Flush from a recent $150 million Series B funding round, Republic has entered into an agreement to acquire Seedrs in a deal that values the company at $100 million.

WHO: Jeff Lynn and Carlos Silva launched Seedrs in 2012 with the vision of democratizing investment and supporting an emerging European start-up ecosystem that needed better access to finance. Seedrs was the first regulated securities crowdfunding platform in the world, and has seen nearly £1.5 billion invested on its platform. The platform was also the first to introduce a secondary marketplace and has hosted some of the industry's most significant success stories, including Revolut, a leading digital bank valued at over $33B. Seedrs is backed by leading European institutional investors as well as over 4,600 of its own customers.

Republic is a leading US fintech company that allows everyone to invest in private-market equity, debt, or crypto offerings through their retail platform, and has almost one billion dollars under management through its private asset management practice. Republic's retail investment platform hosts offerings across start-ups, real estate, crypto, music, gaming, and more. They continue to expand their product as well as their geographic reach with members in over 100 countries.

WHY: This deal will create the first global private investment marketplace with offerings across North America and Europe. Republic expects to rapidly advance their presence in Europe. The additional capital Republic will commit toward expanding Seedrs’ reach in the region is expected to help deliver new innovations and products for European investors and private businesses.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: "Republic launched with the mission to make private investments accessible to all," said Kendrick Nguyen, Republic's founder & CEO, "We knew international expansion was necessary to achieve cross-border participation. In working with Seedrs, we have admired their technological capabilities, the strength of their team and their strong presence in the UK and soon Europe. We anticipate further developing the strengths of both companies from retail, secondaries, crypto, and communities to create a clear industry leader. We look forward to working together to shape the future of the industry at this critical stage of growth and innovation."

Jeff Kelisky, CEO of Seedrs, added, "Seedrs' ambition has always been to build a global private equity marketplace. This transaction is a natural development of our partnership with Republic to achieve and go beyond that ambition. We share a similar culture, a common goal, and a commitment to the strategic opportunities that lie ahead. We have great admiration for the teams at Republic, and together we can accelerate our plans to create a powerful global private investment marketplace that will transform the finance ecosystem and the communities they serve."

DETAILS:

• Republic has an agreement to acquire Seedrs in a deal valued at around $100 million.
• The acquisition of Seedrs follows Republic's recent $150MM Series B financing announcement, led by Valor Equity Partners.
• Seeds agreed to a merger with rival Crowdcube last year, but the UK's Competition and Markets Authority blocked the deal on the grounds that it would reduce competition and innovation.
• As part of the new structure, Jeff Kelisky will join Republic's leadership team and continue as Seedrs CEO. Seedrs' leadership team will remain in place to continue to grow the UK business and deliver on Republic's European expansion plans.
• The deal also sees participation from Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP, the global institutional investment management firm. Davidson Kempner will become a shareholder of Republic through their acquisition of Seedrs shares from Schroder UK Public Private Trust plc, Augmentum Fintech plc, and Omnis Income & Growth Fund in November 2021. These shares represent in aggregate approximately a 30% stake in Seedrs.
• The transaction will be structured as an acquisition by Republic of all the outstanding share capital of Seedrs Limited via scheme of arrangement.
• Seedrs shareholders and option holders will receive "core consideration" of approximately £23.59 per Seedrs share. Most shareholders and option holders will receive this in cash, but some will receive Republic shares or a combination of the two.