Finance for Startups

Repeatedly on social networks such as Linkedin, I have seen a post making the rounds, where platform users are given the golden ticket to access early-stage VC’s – an excel list of early-stage venture capital companies which look to provide pre-seed or seed capital to companies wishing to climb the VC ladder to success and untold riches.The catch is, you have to like, comment, share the post, and in most cases, you have to connect with the profile too.So, I did some research on this, and far from being the golden ticket it is marketed to be ... read more

When your business is in its relatively nascent stages, there aren't really any questions over who owns what or who does what within it. If you're an up and coming SME, for example, it's likely you're only really going to have a core team taking care of the essentials. But what happens when more people enter the fray? Lets look at what is a cap table and how does a cap table work?It's important to consider this because as people come and go from your business, that previously easy to mete out graph of shares and money just ... read more

Five insights as to why investors say no.Insight number one, investors say no because entrepreneurs make rookie and basic mistakes.Think about it. If you show up to take a test without having done your homework first, you're probably not going to get the A and similarly, if you don't do your homework before pitching investors, they're probably going to say no. Let's look at some examples. First, don't pitch investors without researching them first. They may not even invest in your industry, in your geography or your stage of growth. So, if you're not targeting the right investor in the first place, they're probably going to say no.Also, don't blast out your ... read more

Congratulations on taking one of the first steps to getting your startup company off the ground and into the hands of your potential users and customers. While we're often led to believe that kicking off a startup is as simple as coming up with a name, it isn't. Let’s look at the average cost to start a business in today's market. One of the ways that we can be harshly reminded of this is when we fail to do the maths of what it will cost to get started. Yes, summing up the kind of costs involved w ... read more

One of the areas that we discussed in the past included some of the essential documents you need as a startup company to really gain traction with investors, no matter what kind they are. Right here, we'll be looking into one of them; specifically, that being the business plan and planning out your business plan format.Business plans are effectively a biography of your company and serve as the most concise, yet quick overview of your business. If you write a business plan well, then it can spell out success in any investment meeting you get invited to. A bad ... read more

For anyone that's watched a TV show like Silicon Valley as a more recent example, you'll have likely heard phrases like 'Stage A,' 'Stage B,' 'Seed Capital,' or simply 'Runway' being used by some of the characters. To be as straight forward as possible, these refer to various levels of funding made available to companies of various sizes. So, what exactly is it that makes these various types and stages of funding for Business Startups so different? And when exactly do they become more or less relevant to your business? We'll be taking a look at just ... read more

The universe never conspires against a single person, because if it was then either it, or whatever belief system you have is incalculably cruel. Approaching questions like 'Why is my startup not going the way I want it to?' are ones that you really need to consider empirically and with an open mind. You need to know what holds startups back in order to move your startup forward. First off, the moment you start to ask this question with curiosity and a desire to know why then you're immediately off to a good start. You want to know ho ... read more

While there are entrepreneurs and innovators that wish there was some kind of divination that worked for finding out what an investor is looking for and what do venture capitalists look for in a startup, we have to console ourselves with the time-honoured tradition of hard graft and research.For most businesses, this isn't too big of an issue, but if you're focused on a very niche market that VCs simply prove hesitant towards, or you're just wholly unfamiliar with how to get the attention of these investors, this is the article for you.Venture capitalists are a ... read more

India is fast building itself up as a serious economic contender on the world's stage, especially when it comes to entrepreneurship and technology as a whole. As steadily growing player in these sectors, India has also gradually cultivated its own version of Silicon Valley, with an annually increasing number of accelerators and incubators to boot. Lets look at the top startup incubators in India.In this article, we'll be digging into just some of the big names that constitute the top startup incubators in India so far. Communities make everything better! So we wholeheartedly encourage users to let us kno ... read more

With the dawning of blockchain technology kicking off a race to become known as the leading continent for innovation and entrepreneurship. With the uncertain financial climate that the United States and Europe have faced in the past, it makes for ample ground for the Asian continent to set itself apart with some of the top startup accelerators in Asia. Already, we see this with the highly competitive financial hubs of Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai, including the accelerators that are steadily emerging over the last few years. In this article, we'll be looking at some of the top accele ... read more

Over the last few years there has been a dramatic growth in equity crowdfunding as a mechanism for early stage companies to raise capital as the funding from traditional lenders such as banks has reduced, and founders have seen a way to obtain funding without having to give a Personal Guarantee on their home or assets.As a FounderLooking at equity CF as a founder it can be very attractive as a small amount of funding raised from friends and family can be used to ‘seed’ a fund raise of up to maybe 10 times that amou ... read more

With startups, it is all a matter of Growth - lets look at the advantages of pay per click and disadvantages of PPC to Develop your Startup in this essential phase of building your business.In the past, measuring the success of your startup company could easily be tracked by some fundamental, immediately understandable metrics. For a store, it's simply looking at how many people walk through your doors and make a purchase.Fast forward to the future, and the kind of metrics used in order to quantify a successful business, marketing strategy, website, become all the more comp ... read more

In a previous article, we went into some depth as to the kind of ways in which you can successfully secure capital for your company, and we covered the distinct difference between the two kinds of investment capital available to companies. These consist of both Equity and Debt investment capital, both having their own distinct pros and cons.In this article, we'll be working off the assumption that you're a business looking to secure some kind of loan, so debt-based capital. While this alone would appear to be a fate accomplie, the reality is that it can be quite c ... read more

According to the Forbes' editorial team from October 2018, it is well and truly the world of Darwin when it comes to startup companies and their odds of survival. In the study, it was estimated that, out of all the companies that they questioned, only 50% of them would be able to make it past the 5-year mark.And this is a figure that jumps off the proverbial cliff as the years count on. It's with this in mind that finding out when to start pushing for raising investment capital becomes a pretty important matter to consider. In addition to this, i ... read more

Startup companies are in a far better position for getting from blueprints to success right now than they were 10-20 years ago. We can see this with the fact that the number of incubators and accelerators in the United Kingdom alone exploding in number.According to the more recent figures, there are over 200 incubators and more than 181 accelerator programmes available to provide some level of support for companies. This means two things specifically for the UK and startups in it, the first being that it stands out as a veritable hub of innovation for new entrepreneurs to get starte ... read more

We have previously delved into the wild world of startup companies, and the kind of challenges that they face in securing the capital needed to take it from just being an idea to becoming a full-fledged business.While the number of investors out there that prove willing to buy into an idea right out of the starting gate will prove few and far between, this is where other sources of financial support come into view. We're referring to both startup Accelerators and Incubators.Now, we've previously written on the subject of startup incubators, so if you're interested ... read more

Companies, no matter what kind of size they are, will always rely on some level of external funding in order to turn a profit longer-term. Whether this is from a bank, investor/s, or even from thousands of people on a stock market. This is known as Capital Raising, and it's a necessity for companies of all kinds.On its own, it's a loaded term, so it's worthwhile to unpack it somewhat to better understand. So, what do we mean when we use the term Capital Raising? We refer to the capability of an individual or entity in securin ... read more

In a previous article, we went into some detail, both about startup companies and their attempts to secure early-stage investment, along with one of the other avenues that's becoming increasingly available for up and coming entrepreneurs - Incubators. In this article, we'll be going through the second of these methods for startup companies - Startup Accelerator/s. So, What is a Startup Accelerator?The number of startup companies over the years has undergone a veritable explosion over the past few years. Case and point - one of the front-runners in the technology world, especially for startups: the United Kin ... read more

If you're an up and coming startup company looking to gain some traction, along with a little financial runway to get your business started and ready to be placed in front of potential angel investors, crowdfunding investors or bank loan assessors. One of the best ways to help you kick up that initial momentum is through a startup incubator.There are some instances where, in Google searches, and in the opinions of some in the business world, that Incubators are referred to interchangeably with Accelerators. The truth is that these are two entirely different solutions for startup companies. ... read more

In a previous article, we discussed some of the potential avenues open to newcomer entrepreneurs looking to get their startup companies off the ground. Among these methods is a specific kind that has steadily grown in popularity over the last few years - Startup Incubators. What are startup incubators and which are the best startup incubators in the world?While these programs or initiatives provide a range of pros and cons for startup companies, there's no denying the fact that they are increasing at a rapid pace, providing companies with a greater chance of flourishing and becoming one of the ... read more

With any entrepreneur, no matter where they are in the world, action is what separates them from any other kind of individual with a plan. So whether it's some kind of side-hustle that you, as its founder, have been doing for a number of years, or if this is a brand new idea you're trying to take from blueprint to reality, there's one thing that you'll need - Money and the types of capital raising .For those that aren't: as the name suggests, Capital Raising is the process of securing investment capital through one or multiple avenues of investm ... read more