This guide is brought to you by Digital Jersey and Jersey Business.
You will be asked a series of questions to assess which type(s) of funding is most appropriate for you and your venture. Please note this is an initial model, and feedback is welcomed at : info@digital.je
At the end of the process you will be given further information guiding you towards providers of the relevant type(s) of funding.
How much cash have your sales brought in over the last 12 months (if any)?
How much cash have your sales brought in over the last 12 months? No Sales £5,000 £5,000-£25,000 £25,000-£100,000 £100,000-£500,000 more than £500,000 wider_funding
Which best describes your business?
Sales to date have grown by more than 50% per annum.
Expect sales over next 2yrs to grow at 10% to 75% per annum
???
Sales to date have grown by more than 50% per annum.
Expect sales over next 2yrs to grow more than 75% per annum
???
No sales yet or any sales to date have grown by more than 10% but less than 50% per annum.
Expect sales over next 2yrs to grow at 10% to 75% per annum
???
No sales yet or any sales to date have grown by more than 10% but less than 50% per annum.
Expect sales over next 2yrs to grow more than 75% per annum
???
Is your enterprise Not for Profit, Digital Health or Cleantech?
Wider Funding - Business categories wider_fundingA business plan is a written statement of the targets a company has, the reasons they are attainable and an outline of how they are going to be achieved
You must have an update-to-date and realistic Business Plan, regardless of which type of funding you may be seeking.
Before you proceed with seeking any funding you should consider contacting Jersey Business who can provide assistance with producing your plan.
Here you can find guidance for funding:
Guide to Securing an Angel Investor
Guide to Raising Equity from Private Investors
Guide to Writing a Business Plan
You must have an update to date and realistic Business Plan, regardless of which type of funding you may be seeking. business_planYou should first determine if the local services you need can be provided for free, at a discounted rate or in return for a share of the business.
Consider contacting:
You will need a basic Business Plan to talk through with these providers.
You should first determine if the local services you need can be provided for free or at a discounted rate or in return for a share of the business. service_providerAbout 9x more funding is provided to small and medium businesses through loans compared to other sources.
Loans do not dilute your ownership of the business and can provide the easiest and least intrusive means of financing growth.
Consider contacting:
You will need a full Business Plan together with details of the security you can offer and you will need to be credit worthy.
Secured Loan Providers secured_loan_providerYour answers to the Wider Funding questions appear inconsistent.
It may be that some answers suggest you are a high growth business whereas others do not.
It may also be that your business simply does not fit one of the normal profiles.
Whatever the reason, the underlying issue needs to be thought through and rationalised.
You should now consider contacting Jersey Business directly and asking for a specific business funding review so that the most appropriate funding can be identified for you.
Your answers to the Wider Funding questions appear inconsistent. wider_funding_mismatchThe Funding sources that best match your requirements are highlighted below. Alternative options that don’t match your needs can also be accessed via the arrows.
Personal ??
Friends and Family ??
Acceleration Funding ??
Unsecured Loan ??
Angel Investors ??
Quasi Funds ??
Funds ??
Of course, the easiest means of funding is to provide the money yourself.
If you are dedicated to the business then think about what you could do to raise the money on your own. However, startup businesses are inevitably higher risk and you should carefully consider the appropriate balance of risk and investment, taking financial advice if necessary.
Consider:
As well as funding the business yourself as Founder, the people who are often easiest to convince for help are your Family and Friends.
This groups is often referred to as 'FFF'.
Friends and Family will have expectations of you and your business.
A clear strategic plan should be accessible from the Founder(s).
The Founder should have significant time and money invested into the opportunity £10,000 and 6 or more months.
The Company needs to have up to £10,000 in funds for research and development as well as proof of concepts.
Sales should be up to £100,000 per annum but it is more realistic that this is a start-up or early stage business.
There should be a team established.
Money will be expected to cover 1-2yrs so a relevant implementation plan and cash flow forecast will be needed.
Key planned milestones required could be a marketing strategy, recruitment of people, registering of IP and cash flow forecast.
Asking members of your family to support you. Maybe they could lend you a small amount of money to get you going.
Share your project with friends. Maybe they can lend you some money or make a investment as an angel investor.
Talk to trusted colleagues/suppliers/potential customers. If they are familiar with your business sector they may be willing to support you.
Do you have an up-to-date Business Plan, including details of forecasted revenue and costs, ready to share with others?
Business Plan (including revenue and costs) business_planA clear strategic plan should be accessible from the Founder(s).
The Founder should have significant time and money invested into the opportunity £10,000 and 6 or more months.
The Company needs to have up to £10,000 in funds for research and development as well as proof of concepts.
Sales should be up to £100,000 per annum but it is more realistic that this is a start-up or early stage business.
There should be a team established.
Money will be expected to cover 1-2yrs so a relevant implementation plan and cash flow forecast will be needed.
Key planned milestones required could be a marketing strategy, recruitment of people, registering of IP and cash flow forecast.
Consider:
The level of funding that you are seeking (£50.000 - £200.000) is not well provided for in Jersey and, if other funding sources are not available, your requirements falls into a recognised “funding gap”.
This apparent gap in the funding pathway is being investigated and initiatives are in place to remedy the situation.
In the meantime, there are options to consider:
If none of these routes are viable then talk to Jersey Business and The Digital Hub
Crowdfunding platforms can be an excellent way to raise small amounts of individual support from a large number of people.
This method often works best when your potential backers are also your customers – a B2C business tends to be better at raising funds than a B2B business.
Crowdfunding also includes crowd lending and pre-order pledging.
Platforms and investors for crowdfunding will have expectations of you and your business.
However, Jersey Registered businesses are not usually able to access UK crowdfunding platforms.
Your business should offer a product or service that is liked by the investor, part of a wider community supporting the venture.
A clear business plan with financial details on it and profile of the Senior Team will be required.
Also needed, will be plans in the public domain that will be exposed to external scrutiny
Crowd funders will expect a small equity stake so diligence levels may be less than for Friends & Family Funding ‘FFF’.
A return within three or more years and regular company updates will be required, looking for a 3x return.
The company needs to have reasonable professional support to provide legal documentation (i.e. agreements and share certificates).
There are no specific crowdfunding platforms in Jersey and as a locally based business you are not eligible to join most of the UK crowdfunding sites.
Despite this you can access US sites such as Kickstarter
Even if you cannot raise finance through UK crowdfunding sites, they can provide excellent practical materials for review, examples include:
Crowdfunding platforms can be an excellent way to raise small amounts of individual support from a large number of people.
This method often works best when your potential backers are also your customers – a B2C business tends to be better at raising funds than a B2B business.
Crowdfunding also includes crowd lending and pre-order pledging.
Platforms and investors for crowdfunding will have expectations of you and your business.
However, Jersey Registered businesses are not usually able to access UK crowdfunding platforms.
Your business should offer a product or service that is liked by the investor, part of a wider community supporting the venture.
A clear business plan with financial details on it and profile of the Senior Team will be required.
Also needed, will be plans in the public domain that will be exposed to external scrutiny
Crowd funders will expect a small equity stake so diligence levels may be less than for Friends & Family Funding ‘FFF’.
A return within three or more years and regular company updates will be required, looking for a 3x return.
The company needs to have reasonable professional support to provide legal documentation (i.e. agreements and share certificates).
There are no specific crowdfunding platforms in Jersey and as a locally based business you are not eligible to join most of the UK crowdfunding sites.
Despite this you can access US sites such as Kickstarter
Even if you cannot raise finance through UK crowdfunding sites, they can provide excellent practical materials for review, examples include:
The Jersey Innovation Fund ( ) is the main vehicle for securing government financial support for growing businesses.
JIF's website suggests it provides both loans and grants. However, to date it has only provided loans.
JIF will have expectations of you and your business.
Jersey Innovation Fund LoanBusiness is not a Start-up and has been in operation for 2-3yrs minimum.
Expect monies/loan to be directed towards activities linked to significantly growing the business or a significant pivot of the model.
Want detailed business plan and financial information to support the potential repayments.
Need to meet and get comfortable with Senior Team.
Look at potential benefits to the island – employment of local people.
Business can at least double in size within 2yrs.
Jersey Innovation Fund Loan - ExpectationsYou will need both a Business Plan and a completed application form.
Consider:
Finding out more about JIF hereYou can find the form and guidance notes at this URL
Jersey Innovation Fund Loan - ConsiderationsUnsecured business loans can be a good source of funds to get your business growing.
Typically the maximum unsecured loan is around £25,000-£30,000.
The advantage of a loan is that you do not have to give up any ownership of your business. However, you will be committing to paying back the loan.
Loan companies will have expectations of you and your business.
Business should ideally be two or more years old with an established trading and banking record, but some lenders do work with start-up businesses.
A very solid and convincing Business Plan will be required.
You will also need to have excellent credit worthiness and the personal credibility to deliver the Business Plan.
The circumstances for requiring the money must be understood – capital expenditure on equipment or a short-term working capital issue.
The fact that having evidence of solid sales and cash flows to ensure repayment of the loan is more important than a long term strategy should be recognised.
Generally, the independent loan companies have more flexibility to consider unsecured loans than more traditional providers.
Consider:
Does your Business Plan contain all of these sections:
Business should ideally be two or more years old with an established trading and banking record, but some lenders do work with start-up businesses.
A very solid and convincing Business Plan will be required.
You will also need to have excellent credit worthiness and the personal credibility to deliver the Business Plan.
The circumstances for requiring the money must be understood – capital expenditure on equipment or a short-term working capital issue.
The fact that having evidence of solid sales and cash flows to ensure repayment of the loan is more important than a long term strategy should be recognised.
Generally, the independent loan companies have more flexibility to consider unsecured loans than more traditional providers.
Consider:
Angel investors can provide both money and assistance with your business, through introductions, expertise and experience.
Angel investors invest individually in your business in exchange for some of the ownership (equity/a share of business).
The popular “Dragon’s Den” is a form of angel investing.
The great majority of angel investors are members of investing groups.
Angel investors (investor groups) will have expectations of you and your business.
You should ideally be an early stage business which has been in existence for two or more years.
Your business having a strong strategic plan and being in the process of implementing it is preferable.
There should be a Strong Executive Management Team in place with preferably a strong Chairman and/or existing investors providing support/oversight.
Evidence of professional management and ability to deliver on financial/cash targets and sales/commercial forecasts will be needed.
Brands and IP should be protected.
You should have a clear focus on an exit of between 5x to 10x the money invested.
Some groups will assist you in preparing for angel investment but charge for the overall service.
You will typically pay 5-6% of investment raised as fees to the angel group.
Consider:
Cambridge Capital Group International
You should ideally be an early stage business which has been in existence for two or more years.
Your business having a strong strategic plan and being in the process of implementing it is preferable.
There should be a Strong Executive Management Team in place with preferably a strong Chairman and/or existing investors providing support/oversight.
Evidence of professional management and ability to deliver on financial/cash targets and sales/commercial forecasts will be needed.
Brands and IP should be protected.
You should have a clear focus on an exit of between 5x to 10x the money invested.
Some groups will assist you in preparing for angel investment but charge for the overall service.
You will typically pay 5-6% of investment raised as fees to the angel group.
Consider:
Quasi funds provide a means of securing capital from pools of investors with local connections.
Unlike angel investors, who commit individually, quasi funds pool money from investors together.
This usually means that you only need deal with the Fund Managers rather than several or many angel investors.
Quasi funds will have expectations of you and your business.
There should be a strong understanding of the business, which will be over three years old, to ensure that it fits in with the investment sector and profile of the members of the Quasi Fund.
A Robust strategic/implementation plan will need to be in place. Your Company will need a Management Team with good management disciplines in place who understand their market/sector. Both the Board and professional advisers will need to be strong. On account that management fees are in place there will be greater external scrutiny with focus on monitoring performance against budgets/targets. It will be expected that certain key portfolio companies will perform to offset losses from other investments. You should have a good understanding of where the company will exit and be seeking 5x money invested, plus exit.You may well be charged for access to the quasi funds – up to 5% of investment plus possibly an annual fee.
Consider:
There should be a strong understanding of the business, which will be over three years old, to ensure that it fits in with the investment sector and profile of the members of the Quasi Fund.
A Robust strategic/implementation plan will need to be in place. Your Company will need a Management Team with good management disciplines in place who understand their market/sector. Both the Board and professional advisers will need to be strong. On account that management fees are in place there will be greater external scrutiny with focus on monitoring performance against budgets/targets. It will be expected that certain key portfolio companies will perform to offset losses from other investments. You should have a good understanding of where the company will exit and be seeking 5x money invested, plus exit.You may well be charged for access to the quasi funds – up to 5% of investment plus possibly an annual fee.
Consider:
Funds provide a means of securing substantial capital from pools of investors.
Fund Management is a major part of Jersey’s financial services, but only a small fraction of these funds would consider investing in local businesses.
Most funds have a specific focus so you should research which funds are most appropriate for your sector.
Funds will have expectations of you and your business.
The company should have been in existence for over three years with an excellent track record, looking finance to move to significant growth.
There should be evidence of a strong Management Team with professional support.
A strong strategic plan for the future should be established.
A Historic management information pack and legal documentation will be expected as well as evidence of hitting previous targets.
All key tangible and non-tangible assets (including IP) will need to be legally secured.
The business should be able to withstand rigorous external due diligence including, financial audit, sales and supplier references.
There should be a clear and demonstrable plan for use of funds and exit required.
A 10x investment multiple on exit will be needed.
You are likely to be charged for access to the funds – up to 5% of investment plus possibly an annual fee.
Consider:
The company should have been in existence for over three years with an excellent track record, looking finance to move to significant growth.
There should be evidence of a strong Management Team with professional support.
A strong strategic plan for the future should be established.
A Historic management information pack and legal documentation will be expected as well as evidence of hitting previous targets.
All key tangible and non-tangible assets (including IP) will need to be legally secured.
The business should be able to withstand rigorous external due diligence including, financial audit, sales and supplier references.
There should be a clear and demonstrable plan for use of funds and exit required.
A 10x investment multiple on exit will be needed.
Have you fully explored the opportunities to take advantage of free or discounted services in the island, for example office space, internet bandwidth, computers, accounting or legal advice?
Have you fully explored the opportunities to take advantage of free or discounted services in the island?You are likely to be charged for access to the funds – up to 5% of investment plus possibly an annual fee.
Consider:
There are a number of individuals and private funds in Jersey who support specific causes and activities.
There is no central register or list of these so you will need to talk to as many people as you can.
Philanthropic funders will have expectations of you and your business.
You will need a clear plan for the venture will be needed that includes why it's ethical/philanthropic.
There should be a commercial approach to developing a sustainable and commercial Business Plan.
The real objectives of the business and a time frame should be established.
Relevant protections of the ideas/technology should be secured or thought through.
A team should be established.
Consider:
Gaining a profile for you and your business so that funders are aware of you.
Talking to Jersey Business and Digital Jersey
You chosed Philanthropic FundingYou will need a clear plan for the venture will be needed that includes why it's ethical/philanthropic.
There should be a commercial approach to developing a sustainable and commercial Business Plan.
The real objectives of the business and a time frame should be established.
Relevant protections of the ideas/technology should be secured or thought through.
A team should be established.
Philanthropic Funding - ExpectationsConsider:
Gaining a profile for you and your business so that funders are aware of you.
Talking to Jersey Business and Digital Jersey
Philanthropic Funding - ConsiderationsMuch more funding is provided to businesses through loans rather than grants and equity. If you are able to provide some security not connected to the business (e.g. your property) then a secured loan is often the best route.
Are you prepared and able to offer sufficient security for a loan?
Are you prepared and able to offer sufficient security for a loan?If a secured loan is not acceptable for you then there are 3 types of finance generally available:
Determining which type of funding is best for you depends on what stage your business is at, how much cash do you need now, what your sales are now (if any), how fast you are growing and do you also need some experience as well.
If a secured loan is not acceptable for you then there are 3 types of finance.Which stage best describes your business?
Start-up: concept only or not yet trading, maybe has a prototype or proof of concept, typically under 1yr old. ???
Seed: developed product or service, some placement of business service or product with early adopters, some revenue, burning cash, typically 1-2yrs old. ???
Early: established sales revenues, clear path to positive cash generation, typically 2-4yrs old. ???
Growth: positive cash generation and profit, aiming for growth organically by product or service development or by acquisition, typically 4yrs or more. ???
Start-up Seed Early GrowthHow much funding are you looking for now?
How much funding are you looking for now? £10,000 £10,000-£25,000 £25,000-£100,000 £100,000-£250,000 £250,000-£1,000,000 £1,000,000
This online guide provides the first stage assistance for considering which funding sources may be most appropriate to you.
Further assistance and specific guidance on proceeding is available from Digital Jersey and Jersey Business.
