Republic, the U.S. based private investment firm which operates the Republic investment platform, today announced the successful completion of the acquisition of Seedrs, Europe’s leading online private investment platform.
As a part of the deal completion, Seedrs will form the European arm of the newly-expanded global retail division of Republic, increasing investment opportunities for the combined 2.5 million users and 1,370 active portfolio companies. The global retail division will be led by current Seedrs CEO, Jeff Kelisky, as he expands his role into a global remit, with an expected 600 deals and $300M in net investment expected to flow through the combined platform in 2022.
The acquisition rapidly advances Republic’s presence in Europe and reinforces the platform’s commitment to make private investments accessible to all. In the past decade Seedrs has sought to break down the barriers to investing in Europe’s most exciting businesses with over £2 billion in investment facilitated on the platform. It has managed more than 1,700 successful campaigns including fast-growth brands like THIS, Revolut and Chapel Down, while the pioneering Seedrs Secondary Market has seen over 700 companies have their shares traded in over 44,000 transactions.
Kendrick Nguyen, Republic’s founder & CEO, said, “This is an exciting time for Republic as it extends our global reach and broadens our capabilities. Seedrs has long been a force in Europe within equity crowdfunding and private investing. By bringing Seedrs into Republic we gain, not just further geographical expansion, but also the team’s talent, technology and knowledge. This will help strengthen our position as a global leader and better serve the founders and businesses and the investors that support them.”
Jeff Kelisky, CEO of Seedrs and newly-appointed global leader of Republic Retail added, “We have built a really great business, driven by a mission to disrupt the world of private investing and become a global leader. This deal is a natural extension of our relationship with Republic – a coming together of two pioneers with a shared vision and purpose. Together we are now the first truly global platform for private equity investing with the drive, capital, and capabilities to shape the future of the industry.”
Seedrs also recently launched its European HQ in Dublin, with Managing Director Randal MacDonald and Finance Director John Gavin now onboard to help accelerate European growth. This is in addition to recent addition of senior hires in Lisbon, Madrid, Amsterdam, Stockholm and Copenhagen.
Over the last six months Seedrs has seen a number of continental campaigns such as Sweden’s Fishbrain, BUX based in the Netherlands and Estate Guru in Estonia, raising millions for European businesses since the start of the year. To further accelerate growth across the region, Republic has committed additional capital into Seedrs to deliver new innovations and products for European investors and private businesses.
This acquisition and recent European growth caps a landmark 18 months for Seedrs. After celebrating ten years since its first campaign in July, Seedrs also crossed £2 billion in total investment in August. Last year, Seedrs saw a 137% growth in investment activity following growing investor appetite to put money into private businesses. It completed 310 deals in 2021, helping businesses from 14 different countries to raise funds and received investment from investors in over 74 countries. It also facilitated over £12 million of secondary share sales between 19,000 buyers and sellers on the platform.
