Lynn. Jeff. 25 March 2021. Seedrs Terminates Merger with Crowdcube, Announces New Funding Round. Seedrs. 28 March 2021.
  28. Web site: Butcher . Mike . 1 December 2021 . Republic acquires the UK's Seedrs in $100M deal to push into Europe . 18 April 2022 . TechCrunch.
  29. News: Hurley . James . 8 December 2021 . Seedrs sale to Republic a betrayal, say small backers . The Times . live . subscription . 15 November 2022 . https://archive.today/20211208175139/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/seedrs-sale-to-republic-a-betrayal-say-small-backers-2klc9hvjn#selection-735.0-735.53 . 8 December 2021.

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