Irish-based venture private equity group VentureWave is leading a $40 million investment in angel investing and trading platform Funderbeam that will see it take a majority stake in the company.
Following the completion of the deal, VentureWave will have a 58 per cent stake in Funderbeam, which will continue to operate as a standalone business.
The combined entity, which will have a global focus, will support institutional and angel investors in venture deal execution and secondaries.
VentureWave, which is chaired by former Blueface chief Alan Foy, supports high-impact entrepreneurs. and makes investments that are designed to generate a return for society as well as investors.
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The deal will bring to VentureWave a network of global investors that are focused on impact.
”The great thing about this particular business is they have actually got investment licences around the world, including Singapore, and European Economic Area, the UK and so on,“ said Mr Foy. “It’s bringing a very global platform into our mix, which is transformative. What we’re seeing at the moment is more and more cross border deal flow, and more and more investors coalescing alongside each other, even though they might be from different jurisdictions. The whole concept of “I only invest in my backyard, it’s changing. I think increasingly we’re seeing more and more capital, particularly in the US and Asia, Singapore that want to get access to the European venture scene and impact entrepreneurship scheme.“
VentureWave will help scale Funderbeam’s ground-breaking technology across venture assets, and allow the combined entity to target global venture investments from early-stage angel funding until pre-IPO secondaries. Funderbeam will also serve institutional clients, from VC funds and family offices, to brokers and investment banks.
“This transaction creates a powerful platform to fast forward Funderbeam’s vision which is to serve venture investments across borders and create a unique secondary market for private assets. The timing of the transaction couldn’t be better - we are strong at a time when the market is ready for our solution,” said Kaidi Ruusalepp, founder and CEO of Funderbeam.
The deal must be approved by regulators in the UK, Singapore and Estonia.
