The European Investment Fund (EIF), established in 1994, is a European Union agency for the provision of finance to SMEs, headquartered in Luxembourg.
Private equity typically refers to investment funds, generally organized as limited partnerships, that buy and restructure companies that are not publicly traded.
Venture capital (VC) is a type of private equity, a form of financing that is provided by firms or funds to small, early-stage, emerging firms that are deemed to have high growth potential, or which have demonstrated high growth. Venture capital firms or funds invest in these early-stage companies in exchange for equity, or an ownership stake, in the companies they invest in. Venture capitalists take on the risk of financing risky start-ups in the hopes that some of the firms they support will become successful. Because startups face high uncertainty, VC investments do have high rates of failure. The start-ups are usually based on an innovative technology or business model and they are usually from the high technology industries, such as information technology (IT), clean technology or biotechnology.
Seed money, sometimes known as seed funding or seed capital, is a form of securities offering in which an investor invests capital in a startup company in exchange for an equity stake in the company. The term seed suggests that this is a very early investment, meant to support the business until it can generate cash of its own, or until it is ready for further investments. Seed money options include friends and family funding, angel funding, and crowdfunding.
Social venture capital is a form of investment funding that is usually funded by a group of social venture capitalists or an impact investor to provide seed-funding investment, usually in a for-profit social enterprise, in return to achieve a reasonable gain in financial return while delivering social impact to the world. It deviates from the traditional venture capital model, which focuses on simple risk and reward. However, there are various organizations, such as venture philanthropy companies and nonprofit organizations, that deploy a simple venture capital strategy model to fund nonprofit events, social enterprises, or activities that deliver a high social impact or a strong social causes for their existence. There are also regionally focused organizations that target a specific region of the world, to help build and support the local community in a social cause.
SME finance is the funding of small and medium-sized enterprises. It is a major function of the general business finance market – in which capital for different types of firms is supplied, acquired, and costed or priced. The business finance market supplies capital in the form of bank loans and overdrafts; leasing and hire-purchase arrangements; equity/corporate bond issues; venture capital or private equity; asset-based finance such as factoring and invoice discounting,. Governments also sometimes offer funding in the form of grants or loans.
Grameen Fund is a not-for-profit company in Bangladesh established by Muhammad Yunus to provide risk capital to small and medium enterprises (SME) beyond the scope of Grameen Bank's objectives of providing microcredit to the very poor. Incorporated on 17 January 1994, Grameen Fund started operation in February 1994, inheriting 40 projects of Grameen bank with assets of 391 million Bangladeshi taka investmented in small industries, fisheries and agriculture. Its lending capital is provided by Grameen Bank and other institutions like Calvert Foundation. From the first Calvert Foundation investment, approximately 6,000 permanent jobs have been created or maintained in agriculture, engineering, poultry, dairy, fishery, and handicrafts sectors.
An angel investor is an affluent individual who provides capital for a business start-up, usually in exchange for convertible debt or ownership equity. Angel investors usually give support to start-ups at the initial moments and when most investors are not prepared to back them. A small but increasing number of angel investors invest online through equity crowdfunding or organize themselves into angel groups or angel networks to share investment capital, as well as to provide advice to their portfolio companies. In the last 50 years the number of angel investors has greatly increased.
Impact investing refers to investments "made into companies, organizations, and funds with the intention to generate a measurable, beneficial social or environmental impact alongside a financial return". Impact investments provide capital to address social and/or environmental issues.
SEAF is an international investment management group that provides growth capital and business assistance to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging and transition markets underserved by traditional sources of capital.
Assetz Capital is a British peer-to-peer or "marketplace" lender which allows private and institutional investors to lend money directly to small businesses (SMEs) and property developers.
Angels Den is an online investment platform that connects businesses with angel investors. It was founded in 2006 and is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Catalan Institute of Finance (ICF), founded in 1985, is a public financial institution 100% owned by the Government of Catalonia. ICF’s main objective is to foster the Catalan economy by supporting the country’s business base, complementing the role of the private financial sector. Projects are financed by means of loans, guarantees and venture capital investments. ICF funding needs are fully satisfied through its activity in domestic and international capital markets. The highest decision-making body of the Entity is the Governing Board. Currently the CEO is Josep-Ramon Sanromà Celma, the general director of Business Financing is Anna Álvarez Santiago, the general director of Corporative Business and Capital Markets is Joan Carles Rovira Garcia and the general director of Finance and Control is Christophe Canler. ICF is expected to become the first Catalan public bank in 2015. During the first semester of 2014, ICF facilitated loans and guarantees to 801 companies totalling 377 million euros.
Gray Matters Capital is an impact investing foundation founded by Bob Pattillo. Its mission is to achieve "An education leading to a purpose filled life for 100, Million Women by 2036." GMC is based in Atlanta, Georgia with global offices in Nairobi, Kenya and Bangalore, India. The scale and the use of business practices with social enterprises makes it one of the leaders in impact investing.
Startup Funding Club (SFC) is an award-winning Seed Enterprise Investment fund and network of Business Angels founded in 2012 by Stephen Page, the CEO of the company. The business is currently based in London's King's Cross. SFC is an investment fund manager specialised in private equity, namely venture capital investments. Since its inception in 2012, there have been 4 main funds. The company has also had other funds including the Fintech Fund, the Odyssey Fund, and the Epicure SEIS Fund. To date, Startup Funding Club has invested over £15 million in over 120 companies by combining its funds and its Angel network.
As of December 2017, the company has invested over £1.3bn of its £2.5bn balance sheet. Notably, BGF has invested over 70% of this total in businesses headquartered outside of London and the South East of England.
Venture capital in Poland is a segment of the private equity market that finances early-stage high-risk companies based in Poland, with the potential for fast growth. As of March 2019, there is a total of 130 active VC firms in Poland, including local offices of international VC firms, and VC firms with mainly Polish management teams. Between 2009–2019, these entities have invested locally in over 750 companies, which gives an average of around 9 companies per portfolio. The Polish venture market accounts for 3% of the entire European ecosystem of VC investments, mainly in the digital space.
