Vlad Andriescu
The Growceanu Investors app brings together all the information a business angel needs, from solid data regarding relevant startups to details about other investors’ interests and the investment round. The app also allows investors to track and get actively involved in the whole investment process, which is otherwise fully managed by Growceanu.
“In 2022, we aim to offer investors the right app to build a portfolio of 5-10 relevant tech startups, both Romanian and international. Building connections among business angels and creating relationships with founders has been a key element in our process, right from the start. By digitalizing the Growceanu investment process, the app makes administrative procedures a breeze. We intend to offer business angels the best platform for creating and cultivating relationships with high potential startups, as well as other investors”, says Ciprian Man, Growceanu Co-founder, and Angels Keeper.
Target for 2022: investments worth over 2.5M euro
This year, Growceanu aims to close transactions averaging over 100,000 euro, in a context where startup development is accelerating rapidly.
The Growceanu platform targets companies in Romania and ECE (CEE), but brings in dynamic startups from elsewhere in Europe, including the UK. The Growceanu team estimates faster growth in both the number of startups and level of investment in Romania compared to more developed countries.
“Supporting regional startups and rallying angel investors is a great mission to have set for ourselves, even more so in times of crisis. The increased risk of conventional investments could also mean greater tolerance for naturally higher-risk startup investments since, like business angels, we can make a big difference to a company’s success. In the current context, we feel Ukraine's pain, admire its strength and very much look forward to getting back to work together with our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, even as we empathize with the distress felt by so many Russians who strongly distance themselves from Putin's regime”, adds Ciprian Man.
Growceanu currently works with 50 business angels, an increase of two-thirds over the end of last year. Founded in 2018, the platform mainly targets startups in verticals such as PropTech, EdTech, SmartCity, Enterprise, Marketplaces, FinTech, and MedTech, using technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, SaaS, Data Science, Digital Mapping, IoT. In the process of analyzing potential investments, the Growceanu platform looks for passionate entrepreneurs who have validated their product or the service with potential clients, who have a well-balanced team that can accelerate business development, and who are looking for value that business angels can bring.
In the three years since its launch, the Growceanu platform has developed a well-structured group due diligence process, where members’ expertise helps identify problems, thus reducing investments risks. In addition, investing through Growceanu gets the full support of the board and executive team throughout the transaction.
Until the end of last year, the Growceanu platform had facilitated transactions worth over 1 million euros. This year, Growceanu has already closed transactions worth over 220,000 euros with Upgrade Academy, Sypher, Plateaway, and a follow-on round with EmailTree. Additional transactions worth around 400,000 euros are well underway, with most already in the closing stage.
The Growceanu Investors app is available in Apple Store and Google Store.
