MicroVentures

MicroVentures was founded by Bill Clark in Austin, Texas, in 2009.[13] Prior to starting MicroVentures, Clark worked as a credit-risk manager with GMAC Inc., PayPal, and Dell Financial Services (DFS).[6][14] Clark decided to found the company after witnessing the contraction in small-business credit opportunities following the 2008 financial crisis.[15] MicroVentures completed FINRA's application process in 2010.[6]

In August 2012, Tim Sullivan, then president of SharesPost, an online marketplace for trading shares of private companies, joined MicroVentures as its CEO to help scale the company.[6][16] Under Sullivan, deal volume rose to over $1 million per month by January 2013,[17] and by September 2013 MicroVentures had doubled in size and completed a successful round of fundraising on its own platform.[13]

In March 2013, MicroVentures worked with the LAUNCH Festival to develop the first mobile crowdfunding app that would allow investors to show their interest in backing entrepreneurs at fundraising events.[4][5][18][19] The company plans to eventually offer real time investing in startups through mobile.[19]

In February 2015, MicroVentures introduced a 500 Startups Fund while announcing 25,000 global investors who have deployed over $60 million to approximately 100 companies by way of the MicroVentures platform.[20]

In 2017, MicroVentures moved office locations to 11601 Alterra Pkwy #100, Austin, TX 78758.

MicroVentures funds startups from different industries including technology, consumer products and services, healthcare, media and entertainment, and telecommunications.[21] MicroVentures looks at prospective early stage companies using a variety of success criteria – such as suitable risk, likelihood of profitability, and other key due diligence factors.[1][4] MicroVentures accepts less than 0.5% of companies who apply for listing on the platform.[13] If a company is selected for listing, MicroVentures then posts the results of their due diligence for investors to review.[4][22][23] The average company listed on MicroVentures raises $250,000; outliers have raised over $1 million.[13][19] Microventures takes a 10% fee (5% from the issuer and 5% from investors) from each successful raise plus 10% carry.[13] If the full amount of an offering is not raised, then all investor money is returned.[23]

MicroVentures accepts both accredited investors and sophisticated non-accredited investors on its platform.[12][24] MicroVentures speaks to every investor who signs up by phone to determine that they are accredited investors or meet suitability requirements.[13] MicroVentures counts more than 10,000 accredited investors on the platform, including a "meaningful number" of international investors.[13] The typical minimum investment is $5,000.[6]

As a FINRA registered broker-dealer, MicroVentures may legally sell shares of companies on their own.[6] Competing platforms require a third-party middleman to sell shares.[6][19]

MicroVentures completed funding of its first three companies in April 2011, raising a total of $150,000.[24][25] The first project was Republic Project, a cloud based platform to help advertisers manage digital-media campaigns.[6] In October 2013, Republic Project sold to Digital Generation for a total of $14.5 million.[8] The sale represented the first liquidity event, or "exit," for investors in an equity crowdfunded company.[8]

In April 2013, Graphicly raised $300,000 on MicroVentures.[26] Overall, Graphicly has raised $1 million over two separate rounds on MicroVentures.[6]

In July 2011, MicroVentures raised a $500,000 fund to invest in Facebook through the purchase of private company shares on secondary markets.[11][12]

In November 2011, MicroVentures raised $100,000 for private shares of Yelp at a price of $6 to $7 a share.[12]

Beginning in February 2012 and continuing through shortly before the company's IPO, MicroVentures offered shares of Twitter on its platform.[10] The company saw demand in excess of 300 times the number of shares available.[10]