“In today's dynamic, yet volatile economic climate, securing funding is more challenging for startups. The metrics required to achieve Series A or Series B funding have increased significantly compared to 12 to 18 months ago. Traditional funding rounds are now taking longer to close, pushing many early-stage companies to explore alternative financing methods such as revenue-based financing, venture debt, and crowdfunding to extend their runway and sustain growth amid the tightened venture capital landscape”, says Eric Bartha, Head of Revenue at SeedBlink.
An alternative that gives startups flexibility and stability
The current uncertain macroeconomic climate has significantly reduced the cash runway for many startups. In the first quarter of 2024, venture activity in Central and Eastern Europe saw a decline, with total venture capital funding totaling around €0.5 billion, down 40% from Q4 2023, according to a Vestbee report.
"In an environment where traditional capital raising is full of challenges, SeedBlink Syndicates through the Rolling Facility, provides viable alternatives that offer flexibility and stability. In this way, startups can better overcome economic uncertainties, turn promising contacts into investors, capitalize on growth opportunities without the urgency of fundraising, and focus on strategic planning rather than immediate capital needs”, adds Eric Bartha.
Rolling Facility is launched on SeedBlink Syndicates, a service that enables angel investors and founders to pool and deploy capital within their own networks, fostering collaborative investment opportunities
European tech startups can leverage Rolling Facility to manage their fundraising process. Instead of waiting for their cash runway to deplete, they can adopt a strategy of keeping their funding open continuously to secure commitments from investors at various stages.
Key benefits of the Rolling Facility
- Continuous fundraising: Startups can keep their funding open indefinitely, collecting funds as they grow. This is ideal for founders who anticipate future capital needs but do not require immediate funding.
- Reduced pressure on founders: Unlike traditional rounds that demand closing deals within tight timelines, Rolling Facilities offer a flexible timeline, backed by SeedBlink's support, allowing founders to engage investors without the usual urgency.
- Leveraging productive conversations: Any promising discussion with a potential investor can be turned into a commitment without waiting for a new funding round, maintaining momentum and ensuring business focus.
- Streamlined investment management: Rolling Facilities consolidate multiple small investments into a single entity, simplifying cap table management and future financial planning for both founders and investors.
“SeedBlink is poised to meet the needs of technology companies throughout their growth journey with advanced functionality and services around equity management and a diverse set of investment vehicles. This new capability on SeedBlink Syndicates, part of our recently launched all-in-one equity management and investment platform, has been introduced as a solution to the rising capital concerns of European startups, including Romanian, in order to encourage their continuous growth despite the faced economic uncertainties“, states Ionuț Pătrăhău, Managing Partner at SeedBlink.
Since launch, SeedBlink reported over €1 billion in asset ownership, €374M in startup investing mobilized for more than 350 companies from 15 countries; 4,000 companies enrolled in equity management.
