EquityZen

EquityZen
Private
Industry Financial Technology, Investment
Founded 2013
Founder Atish Davda (CEO)
Shriram Bhashyam
Phil Haslett
Headquarters New York City, U.S.
Area served
 Worldwide
Products Secondary Market
Services Investing online
Website Official Website

EquityZen is an online marketplace for trading pre-IPO employee shares from privately held companies.[1][2] The platform often links employees from private companies with investors who would not otherwise be able to invest in the company prior to an IPO.[3][4] EquityZen is based in Manhattan's Flatiron District.[5]

History

EquityZen was founded in 2013 by Atish Davda (CEO), Shriram Bhashyam, and Phil Haslett in New York City.[1][6][7] From its outset, EquityZen was designed to allow employees of private companies to sell their equity in the company to accredited investors.[4][8] The firm started out as part of the 500 Startups accelerator program in the fall of 2013.[9][10] The company received seed funding in January 2014[11] and as of September 2015 had raised $3.5 million in Series A funding from undisclosed investors.[12][13] The financial technology firm was recently mentioned in Forbes' Fintech 50 list.[14]

Service

EquityZen operates a marketplace in which employee shareholders in private companies can make their equity available to outside investors. In addition to traditional share transfers, EquityZen introduced a new offering in the private shares market by creating a collateralized derivative instrument through which employees can essentially sell the rights to money their shares would expect to make after an IPO or acquisition.[1] The firm works exclusively with companies that have already raised capital from large, institutional investors.[3] Companies need to have at least $50 million in enterprise value to be listed on the marketplace.[15] The minimum investment amount for investors is $20,000.[3]

Financial Advisors, who manage capital on behalf of others, invest their clients' capital through the platform.[16] Investors outside of the US have invested in private companies.[17][18] EquityZen has transacted in over half of the largest 25 private Venture Capital-backed companies, such as prominent companies including Lyft, Evernote, and AppNexus.[1][19][20]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Messina, Judith (22 January 2014). "A new way to buy shares in startups". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  2. ↑ Picker, Leslie (4 November 2015). "Risking Your Neck to Run With the Unicorns". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Kenwell, Bret (1 April 2015). "EquityZen Shows the Way for Investing in Privately Held Companies". TheStreet.com. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  4. 1 2 Mott, Nathaniel (4 November 2013). "Meet EquityZen, the company borne from its co-founder's need for an engagement ring". PandoDaily. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  5. ↑ McEnery, Thornton (9 January 2015). "Investment deal may ease IPO pressure on MongoDB". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  6. ↑ "Giving investors access to pre-IPO shares". Fox Business. 24 February 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Hook, Leslie (2 June 2015). "Private share trading takes off as tech companies shun IPOs". Financial Times. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  8. ↑ Bort, Julie (7 December 2013). "Here's How Hot Startups Help Employees Cash Out Before An IPO". Business Insider. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  9. ↑ Lawler, Ryan (5 February 2014). "My Favorite Companies From The Seventh 500 Startups Accelerator Class". TechCrunch. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  10. ↑ Yeung, Ken (29 October 2013). "500 Startups reveals its 7th batch of accelerator startups, which includes its first biotech company". The Next Web. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  11. ↑ "EquityZen Obtains $450,000 New Funding". Xconomy. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  12. ↑ "EquityZen Lands Series A Investment". VentureDeal. 17 September 2015. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  13. ↑ "EquityZen Secures $3,499,994 Series A Round". Xconomy. 16 September 2015. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  14. ↑ Novack, Janet (9 December 2015). "Introducing The Forbes Fintech 50". Forbes. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  15. ↑ Anan, Ritesh (16 December 2014). "EquityZen: A Stock Market For Private Companies". Benzinga. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  16. ↑ "The Pre-IPO Investment Opportunity in a Down Market". Advisor Perspectives. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  17. ↑ "EquityZen helps Indian investors to invest in US companies". The Economic Times. India: The Economic Times. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  18. ↑ "EquityZen helps Indian investors to invest in US companies". The Times of India. India: The Times of India. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  19. ↑ "A Rare Look at Small Investor Deals in Private Tech". The Information. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  20. ↑ "Movement in Secondary Market". CNBC, Squawk Alley. Retrieved 26 April 2016.

External links

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