I am on the board of a non-profit called Launch NY.  It is a venture “launching” organization that couples programmatic intense mentoring with potential seed funding.  I am passing along news of a new initiative that you might find interesting. Here it is:

Launch NY is working to find more ways to engage the local investor community and connect them with our client startup companies. With nearly 130 co-investors to date in Launch NY portfolio companies who have received funding from the Launch NY Seed Fund, the most active seed fund in NYS, our companies have secured 12x the $1.9MM we have invested. Now even more investors can access exciting startup company investment opportunities from the convenience of their laptop or smartphone, as Launch NY has announced that is launching the beta version of the Investor Network.

The first one hundred accredited investors to sign up for the beta test of the Investor Network by July 15th at no cost, will have access to the inaugural slate of startup companies seeking funding this summer.

• The Investor Network is akin to a digitally administered open angel group, allowing accredited investors to look at deals based on their preferences in sector, stage, and region.
• Investors can then invest in individual companies on a deal by deal basis, with as little as $10,000.
• Launch NY will handle vetting the companies, provide access to their due diligence files, assist in negotiations, and structure the special purpose vehicle (SPV) which will aggregate the participating investors. The investment will appear as one line item on the company’s capitalization table.
• The use of an SPV will allow for accredited investors to benefit from tax incentives for businesses who are located in designated Opportunity Zones.

Launch NY is limiting the beta launch to the first 100 accredited investors, so if you are interested in joining us, please sign up at this link or reach out to Launch NY’s Investment Associate, Alex Killian (akillian@launchny.org) and they will be in touch soon with more information.