UK-based Europe’s largest private market investment platform, CrowdCube, acquired the leading secondary liquidity platform for founders and employees of Europe’s high-growth companies, Semper. The company announced the acquisition on November 6, 2023. However, it did not disclose the amount of the transaction.
As a part of the deal, the founders of Semper, Mathias Pastor and Balthazar de Lavergne, will continue to lead the secondary business in close collaboration with Bill Simmons and Matt Cooper (co-CEOs of CrowdCube) and the wider executive team.
Purpose of acquisition by Crowdcube
With the recent acquisition, Crowdcube creates for the first time an opportunity for founders to reward high-performing staff and early angel investors. Meanwhile, it simultaneously builds a community of shareholders within its customer base.
This acquisition allows retail investors to participate alongside sophisticated institutional investors in secondary transactions with some of Europe’s most promising startups for the first time. It also offers unique access for retail investors to invest in startups outside of traditional primary fundraising windows. Meanwhile, it provides an opportunity to share in their future success.
For Crowdcube, this partnership bolsters its position as Europe’s largest private market investment platform. It connects companies with investors throughout their journey from private to public.
What the Semper co-founder have to comment
Balthazar de Lavergne, co-founder of Semper, said, “We started Semper to help iconic companies attract and retain top talent by making equity more tangible. We’ve built the infrastructure and networks across Europe for companies to offer liquidity to their team members and early investors; we’re now excited to expand on those foundations by partnering with Crowdcube. Together, we can provide a wider range of liquidity solutions for European startups throughout their growth journeys, with participation from both institutional and retail investors.”
What the CrowdCube CEO has to add
Bill Simmons, Co-CEO of Crowdcube, further added, “The potential to create the largest private market investment platform in Europe is vast. We are just getting started. Our acquisition of Semper positions us favourably to capitalise on all of the interest and momentum in and around the private markets at the moment. Semper excels in delivering secondary liquidity transactions. As the deal closes with Semper, we are proud to offer Europe’s top secondary liquidity solution for companies, employees, and investors. It further complements our existing primary liquidity solution for companies and investors.”
About Semper
Mathias Pastor and Balthazar de Lavergne launched the company in 2021. Since then, Semper has supported more than EUR 10 million of secondary sales for European startups. It also enjoys partnerships with companies such as Kry, Mano Mano (a French DIY marketplace) and Voodoo.
To explore more such startups, visit Zefyron Startup Database
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