Startup Crowdfunding Site Expands to UK

UK based Seedups goes live on February 1st.  Developed as a crowdfunding platform for startups to match with a growing network of investors, the company has already hit a number of milestones since their beta launch. Founder Michael Faulkner explained the concept of the business as “networking new entrepreneurs with angel type investors who are looking for the best new startups in which to invest”.

The fledgling company has taken mighty steps since it was founded last year, and will reach another major milestone in March when it’s part of an Irish delegation attending the SXSW interactive forum. This precedes a full US launch the same month.

After a successful soft launch, the last 2 months has attracted over 200 entrepreneurs from Ireland and the UK raising funds for new startup ventures. Industry interest has come from the UK, US, Canada, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, India and even further afield, where people are attracted to the potential of crowdfunding startup businesses. The company is in active talks with a range of international partners, and thinks that the new service can help revolutionise how startups raise funding.

With banking still dominating the news, entrepreneurs are experiencing the same problems worldwide. Many economies are finding support from traditional funding streams have slowed.

Banks are less willing to entertain risky projects such as startups and as such, those with business ideas, and have a go attitude to setting up are being hampered with the adverse funding environment
Seedups founder Michael Faulkner.

The growing pool of investors on Seedups, which stands at 55 providing €3.6 million (~ $4.9M) in seed capital, can see the benefit in seeding startup investments both from a social and investment perspective. Studies undertaken by Nesta in the UK and the Kaufman Institute in the US point to consistently high rates of return for angel investments in the 20-30% IRR range.

Seedups platform acts as a matching system for the best investment opportunities to get funded while at the same time, crowdfunding principles ensure that risk is diversified across a number of businesses for the investor.

Seedups are now calling on technology based startups raising €25,000 up to €250,000  (~ $34,000 – $340,000) in startup or expansion capital to get set up with the service and start interacting with Investors on the platform.