COMPANY STREAM
Raising Capital on Equivesto
Equivesto is a Canadian investment portal and licensed Exempt Market Dealer that enables private businesses to:
Raise up to $1.5M from their customers, fans, followers, and extended community members via Equity Crowdfunding.
OR
Raise any amount from Angels, VCs, and other suitable private Canadian investors using other exemptions.
How Equity Crowdfunding Works
The general public can now become direct investors in your business.
Companies directly issue shares (ownership) to individuals through Equivesto’s digital platform.
Raises are done in 30-90 day campaigns, similar to a campaign on Kickstarter.
Companies can raise between $100,000 and $1,500,000 per year.
Set Raise Minimum and Maximum Goals. If raise minimum goal is not met, funds are refunded to investors.
Minimum investment is CAD $100
Learn more about Equity Crowdfunding (Startup Crowdfunding Exemption) here: https://equivesto.com/crowdfunding
How Other Exemptions Works
There are many legal doorways private Canadian companies can use to raise capital, Equity Crowdfunding is just one. These set of rules are called Prospectus Exemptions and allow companies to bypass the certain expensive and time consuming regulatory requirements when distributing securities. All Canadian businesses issuing securities MUST raise capital via a Prospectus or a Prospectus Exemption. A prospectus is used for Public companies and a prospectus exemption is used for private companies.
Depending on the exemption used, the requirements can vary including: The paperwork needed, amount of disclosure required, type of investors allowed, investor limits, and limits of the raise. Some of the popular exemptions used on Equivesto include:
Accredited Investor Exemption
Offering Memorandum Exemption
Private Issuer Exemption
Startup Crowdfunding Exemption
Self-Certified Investor Exemption (Pilot)
Learn more here.
Who Can Raise?
Equivesto is designed to allow even more companies to participate and get investment, however this process is regulated by provincial Securities Commissions and is not a simple undertaking.
Company minimum requirements:
Incorporated in Canada
Either have a minimum viable product/demo version of your product/service OR have a proven track record of success, with existing customers and sales
Be raising a minimum of CAD $100,000
Who Can Invest?
Over 18 years old
Living in Canada.
Has $100 minimum investment
How much money can I raise?
For equity crowdfunding, companies can raise between $100,000 and $1,500,000. The latter being the raise limit in a 12 month period. For Offering Memorandum or Accredited Investor campaigns, companies can raise any amount over $100,000.
What is a Minimum Viable Product?
A product or service with just enough features to attract early customers. An idea, a plan, or an intention are not a minimum viable product.
What is an issuer?
A person who has a security or is issuing one. In the broad legal meaning, a person can be: an individual or a group of people (a corporation, a partnership, a trust, and more).
What is a Campaign?
It’s the name that we have given to the “funding” profile of the company looking to raise money. The campaign includes the following details: information about team members, thorough description of the product or service, financial information, and the offer (the cost of a share in their company).
Is Equivesto registered as a dealer with an SRA?
Absolutely. Equivesto Canada Inc. is registered as an Exempt Market Dealer, or EMD for short, in all Canadian provinces and territories. For more about an SRA, click here.
How does Equivesto help me during the process?
From our first contact with you, all the way through to your post campaign responsibilities, Equivesto will be engaged with you every step of the way.