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Start up trading platform Funderbeam completes $4.5m fundraising
The business said it has attracted 10,000 investors across 119 countries to young firms on its platform.
A funding and trading platform for start ups has raised $4.5m to push into new markets across Asia and Europe.
London-based Funderbeam raised the cash in a Series A fundraising, led by British venture capital firm Accelerated Digital Ventures.
The fintech, founded six years ago, said it carries “a community of curated, ambitious growth companies” on its marketplace which gives investors “the option to trade their investments at any time”.
Funderbeam currently holds 37 young firms on its platform, has attracted 10,000 investors across 119 countries, who have traded $2.2m worth shares on it’s secondary marketplace.
The fintech said it will use the cash to develop its secondary market offering and expand into “key markets such as Asia, starting from Singapore and to continental Europe”.
Big players
The business was started in 2013 by Urmas Peiker and Kaidi Ruusalepp (pictured), who had been chief executive of Estonia’s Nasdaq Tallinn since 2005.
Ruusalepp said: “When I was leading Nasdaq Tallinn, I hated the fact that because of the large central European intermediaries, Estonian investors and companies had very limited access to global capital markets. We were just too small for big players.”
She added: “And when I set up Funderbeam in 2013, it was hard to get access to growth capital and we had to move our HQ closer to money. Those two sides of one story is the heart and soul of Funderbeam - to serve private investments and growth companies no matter where they come from.”
The business has five offices around the world, and said it is hiring staff to keep up with its plans for growth.
Liquidity is key
Accelerated Digital Ventures chief executive Lee Strafford said: “Liquidity is fundamental to venture capital. Without a viable liquid market early stage investment is constrained and company growth is negatively impacted. Funderbeam is building a platform which enables liquidity, maintaining the momentum of companies and allowing investors to go again.”
As part of the investment co-founder Peiker leaves Funderbeam to focus on growing capital markets in developing countries, focusing on Brazil.
Other notable investors in Funderbeam include Play Indonesia, Pandan Ventures, Draper Venture Partners and IQ Capital.
