Debt and equity based crowdfunding platform Invesdor has closed its self crowdfunding round that was launched earlier this year. The funding ended with 143 investors, from 16 different countries, owning 11.79% of the firm. Valuation was placed at just under € 6 million. According to the crowdfunding portal the new capital will be utilized to expand operations further into Europe. Lassen Mäkelä, CEO and co-founder of Invesdor, stated “there are currently no truly cross-border platforms in the European crowdfunding market. We aim to be the number one source of European cross-border deal flow for investors around the world
Mäkelä, an ex-Merrill Lynch investment banker, sees crowdfunding as a fairly straightforward digitalisation of the tried-and-true fundraising process.
“We have simply removed inefficiencies from the old process and made the deals more transparent, efficient and accessible to the public. The one major element in the crowdfunding model, and FinTech in general, is understanding the regulation. It is a hurdle we are confident we have crossed.”
The Finland based Invesdor was the first investment crowdfunding platform to receive a European MiFID license. The approval allows Invesdor to give investment advice and handle transactions across Europe. Invesdor states that “the breadth of the licence will make it possible for Invesdor to not only accept investments from international investors but also to organize funding rounds for companies from anywhere in the EEA”. While initially targeting early stage companies, investment crowdfunding has been moving upstream in Northern Europe delivering larger capital raises for more mature companies. Invesdor is currently preparing to create country-specific due diligence processes.
Mäkelä sees the MiFID as embracing regulation and the associated trust engendered by having a compliant platform.
“Regulation brings trust. The licence has definitely helped us in our home market, and we are confident that we can also build our international competitive advantage in balance with sustainable compliance. Compliance shouldn’t hinder innovation, and we believe we have the know-how to make it work”, said Mäkelä.
Recently Invesdor a second million-euro offering on its platform: Finnish self-storage company Cityvarasto that is aiming to list on the Nasdaq OMX First North.
“We see crowdfunding expanding from startups closer towards the traditional public markets. As crowdfunding platforms become accepted subscription places for any fundraising processes, they will converge with traditional investment services” comments Tero Weckroth, Chairman of the Board at Invesdor, and board member of the European Crowdfunding Network. “It can be argued that crowdfunding simply means making the old models more efficient by using the Internet. We have already seen evidence of this transition happening in our home markets.”