Equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd recently reached a major milestone. The Israel-based company has surpassed $1 billion in assets under management.
OurCrowd is currently backing 150 startups across the globe and has previously helped 20 startups successfully exit from funding since its launch in 2013. One of OurCrowd’s most notable investments is Hyperloop, which it backed before Virgin Group invested in the company last year.
OurCrowd founder Jon Medved told The Australian Financial Review during an interview that the company is “a hybrid between equity crowdfunding and venture capital.” Medved added, “With the most valuable companies in the world like Uber staying private for much longer, we’re democratizing early access to them. The minimums on venture capital funds are still $3 million to $5 million, which is out of reach of almost everybody.”
OurCrowd selects 1 to 2 percent of the 3,000 companies that apply for funding, negotiates the terms of the deal, and invites the investor community to invest at the same terms. The company requires a minimum investment of $10,000. This may be one factor that enticed the 25,000 registered investors on its platform, since traditional VC investing is typically out of reach. OurCrowd has vetted 8,500 companies and its clients represent 112 countries.
At FinovateSpring 2016, the company debuted the OurCrowd mobile app. Last October, the company opened an office in Spain and in March launched a location in the U.K. OurCrowd now has offices in seven countries– Israel, the U.S., Canada, Australia, Singapore, Spain, and the U.K. The company has raised $700 million.
