Crowdcube, an Exeter, UK-based equity crowdfunding platform, raised £8.5m in funding.
The round was led by Draper Esprit, which invested £6m, including £2m in secondaries, with participation from Channel 4, which is investing via its Commercial Growth Fund, and Balderton Capital.
The company intends to use the funds to accelerate growth and continue its drive towards profitability in 2019. To this end, Crowdcube is also launching a crowdfunding campaign, on 14 November, which will supplement the institutional investment.
Led by Darren Westlake, CEO, Crowdcube provides an equity crowdfunding platform that allows businesses to secure funding from investors. Over £355m has been invested into more than 600 startup, early and growth-stage businesses on the platform since 2011. Through its operation based in the UK and Spain and via a partnership with US crowdfunder, SeedInvest, more than 90 overseas businesses have raised on Crowdcube.
The funding comes as the company achieved a record quarter for revenue, which reached £1.6m for Q3 2018, an increase of 60% on the same quarter last year.
FinSMEs
07/11/2018