Florida Funders, a hybrid venture capital fund/crowdfunding platform, has launched a channel partner program. The goal: Allow any group, university or other types of groups to raise funds via the Florida Funders' online platform, which is a cloud-based crowdfunding system.
"We want to be the house for deal flow and each channel partner can be a room in the house," says Saxon Baum, director of investor relations at the Tampa, Florida-based organization. "The easier it is to raise funds, the easier it is for companies to get funded, the better we can do our job."
The Florida Funders platform so far includes more than 1,100 accredited investors. The organization reviews roughly 60 to 80 potential deals per month. So far, Florida Funders and its members have pumped $17.4 million into startups. The effort includes 23 companies funded and 37 deals overall.
Channel partners that plug into the platform essentially gain a turnkey system for driving deal flow. They system handles the heavy lifting of angel investing, Baum asserts, essentially speeding engagements and improving reach for participants.
Florida Funders' main focus, as the organization name suggests, involves funding Florida-area technology startups. "But we have plans to move outside of Florida by finding the right partners," Baum says. "If anyone around the country is interested in taking this model and using our software, we are open for business!"
Anyone interested in the partner program can contact Baum directly.
Disclosure: I joined Florida Funders as a member investor in January 2019.