Start-up / Venture Capital Financing

As the founder of a start-up company, are you planning a financing round for the launch of your products, sales or marketing? You have already successfully introduced your company to the market with an initial seed financing and are now looking for growth financing to increase your market share and expand?

If you feel addressed, then Corporate Finance Mittelstandsberatung GmbH in Düsseldorf is the right address for you. CF-MB places start-ups with venture capitalists from a wide range of sectors. We can offer great added value, especially to young companies requiring Series A financing. In addition, we support founders from every phase of a company who would like to have their start-up independently valued and who are subsequently looking for an EXIT (the sale of the majority of their shares).

A brief overview of our range of services:

•     Valuations of start-ups in the early stage, growth stage and later stage
•     Coordination of financing rounds (Seed and Series-A / Series-B / Series-C financing), IPO's (initial public offerings) and other EXIT opportunities (sale of shares to strategic and financial investors)
•     Identification and approach of potential investors (family offices, business angels, venture capital companies, corporate venture capital providers)

The team of Corporate Finance Mittelstandsberatung GmbH impresses with sound transaction know-how and in-depth expertise in the start-up and venture capital market. We also have an extensive network with access to numerous venture capital providers, family offices, corporate venture capital companies and business angels. We accompany your startup team throughout the entire investment process and thus navigate you safely to the next level of your entrepreneurial activities.

Prior to an investor investment as well as before the sale of business shares, every start-up must be given value. For many founders, the topic of valuation is particularly exciting. How much is my start-up worth pre-money? What is the maximum number of shares I should sell for my desired investment amount? How much money will I receive with my EXIT? All these questions can only be answered if the value of the startup is known. However, most founders are not familiar enough with the standard market valuation methods to calculate a valid value range. They are dependent on their gut feeling, hearsay, or the investor's statement. Our team at Corporate Finance Mittelstandsberatung GmbH carries out company valuations for both cashflow-positive and cashflow-negative start-ups. We know that the different valuation models depend to a large extent on the available data, the current market situation and comparable transactions.

Another of our core competencies is to help entrepreneurs find a suitable investor or potential buyer. We are familiar with the decision-making criteria of venture capitalists and support start-ups in preparing the relevant documents in a way that is suitable for investors. In addition, more experienced entrepreneurs can benefit from our structuring know-how and investment banking experience. Especially in larger financing rounds (Series-A / Series-B / Series-C financing) a "clean" cap table is important for new investors. Therefore, it should be considered in advance how the complexity of the shareholder structure can be reduced by buying back shares from minority shareholders or by fiduciary solutions. On the other hand, if you are looking for a strategic investor as an EXIT channel, you can benefit from our extensive network in the German SME sector. As independent corporate finance advisors with many years of experience in investment banking, we have a broad network and can provide you with uncomplicated access to companies interested in buying. Feel free to contact us, we are able to act quickly and support you in all your projects with competent advice.

Your advantages at a glance:

•     Profound transaction know-how
•     Sophisticated expertise in the valuation of companies
•     Creation of investor-friendly documents
•     Extensive international network to venture capitalists and strategic investors

tart-ups go through various financing phases in their life cycle. Starting with the foundation, through the first seed financing and further follow-up financing (Series-A / Series-B / Series-C financing) up to an EXIT (Trade Sale, IPO). Each of the individual phases has its own challenges and stumbling blocks. In the beginning, friends, family or business angels often help the startup founders with a start-up financing to finance the hiring of first employees or the development of a prototype. Swarm financing via various crowdfunding platforms (Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Companisto, Startnext) also represents an interesting financing alternative for startups.

As soon as the often required proof of concept has been provided, structures are in place and the first customers and revenues are available, many founders want to take their start-up to the next level. To do so, however, they need additional capital in the form of Series A financing. The bitter truth, however, is that only a fraction of the start-ups willing to grow manage to find a venture capitalist. There are several reasons for this, for example:

•     Unattractive market size
•     The scaling would be too cost-intensive
•     No clear USP (Unique Selling Proposition)
•     Errors in approaching investors
•     No investor startup fit
•     Unrealistic forecasts

A German truism is: "The first million is the heaviest." It's similar with finding investors. While many founders still manage to raise funds within the framework of seed financing, Series A often has a rude awakening. The investment process is much more complex, the investment criteria are stricter and the number of potential investors is much smaller. Finding a lead investor for a Series-A that invests in a largely unknown start-up is a difficult undertaking that should not be underestimated. Although raising follow-on financing after a Series-A remains similarly challenging, the initial situation has changed fundamentally. Once founders have completed their first major financing round, their network grows exponentially. Venture capitalists also have a vested interest in promoting their above-average performing portfolio companies and providing them with access to further funding. Finally, the founding team can also benefit from their own Series A experience and therefore requires less external assistance.

Practical experience shows that the need for advice is particularly high for Series-A start-ups. CF-MB offers itself as a sparring partner for start-up teams, helps them to call up a realistic evaluation and then goes in search of investors. Thanks to our broad network, we can give you access to family offices, venture capital companies and corporate venture capital providers and help you to successfully conclude your Series-A financing round.