The “Crowdcube Venture Fund” will require an investment of only £2,500, making it widely accessible. It will also provide investors with income tax relief of up to 30% under the enterprise investment scheme (EIS). Existing EIS portfolios require a minimum investment of between £25,000 and £50,000. EIS breaks are purpose-built to compensate for the risks inherent to investing in startups.
Darren Westlake, Co-Founder of Crowdcube, commented:
“Our aim is to provide everyday investors with choice. Our 57,000 investors can already select businesses that appeal to them by the sector, amount of funding sought or a number of other criteria. Now we’re giving them the option to invest in a fully managed fund.”
EIS perks also include tax-free capital gains and relief from inheritance tax after two years. But the Crowdcube Venture Fund will not be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which protects investments worth up to £50,000 should the startup fail.
The fund is to be managed by Strathtay Ventures – who will assist Crowdcube in selecting suitable investment opportunities. Strathray is part of Braveheart Investment Group, which launched in 1997 and has £121 million of funds under management. The combination of Strathray and Crowdcube will use their considerable experience to create a bespoke array of ten startups for each individual investor in the fund. Diversification and partnerships with battle-tested allies are now oft-used, powerful risk-management tools in the alternative finance space. Crowdcube will combine both in this exciting new investment opportunity.
