Vauban raises £4.7m to provide investors with an end-to-end platform to easily launch and run a venture capital firm online

• Vauban is building the infrastructure and network powering the global alternative investment industry.
• The platform provides venture capital fund managers and angel investors with everything they need to raise and invest capital quickly and simply. 
• Users can set-up, deploy and manage Funds and SPVs online, from multiple global investment jurisdictions, at a fraction of the usual time and cost.
• The company’s investors include co-leads Pentech and Outward VC, with 7percent Ventures, PiLabs, MJ Hudson, and a roster of notable angel investors are also participating. 
• Vauban is currently onboarding at least one new client every day. Over $1bn has been invested via the platform since launch, with users including Anthemis, Passion Capital, and Octopus Ventures.
• This follows unprecedented levels of activity in European VC, with €41.8bn raised by European companies in the first half of 2021. Vauban presents a huge opportunity for investors to easily deploy capital in the European market. 
• As a result of the funding, Vauban will deepen its tech and regulatory infrastructure, double its headcount and launch a new office. 

LONDON

Vauban, the platform that provides venture capital fund managers with everything they need to raise a fund and invest capital quickly, today announces that it has closed £4.7m. 

Investors include co-leads Pentech and Outward, in addition to 7percent Ventures and MJ Hudson. A roster of high profile angel investors have also participated; This includes  the CEO of Nested Matt Robinson;  the founder of Grabayo, Will Neale; the founder and CEO of ComplyAdvantage, Charles Delingpole; Partner at Augmentum Fintech Perry Blacher; and Al Giles, from legal services provider Axiom.

Through its end-to-end platform, Vauban provides VCs and angel investors the tools necessary to raise funds, easily create angel syndicates, and effectively manage fundraising and investment activities. The platform enables users to set-up and deploy Funds and SPVs, from multiple global investment jurisdictions, at a fraction of the usual time and cost, covering everything structuring, legal documents, investor onboarding, banking and reporting within a single integrated platform.

Vauban is onboarding at least one new client every day. Over $1bn has been invested via the platform. Current VC users include Anthemis, Passion Capital and Octopus Ventures. In total, over 5,000 LPs are using the platform.

Founder and Co-CEO Rémy Astié said, 

“When raising capital, VCs are obliged to undertake a countless number of time-consuming, long-winded and expensive processes. This deter many prospective managers from raising a fund, and therefore prevent many founders from getting funded. “

“Our goal is to reduce the friction between those who have the capital, and those who need it to solve humanity’s biggest problems. So, we decided to start by rebuilding the infrastructure on digital rails, because it’s mission critical in order to provide a great UX to everyone in the industry: GPs, LPs and Founders. The next step is to build a super platform and network on top of our existing platform, in order to offer life-changing services to all parties involved.”

This comes against the backdrop of unprecedented investment activity in European tech. With €41.8bn raised across Europe in the first half of 2021, up from €32.6bn in the entirety of 2020, the addressable market for European VC investors is increasing.

In recent years, venture capital activities across Europe have evolved, with an increasing number of established VC firms now managing several funds. More funds are using Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to participate in specific deals, make secondary investments, or to set up ‘sidecar’ funds alongside EIS vehicles or their main institutional funds. In addition, angel investors are professionalizing and syndicating; they are grouping together to increase their dealmaking potential and access to dealflow. 

These developments have led to an increased demand for access to the tools that help investors raise and pool capital – including fund structuring, banking requirements, legal documentation, fund admin, reporting, investor onboarding, ongoing LP management and more.

Ulric Musset, Founder and Co-CEO says, 

“One of the biggest catalysts for new startup creation was the launch of Amazon Web Services in the early 2000s. It drastically decreased the cost and complexity of launching a new tech company. Unfortunately the way these startups were funded remain in the past. That’s what we are changing. From operators-turned-investors starting their first fund to established VC firms launching their co-investment program, we want everyone to be able to seize opportunities when they arise.  We believe Vauban will have the same impact that AWS has had on the startup ecosystem.”

Andi Kazeroonian, Investor at Outward VC, said, 

“Despite the meteoric growth in alternative investments in recent years, the infrastructure the industry relies on has failed to evolve. Simply creating and administering an investment vehicle remains synonymous with lengthy, cumbersome and expensive processes fragmented across multiple service providers. Vauban’s integrated platform has turned this on its head with a relentless focus on product and user experience, which has unsurprisingly led to exceptional organic growth and its emergence as the standout category leader in Europe. We have high conviction that Vauban will play a significant role in powering the growth of the alternate asset industry as it continues to move from the periphery of the global investment landscape into the mainstream, and are delighted that they have chosen Outward VC as its long term partners on this journey.”

Craig Anderson, Partner at Pentech said, 

“We like to invest in category-leading companies with big ambitions for growth. We believe Vauban is building a modern infrastructure for the alternate asset market which enables users to set up, deploy and manage their funds and SPVs in just a few hours. We have been very impressed by what Remy, Ulric and the Vauban team have achieved to date, both in terms of building a truly compelling product and their tremendous commercial progress, and we are very excited about their growth potential moving forward.”

Using the money raised, Vauban will deepen its tech and regulatory infrastructure, and launch a new office in Luxembourg to strengthen its European offering, alongside its headquarters in London. 

ENDS

Contact

Ben Goldsmith
[email protected] 

Notes to Editor:

About Vauban

Through its end-to-end platform, Vauban helps reduce the friction between those who have the capital, and those who are using it to solve humanity’s biggest problems. Vauban provides VCs and angel investors the best-in-class tools necessary to raise funds, create angel syndicates, and easily manage their fundraising and investment activities. Over $1bn has been invested through the Vauban platform since 2018 with over 5000 investors onboarded. Current users include Outrun Ventures, Octopus Ventures, Passion Capital and Anthemis.  

Find out more at https://vauban.io/