London-based startup is on a mission to level the playing field and provide private investors with access to an asset class that has provided market-leading returns for two decades 

London – 23^rd February 2023: Sprout, the platform for underserved private investors to access a curated selection of leading venture capital funds, has raised $1 million in pre-seed funding.

Contributors to the round include a selection of family offices and angel investors – most notably Latin America’s largest private market placement agent, and early backers of Wise, Pipe and Betway. The funds will be used to scale the Sprout platform and build on its impressive growth since the business launched in late 2021, when it was co-founded by private market specialists Jonny Blausten, Daniel Lehmann, and PwC Raise Ventures founding member Rich Abrahams, who earlier this month took up the role as Sprout’s Chief Investment Officer. 

In just over a year, Sprout has already partnered with a diverse portfolio of leading venture capital firms on its platform, including Speedinvest, G Squared and Episode 1 Ventures, and has facilitated millions of pounds of investment from a community of more than 500 ambitious private investors. 

Sprout bridges the gap between what it describes as “underserved investors” and venture capital funds. This varied investor base includes professionals who are typically priced out by the high minimums required for VC investment, Ultra High Net Worth or High Net Worth individuals who lack access to VC funds through their wealth managers or private banks, and Family Offices who seek education on how to choose the best VCs.

By providing this access, Sprout empowers investors to, from as little as £5,000 but with no maximum, benefit from the upside potential of private markets, helping them to build diversified portfolios that mitigate the risk of investing in individual businesses.

“We’ve witnessed the appetite for long-term, higher upside investment classes like venture capital, and have experienced first-hand the high minimum investments and requirement to have extensive industry knowledge”, said Sprout’s co-founder and CEO, Jonny Blausten. 

“We’re helping underserved investors access high performing VC funds, as they rightfully should. We’d like to thank our investors for their continued support as we deliver on our vision to level the playing field in the private markets.”

Oliver Holle, CEO and Managing Partner at Speedinvest, commented: “Sprout is solving an important challenge for both private investors and the venture capital industry. It is an important and timely offering.  We strongly support Sprout’s mission to provide access to funds like Speedinvest for private investors who have not previously been able to invest in the asset class. We have enjoyed working with Sprout’s experienced and professional team and we are excited to see them grow in the coming years.” 

At a time when there is growing appetite among private investors to diversify their portfolios, Sprout believes true diversification comes from expanding portfolios to include private market asset classes like venture capital. 

Sprout’s co-founder and Chief Investment Officer, Rich Abrahams, said: “By the time most private investors have heard of the most exciting companies, they’ve already been backed by the best VCs, meaning that the opportunity to invest in them has gone. That needs to change. More people should be able to invest in top-tier venture capital funds, and Sprout is making that possible.”

Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer, Daniel Lehmann, added: “We are incredibly proud of our fund selection and diligence process, alongside the relationships we continue to build with our partners and community. This funding round is an exciting milestone for us but is just the start of what we hope to achieve as we embark on our mission to provide top-tier venture capital opportunities to underserved investors.”

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For more information visit www.viasprout.com

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Element Communications

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