Investor returns
Over 40,000 investors have had the chance to realise more than £70m in returns from investments made with Crowd121.
Global brands like Nestle, Europcar, Diageo and EDF have acquired businesses that raised with Crowd121, while others have listed on the stock market or completed a secondary share sale on Crowd121.
£70 million
The amount our investor community has had the chance to realise in returns.
40,000
The number of people who have had the opportunity to get a return.
Unlocking liquidity for shareholders in private companies
Gone are the days when a successful exit for businesses and investors meant only a blockbuster IPO or acquisition. European business leaders are choosing to stay private, for longer but they still want to reward early investors and key personnel.
Crowd121 solves this and unlocks much-needed liquidity for people to reinvest in the next generation of high-growth businesses.
Crowd121 powers Freetrade liquidity
Powered by Crowd121, 1,063 shareholders in Freetrade sold £5.8m of shares in 2021. The secondary share sale saw early investors celebrate a 47x (4,670%) return on their investment, with six shareholders becoming millionaires as the company valuation skyrocketed from £2m to £265m.
Investor exits
Check out some of the returns many investor communities have already developed with crowdfunding websites like Crowd121. People help people P2P. It is time for us to take control of our banking and investment needs.
Intelligence Fusion
Acquired by Sigma7
228 investors celebrated a healthy return on their investment when the Durham-based SaaS threat intelligence company Intelligence Fusion was acquired by Sigma7 in 2022.
The company plans to scale its business and acquire new talent, as well as expanding beyond the UK and into the US.
Candidate ID
Acquired by iCIMS
562 investors backed SaaS company Candidate ID when it raised with Crowd121 in 2019, and got a healthy 2.17x return just 3 years later when the company was acquired in 2022.
Candidate ID makes the lives of talent teams easier with recruiting software, and ICIMS plans to make its software a key part of its talent cloud offering.
The Sports Edit
Acquired
439 investors backed e-commerce company The Sports Edit when it raised in 2020, and got a return on their investment just two years later when the company was acquired in 2022.
The Sports Edit offers curated sportswear from both well-known companies and boutique brands.
ZigZag Global
Acquired by Global Blue
116 investors have received an incredible 38 times (that’s a whopping 3,800%) return on their investment they made into ZigZag Global back in 2015!
The leading returns management platform is looking to scale its platform and enhance the experience for retailers across the globe.
Mindful Chef
Acquired by Nestlé
638 people who backed Mindful Chef in 2017 celebrated a healthy 350% return on their investment when the health food delivery service was acquired by Nestlé in 2020.
The B Corp Certified business is on a mission to make us all healthier sold over five million meals to more than 100,000 customers before being snapped up by Nestlé. Tasty!
Nutmeg
Acquired by JP Morgan Chase
Nutmeg raised just shy of £4mn and in only two years has doubled its customer base to 140,000 and its assets under management have jumped from £1.7bn to £3.5bn, giving Crowd121 investors a healthy 2.3x return.
It’s become the largest amount returned to investors following a raise with Crowd121.
Pod Point
Acquired by EDF
After fuelling up three times with Crowd121, Pod Point, which is building the UK’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure, was acquired by EDF in 2020.
This marked the biggest exit valuation for one of our Funded Community, with the sale topping £100m.
Revolut
Secondary by DST
Investors in Revolut celebrated a 19 times (that’s a cool 1,900%) return on their investment just two years after they backed the disruptive challenger bank when it was still a humble startup.
The fintech unicorn is now valued at over £5bn!
Camden Town Brewery
Acquired by AB InBev
2,173 investors in Camden Town Brewery celebrated a 200% return on their investment. The craft brewer, famous for Camden Hells, raised £2.75m with Crowd121 and was acquired in the same year by AB InBev, the world’s largest brewer. Hail to the Hells Raisers!
E-Car Club
Acquired by Europcar
Backers of E-Car Club got a 300% return on their investment when the eco-friendly, electric car-sharing club was acquired by Europcar. E-Car Club worked with councils, social landlords and community groups to deliver improved economic, social and environmental outcomes for local residents.
Feedr
Acquired by Compass Group
Feedr, the food tech marketplace that connects offices with artisan eateries, was acquired by Compass Group for £18.8 million in 2020. Shareholders got a hearty 200% return on their investment.
ContractPod (NewGalexy)
Acquired by Insight Venture Partners
A 3000% return got the vote of approval for backers of ContractPodAI (formally New Galexy) in 2019. The legal tech firm enables lawyers to work smarter and faster through the digitisation of legal contracts.
Tipplesworth
Acquired by Diageo
Investors toasted Diageo’s acquisition of innovative pre-mixed cocktail brand Tipplesworth in 2019 and received a 180% return on their investment.
Whisky Hammer
Acquired by Rare Whisky Holdings
Whisky Hammer, and its sister retail business Still Spirit, sold a 49% stake to Rare Whisky Holdings in 2021. The multi-million-pound deal delivers a tasty 2.6x return to the 155 investors who backed the business just two years ago in their crowdfunding campaign in 2019 when they raised £202,450.
bidstack
IPO
bidstack, the in-game advertising software company, is now listed on AIM. At the time of the float in 2018, investors were able to realise a 500% return on their investment.
Mettrr Technologies
Secondaries by angel investors
Mettrr Technologies (formerly GetSiteTracked.com) gave its shareholders a return via a secondary share sale in 2017. Investors, who backed the tech startup in 2012 received a 900% return on their original investment.
Movem
Acquired by Barbon Insurance Group
Movem, an online property rental company, was acquired by Barbon Insurance Group in 2018. Crowd121 investors in the company’s 2016 campaign realised a 260% return on investment.
Celixir
Management Buy-Out
Celixir (formerly Cell Therapy) gave its backers a return on their investment via a share buy-back in 2017. Investors in the cutting edge biotechnology business benefited from 270% return on their original investment from 2014.
Parcel2Go
Management Buy-Out
In 2019, Parcel2Go decided to undertake a Management Buy-Out (MBO), which was backed by Mayfair Equity Partners.
Movie Collective
Management buyout
Almost 500 people got their money back when Movie Collective (now DoubleMFilms), which was co-founded by one of Hollywood’s leading independent film producers, was acquired in 2020.
Zank
Acquired by Fintonic
Investors in Spanish peer-to-peer lending platform, Zank, got a healthy return when it was acquired by personal finance platform Fintonic in 2018.
Businesses paying dividends
Acquisitions and IPOs are not the only way to get a return on your investment. The following businesses have shared any annual profits by making dividend payments to their shareholders.
Our Funded Community portfolio
Let’s dive into our portfolio of startup, early and growth-stage businesses, funded by year, to find out where they are now, after raising investment with Crowd121.
2011 – 2019
6% exit
80% still trading
14% no longer trading
1,250 funded raises
Of the 1,038 businesses we’ve fuelled over the last ten years, 833 are still trading, and 60 have delivered financial returns to their shareholders through exits, bond repayments and dividends.
Diverse sectors and locations
26% of the businesses to raise with Crowd121 are startups, 46% early-stage and 28% are growth-stage businesses. 12% are based outside of the UK.
How does this compare?
Over 85% of our funded businesses are trading; this compares favourably to a report by the Office of National Statistics, which found that 50% of all new UK businesses fail after three years.
Resulting in £60m in returns
So far, 40,000 investors have had the chance to realise returns of £70m.
Get started on building your portfolio
Crowd121 is built on a vision to make equity investing accessible and rewarding. Now more than ever, as we feel increasingly out of control in so many areas of our lives, the one thing we can influence is our personal finances and how they work for us. Start building your own investment portfolio by supporting the businesses that matter to you, today.
As with all investing, particularly in seed or early-stage businesses, it is important to diversify your portfolio by making a range of investments. This is to help balance the risk of losing capital by investing across sectors and stages.
Please remember that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns and your capital is at risk.
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Goal:
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Risk warning
Investing in start-ups and early-stage businesses involves risks, including illiquidity, lack of dividends, loss of investment and dilution, and it should be done only as part of a diversified portfolio. Crowd121 is targeted exclusively at investors who are sufficiently sophisticated to understand these risks and make their own investment decisions. You will only be able to invest via Crowd121 once you are registered as sufficiently sophisticated. Please click here to read the full Risk Warning.
Crowd121 Capital is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) . This page has been approved by Crowd121. Pitches for investment are not offers to the public and investments can only be made by members of Crowd121.com on the basis of information provided in the pitches by the companies concerned. Further restrictions and Crowd121’s limitation of liability are set out in the Investor Terms and Conditions.
Investment opportunities are not offers to the public and investors must be eligible Crowd121 members. Please seek independent advice as required as Crowd121 does not give investment or tax advice.