2020 is finally coming to a close and we’re thankful that we, and all the companies we've partnered with, have more than weathered the storm.
We came into this year with a very optimistic outlook, looking to really ramp up our growth and help more companies than ever before raise the capital they need. As a nation, we were first met with what’s being called the Black Summer. And then the largest global pandemic in recent history, which thrust our country, and economy, into lockdown, bringing pretty much all investment to a halt.
Offers were put on hold indefinitely as businesses went into survival mode. We even went our longest period on record without an equity crowdfund. As a relatively young company, we consider ourselves lucky to have emerged from the lockdown with our full team intact.
And yet despite everything that happened, there were still a lot of highlights to take from this year. We managed to increase our offer volume from 2019 (including a record NZ equity crowdfund) raising the most we ever have, launched our new branding and platform, saw some crazy returns for investors (looking at you Douugh) and have fortunately returned to our office.
Our portfolio companies continued to kick goals, with some emerging even stronger than before. We welcomed a bunch of new team members too, including Hayden and Jack on the offers team, and Esther and Ryan on the tech team. Intern turned part-time deals team member, Nick, is also making the jump to full-time in the new year.
We’re more excited than ever for what’s to come in 2021, and can’t wait to bring you even more highly vetted investment opportunities so you can support the companies you love. Read on for a full breakdown of our 2020.
Our Year in Numbers
Total Funds Raised: $15.2m ($11.5m in 2019) ($9.6m in 2018)
Total Funds Raised for Equity Crowdfunding: $9.8m ($9.5m 2019) ($4.4m in 2018)
No. Equity Crowdfunds: 11 (12 in 2019) (5 in 2018)
Total Successful Offers: 25 (22 in 2019) (12 in 2018)
Success Rate: 86% (85% 2019) (80% in 2018)
(The number of deals we launched and that hit the minimum funding target.)
Our Crowd: 50k active (36k 2019)
Largest Offer: Greenfern Industries ($2.8m NZD)
Fastest Offer: Douugh IPO ($750k in 46 minutes)
Largest Return: Douugh IPO (1,633% which was hit a few weeks after listing on the ASX)
No. of Equity Crowdfunds that Hit the Maximum Funding Target: 2 (Plastiq and Parpera)
The Numbers Since Equitise Started:
91 successful offers in total
10,361 investments in total
$57.3m raised overall
14 uprounds with an average increase in valuation of 146%
Only 5 companies are no longer in business and none in the last 3 years despite the global pandemic. This is a fantastic result for early-stage investing which can carry great risk but also greater return.
A Few Updates From Previous Raises
Despite a rough year for most, we saw some great success stories across the board, with our previous clients not only surviving but thriving. To date, we’ve had 14 uprounds with an average increase in valuation of 146% and we’ve had investors in wholesale deals and IPOs see some juicy returns too. As for equity crowdfunding, it's generally a longer-term investment, however, there might be some exits on the horizon for 2021.
We’ve summarised some updates below for our recent raises and their performance across 2020.
Humaniti
Humaniti successfully raised $429,800 on Equitise just a few months ago and has already released a series of enhancements to the App. The company is delivering category analysis for key cornerstone clients across a number of sectors. The team has also been strengthened by a Head of Product (Aodhagan Grisewood) who is leading the rollout of a series of new benefits for members.
At the start of the campaign, Humaniti had 10k members and 16m transactions recorded valued at $5.6b. Just a couple of months later, the company has now recorded over 19m transactions worth over $8b from over 2.5k merchants. It has climbed to over 15k members, 86% of whom would recommend Humaniti to their family and friends.
JamJar (previously Plastiq.it)
Plastiq.it successfully hit its maximum target of $400,000 earlier in the year - one of only three offers to do so. The cashback platform, founded by Shark Tank investor and entrepreneur Andrew Banks, is pioneering a unique automatic cashback model, removing the need for receipts and coupons. Recently, the company has completed a rebranding to JamJar.
Since its equity crowdfunding campaign, JamJar has collected close to $500m in transactional data and has onboarded over 730 retailers. The company has a pilot with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles for sports commercialisation using transactional data and has signed key clients to its rewards as a service API, including Optus SMB and Neat Ideas. JamJar is also launching gift cards in the lead up to Christmas.
The JamJar team is offering Equitise readers a $10 bonus with their first cashback! Simply use the referral code ‘EQXMAS’ when you join.
Douugh
After completing a wholesale round through Equitise back in 2019, Douugh finally hit the ASX after conducting part of its IPO through our platform. Having raised $750,000 in just 46 minutes, the company hit the ground running, hitting a max share price of $0.49 up from $0.03, reflecting a whopping 1,633% share price increase!
Douugh has announced a series of exciting developments recently, including the launch of the app in the US, and a partnership with Humm to offer a buy now, pay later product too. The team is continuing to develop their AI technology to help their users achieve financial independence.
Revl
Revl completed a $150,250 wholesale round through Equitise way back in 2017. The company has continued to grow and develop its offering over that time, and had achieved an impressive level of recurring revenue for its video solutions earlier in the year. However, with the onset of the pandemic, and shutdown of theme parks around the world, Revl saw its revenues drop to zero in a flash.
Revl took this setback in its stride and doubled down on its R&D efforts, and has since emerged as an even stronger company. It used the time to complete the Flow 2.0 system, providing increased value and decreased costs to its customers. As a result, Revl is looking to end 2020 with up to 2.5x growth of its revenues, with profitability also expected for early next year. You can read more about this success story here.
Kitfit
Kitfit successfully raised $438,840 as part of their $1m seed round, just before we were plunged into a global pandemic. Since then, the company has continued working hard in the background and on September 17, two and a half years after incorporation, finally launched the Kitfit app to the first batch of community members!
The app is performing well so far having generated its first revenue for the company, with 11,847 users growing at 17% per week. Kitfit is focusing on sustainably growing this audience to aim for a valuation more than double its seed round in less than 12 months.
Kitfit now has over 203 brands live in the system (400% of launch target) and 4097+ products listed for sale (409% of target). The company has closed negotiations with its first 12 premium brand partners (100% of target).
Looking Forward
From all of us here at Equitise, thank you for your interest and support. We love what we do - helping startups find the capital they need to grow - and without future-focused investors like yourself, many of them wouldn't reach their potential. We hope you have a wonderful festive season and a very happy New Year. Stay tuned for 2021, we have some big things planned!