Results

Founders who raised on their own terms, with our preparation behind them.

We never find, solicit or introduce investors. These founders ran their own raises. Here is what happened once the strategy, the story, the numbers and the documents were ready.

30+private placements prepared

17companies taken public

30+years in capital markets

We've prepared offerings for each of these companies:

Healthcare Business Resources
Freedom Internet Group
SMTP
Ideal Restaurant Group
Mister Goody
American Realty Funds
InnerSpace
PR Specialists
Maxim Mortgage
CDbeat.com
Hojo Holdings
Onfolio Holdings
GenFlat Holdings
Redefy
Nico Ventures
Industrial Sustainability
Wildeye
Metro Business

Case study

GenFlat Holdings

Set out to raise $1 million. Raised $3.3 million, went public, then closed a $7 million offering.

$1MGoal, for working capital and growth

$3.3MRaised in common stock under 506(b), from the founders' own network

PublicShares quoted on the OTC market

$7MPublic offering, led by an investment banking firm

The situation

GenFlat Holdings planned to raise $1 million for working capital and growth from accredited investors in its founders' personal and professional network, under Rule 506(b), in common stock.

What made the difference

Once the story, strategy, pitch, presentation and documents were aligned, the people the founders knew responded far more strongly than expected. The raise also sat inside a clear plan to take the company public, which gave investors a visible end of the tunnel. That first raise set up the next steps: GenFlat went public, with its shares quoted on the OTC market, and then closed a $7 million public offering led by an investment banking firm.

Case study

Onfolio Holdings

Three private placements, each common round priced above the last, then a $13.7 million IPO on Nasdaq.

$824,500Common stock, 40 accredited investors

$1.4M12% Series A preferred, 62 accredited investors

$2.0MCommon stock, 59 accredited investors

$13.7MInitial public offering, listed on Nasdaq

The situation

Onfolio Holdings had about $750,000 in annual revenue. We prepared the company for its public listing, and before its IPO it raised more than $4.2 million in three private placements, as reported in its registration statement. It then listed on Nasdaq, raising about $13.7 million in gross proceeds from its IPO (pricing announcement).

What made the difference

The security fit the plan. Onfolio used 12% preferred stock to fund acquisitions: buying cash-flowing businesses at about four times cash flow returned roughly 25% a year, so the company could pay investors 12% without diluting common shareholders. Investors could see exactly how they would be paid, and later had a public market for their shares.

Case study

Freedom Internet Group

Raised $2.3 million from outside investors, then opened a public market for its shares.

$1.8MSAFE financing, within months of forming the company

$509,000506(c) offering of common stock and warrants, 40 accredited investors

$2.3MTotal raised from outside investors

PublicShares approved for trading on the OTC market

The situation

Freedom Internet Group, a Puerto Rico company that acquires royalty interests in internet-based businesses, raised $1,812,000 through a SAFE financing soon after it was formed. Its next round, a 506(c) offering, raised $509,000 from 40 accredited investors, and the SAFEs converted into common stock automatically when it closed, as reported in its registration statement.

What made the difference

A structure that worked for every investor from day one: SAFEs that converted on their own at the next equity round, warrants and registration rights for the 506(c) investors, and a path to a public market. The company then registered its investors' shares for resale, and its stock was approved for trading.

Case study

SMTP (now SharpSpring)

Went public with a $100,000 direct offering, then raised far more once its shares were trading.

$100,000Direct public offering, 81 shareholders, no underwriter

PublicShares began trading right after that first raise

$500,000Warrant exercises, once the shares were trading

$8MUnsecured convertible notes, raised later as SharpSpring

$16MAbout $16 million in equity, raised later as SharpSpring

The situation

SMTP, an email delivery company, was already profitable on about $2.7 million in revenue. Instead of raising a large round, it went public through a small direct public offering: $100,000 from 81 shareholders, with no investment bank underwriting it, as described in its prospectus. Its shares began trading over the counter right after.

What made the difference

Separating going public from raising money. With a public market for its shares, the company could raise on its own terms as it grew. Warrants were exercised for $500,000, and after it moved to Nasdaq and changed its name to SharpSpring, it raised $8 million in unsecured convertible notes and about $16 million in equity. We were not involved in those later financings.