Private equity management platform Capdesk has raised 拢1.5 million to expand its team and develop its technology.
The FinTech, which has bases in London and Copenhagen, was created as a response to a new trend of fast-growing companies staying private, and increasingly using employee shares to compensate staff.
The company received 拢1m backing from London-based VC fund Fuel Ventures.
Christian Gabriel and Casper Arboll came up with their business idea after years of working in alternative finance, and discovered a gap in the market for a platform to digitise and offer liquidity for the billions of pounds鈥� worth of employee shares in unlisted European companies.
Since its launch in 2015, the company has expanded into the UK and opened a second office in London, attracting thousands of users in the UK and abroad, including Nutmeg, Secret Escapes and MarketInvoice.
Capdesk plans to use the funds from Fuel Ventures, along with a further 拢500,000 investment, to expand its sales and technology teams and continue to develop its innovative software.
鈥淧rivate companies are not equipped to handle employee share plans with hundreds of participants – the administrative burden is simply enormous,鈥� said Christian Gabriel, CEO of Capdesk.
鈥淢ore importantly however, these employee shares are worthless without a liquid market.
鈥淐apdesk helps companies manage option plans and liquidity events, saving time, money and hassle by compiling all the necessary data on one easy-to-use platform.
鈥淲e are on a mission to democratise wealth in private companies by empowering companies to share ownership with employees.
鈥淲e鈥檙e very pleased to have the backing of Fuel Ventures and we look forward to expanding our team and further developing our software to add even more value for our customers.鈥�
Mark Pearson, founder of Fuel Ventures, added: 鈥淭his 拢20 million fund is our biggest to date and enables us to invest in tens of new companies in a variety of sectors, and also demonstrates that the UK start-up scene still has a great deal to offer.
鈥淐apdesk is a fantastic business that we鈥檙e delighted to add to our portfolio. Christian and Casper have identified a clear gap in the market and have created a solution to a problem that countless businesses face.
鈥淲e look forward to seeing them expand their team and further develop their innovative software in the coming months.鈥�