Angel Investors & Friends and Family – The Key Source of Funding

Investing in startups is a challenging task. Some startups make big promises, but end up failing, while others turn out to be quite a success. For example, the early investors of Instagram got more than 300 times return on their initial investment within a period of two years. But these are one of the mega jackpots. On many occasions, investors suffered heavy losses as well. This is the reason why they are wary of investing in startups.

However, it has been observed that the key sources of funding for a startup are either angel investors or their family and friends.

 

Friends and Family as a Key Source of Funding

According to a survey, friends and family invest more than $60 billion every year. Moreover, around 38 percent of the startup owners gather funds from their kith and kin and the average investment value is around $23,000.

There is no better way to raise money than to seek the help of your own family members or friends. They can be an ideal option to give your business a head start. If you have reliable family members who are willing to invest, it can be a valuable resource and a long-term opportunity, especially because their main motivation will be to provide support and show loyalty toward the founder rather than expecting a high return on investment.

It is basically a close circle of those individuals who have a strong affinity with your brand or with you.

However, it is very important that these investments are officially set down in writing. All the documentation should be signed by the investors with their consent to the fact that there is a risk that they might not get their cash back.

 

What is the Risk Involved?

It is crucial to know that business should not be mixed with pleasure. Taking money from friends and family is a huge responsibility and risky at the same time. Make sure you share a strong bond with them so that your goals do not get affected when things go wrong. By accepting the funds provided by the family members or friends to start your business, you risk their money. Therefore, it is of vital importance that all parties come to a consensus before anything is initiated.

To manage and control the risk, every party should sign a promissory note that contains repayment terms. In case, your friends or family members want to partner with you, sign a partnership agreement and keep the official documents with you.

 

Angel Investors as a Key Source of Funding

According to a report, more than 268,000 angel investors are active in the United States. Every year, they make an investment of 20 billion dollars in around 60,000 businesses. The average investment amount is approximately $75,000. As per the Angel Resource Institute database, in 2012, the recorded number of angel groups in the U.S. was 385.

Angel investor is an affluent person who provides funds for startup companies, mostly in exchange for equity ownership or convertible debt instruments. A lot of these individuals are either business professionals, higher-ups in the corporate sector, or renowned entrepreneurs. Similarly, there are angel groups as well that consist of individual angels who come together for a common goal, i.e., to evaluate and fund the startup companies. These groups allow such investors to pool their money and make larger investments.

 

Benefits of Having Angel Investors as a Source of Funding the Business

They are usually the ideal source to fulfill funding requirements, because they are focused on the healthy growth of a startup company. Moreover, they also contribute as a coach or mentor based on their own experiences. For example, angel investors introduce startup founders to prospective investors and potential clients. They also identify the problems, advise solutions, and help these businesses to get recognition and credibility in the market. All in all, angels take a lot more risk as compared to other institutional investors. This is the reason why they are so dedicated and seriously concerned about the profits and losses of their portfolio companies.

 

 

To summarize, there has been a rising trend of getting funds from angel investors or family and friends, as they have not only been beneficial to fuel the startups, but have also contributed toward a better economy around the globe.