Crowdfunding platforms StartEngine and Indiegogo team up to help startups raise capital from ideation to Series C

Crowdfunding platforms StartEngine and Indiegogo team up to help startups raise capital from ideation to Series C

Published: 12-08-2022 11:35:00 | By: Pie Kamau | hits: 3166 | Tags:

Crowdfunding platforms Indiegogo and StartEngine have teamed up to ensure that startups have continuous access to the capital they need. In a move that's the first of its kind, Indiegogo will now share its enormous community of entrepreneurs and backers with StartEngine for follow-on funding rounds all the way through Series C (up to $75 million per year). The exclusive deal between the two constitutes an unprecedented leap forward for StartEngine and equity crowdfunding, while delivering concrete benefits for both sides:

  • Indiegogo's community of 800,000+ founders now have an avenue to continue fundraising, while its 11M backers can further support projects they believe in.
  • Similarly, StartEngine's investor community gets a massive influx of new investment opportunities, and companies raising on the platform can reach a larger audience.
  • Teaming up with a global fundraising giant adds yet another layer of credibility to StartEngine's brand of equity crowdfunding and demonstrates its viability as an alternative to traditional funding sources.

 

The collaboration between the two could not come at a better time either. After an initial post-pandemic boom in investment and soaring tech valuations, funding for startups worldwide fell 23% between the first and second quarter of 2022. Economic uncertainty and dwindling stock market returns severely impacted venture capital portfolios and deal-making activity. As a result, savvy founders are now seeking alternative funding sources to help keep their startup dreams alive.

Howard Marks, Founder and CEO, StartEngine: "At a pivotal moment for founders when many VC firms have slowed their pace of investments, we've joined forces with a fellow leader in crowdfunding to ensure startups consistently raise the capital they need. What we have created is a funding ecosystem from an idea stage through Series C." 

The Indiegogo/StartEngine startup ecosystem flow:

  • Launch a rewards-based crowdfunding campaign on the Indiegogo platform to introduce or solidify a new concept and acquire customers.
  • Raise funds for proof of concept and minimum viable product or prototype and build an enthusiastic community of backers.
  • Migrate the community as the company transitions to StartEngine to launch a regulation crowdfunding campaign.
  • Raise capital to scale the business while simultaneously acquiring new shareholders who serve as champions of the brand, motivated to see it succeed.

 

Becky Center, the CEO of Indiegogo, believes that joining forces with StartEngine will prove immensely beneficial for the companies crowdfunding on the Indiegogo platform. Calling the collaboration "a perfect segue," Center shares, "A startup can begin raising capital with us to fortify a concept, acquire customers and scale, and when the time comes, we can pass the baton to StartEngine to help them attract shareholders and raise the rest of the way."

Marks, who also co-founded the video game giant Activision, firmly believes a founder should always be raising. "As we're seeing in our current economy, you never know what's coming around the corner…you protect your company by continually raising and maintaining sufficient capital."

While many founders assume venture capital funding is a necessity, Marks thinks otherwise, especially now the two crowdfunding platforms have teamed up: "The truth is some businesses may never have to take venture capital." Case in point, funds raised on Indiegogo, combined with equity crowdfunding on StartEngine – which can reach sums as high as $75 million in one round – are often sufficient for companies to reinvest and grow.

www.indiegogo.com
www.startengine.com