Buy and sell shares in Europe’s high-growth private businesses
We make it simple to buy and sell shares in Europe’s most exciting high-growth businesses.
Whether you’re a beginner or experienced investor, you can join our million-strong community who want to invest beyond their property and pension by building a portfolio of startup, growth and venture-backed businesses with the potential to deliver significant returns.
Buy shares
Invest and own shares in Europe’s hottest high-growth businesses.
Sell shares
Find out more about selling shares in private companies and the potential to unlock the value of your investment without having to wait for a traditional liquidity event.
Why invest with Crowd121?
Simple
Buy shares from just £10/€10 with our fast and simple investment process
Secure
We’ll keep your personal data safe and shareholdings secure with our world-class technology platform
Regulated
We’re authorised by regulators in the UK and EU
Tax perks
Reduce risk by claiming up to 50% of your investment back through Government tax relief schemes
Stay in control
Get progress updates and votes on key decisions affecting your investments
One in a million
Join our million-strong investor community who have invested more than £1 billion
Trusted by investors around the world
We’re trusted by over one million people from all walks of life, including 150,000 experienced investors and dozens of world-renowned venture capital firms.
Our community of investors have invested more than £1 billion into campaigns on Crowd121 so far.
Investing made simple with Crowd121
Our streamlined investment process makes it simple for you to own shares in Europe’s hottest high-growth businesses from just £10/€10.
Investing made simple with Crowd121
Our streamlined investment process makes it simple for you to own shares in Europe’s hottest high-growth businesses from just £10/€10.
Stay in control with votes on key decisions
Keep updated on key developments
Access pre-emption and follow on rounds
Ensure your shareholding is maintained securely and accurately
Sell your shares and realise returns faster on our secondary market
Fully managed service when your shares are acquired or pay a dividend
Our in-house team of legal professionals is also on hand to support businesses you back, helping them make the key decisions at crucial times.
It pays to do good; over £60m of investor returns
Over 50,000 investors have had the chance to realise returns of over £60m from purpose-led businesses that raised with Crowd121 and have been acquired by global brands like Nestle, Europcar, Diageo, EDF, AB InBev & Compass Group.
We’ll coordinate and manage any financial returns owed to you as a result of an exit, secondary share sale or dividend payment.
Please remember that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns and your capital is at risk.
Community IPO
We’ve democratised investment into private companies. Now, we want to do the same in the public markets.
The Community IPO will give you a way to invest in Europe’s leading businesses at the point of going public, and it’s coming soon Crowd121.
A due diligence process you can trust
You’ll get peace of mind from our rigorous due diligence process for businesses before they’re approved to raise growth funding with Crowd121. Nonetheless, we strongly recommend you do your own research before investing as your capital is at risk.
Fact checked
Our team of legal and compliance professionals fact check every pitch to ensure it is fair and clear
No smoke and mirrors
Peace of mind from our Due Diligence Charter that clearly explains everything we check before approving a business’s pitch
Reduce your risk with tax relief
Generous Government incentives encourage people to invest in high growth businesses. For example, UK investors in EIS or SEIS qualifying businesses can benefit from significant tax reliefs outlined below. Ensure you research the incentives offered in your home country.
Up to 50% tax relief
Claiming up to 50% of your investment back through UK Government tax relief scheme
Pay no tax on financial returns
Don’t pay any capital gains tax on the profit you receive from investments in qualifying businesses
Loss relief
You may be able to offset a loss against your income tax bill if a business you back doesn’t work out
Success Fee
Our success is aligned to yours, so we only charge an exit fee if you make a profit on your investment; there are no annual fees for the ongoing support we provide once you’ve made an investment. If you make a return on your investment, you’ll keep 95% of any profit, and we’ll take a 5% fee for managing your investment over the years.
The success fee, which is sometimes also known as ‘carry’, covers everything we do to find Europe’s hottest high-growth businesses for you to invest in, and all the work we undertake holding and managing your shareholding on your behalf over the years.
While it’s free to join our investor community, there is a 1.65% charge applied to the amount you invest, which is subject to a minimum of £0.50/€0.50 and capped at a maximum of £250.00/€250.00.
Crowd121’s success fee only applies to profits made on investments in businesses that opened to investment on or after the 1st of April 2021.
Ready to make an investment?
Take a look at live investment opportunities on Crowd121 today, and give yourself a feel-good factor that’s hard to beat by backing a business you believe in.
Frequently asked questions
Can’t find your answer? Head over to our Help Centre.
To invest on Crowd121, you need to be over 18 years old and legally entitled to invest. You’ll also need to be a resident of the UK or a country where you may legally receive financial promotions of the nature provided. If you’re not sure whether you can invest through Crowd121 in your country, you should seek legal advice before making an account.
We can’t advertise investment opportunities to those living in the United States, Canada, Japan or any other country where it would be unlawful for our pitches to be advertised. Please don’t register with us if you are a resident in these countries.
When creating your account, make sure you create it in your own name, as we can’t accept joint investments. You’ll also be asked to choose an investor type (such as everyday or professional) and complete a quick questionnaire. This is to ensure you understand the high-risk nature of investing in startups and early-stage businesses. If you receive independent advice, you don’t have to fill out the questionnaire. These investor types won’t apply to all other platforms.
There are two ways you could make a return on your investment: (1) selling your share in the company for more than you paid for it, and (2) receiving dividends from the company.
Selling your shares
Ideally, the business you’ve invested in will grow to a point where it lists on the stock market (“going public”), is bought by a larger company, or the company management buys back equity from investors. At that point, you might be able to sell your shares and make a profit.
You can also express interest in selling any shares in a company in your portfolio through Crowd121 , our secondary market, potentially realising the value of your investment without having to wait for one of the above liquidity events.
Expressing interest to buy or sell shares doesn’t guarantee that the transaction will happen, but if buy- and sell-side demands are met, we will seek to facilitate the transaction with the company and let you know when the sale goes live.
Cubex is currently in beta, but we’re working on the full roll-out now. Find out more and register your interest in buying or selling shares.
Receiving dividends
In addition, if the company you’ve invested in becomes profitable, it may be able to pay dividends.
Read more, including some examples of the exits and dividends our investor community have realised, on our investor returns page.
Risk warning
Investing in start-ups and early-stage businesses involves risks, including illiquidity, lack of dividends, loss of investment and dilution, and it should be done only as part of a diversified portfolio. Crowd121 is targeted exclusively at investors who are sufficiently sophisticated to understand these risks and make their own investment decisions. You will only be able to invest via Crowd121 once you are registered as sufficiently sophisticated. Please click here to read the full Risk Warning.
Crowd121 Capital is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) . This page has been approved by Crowd121. Pitches for investment are not offers to the public and investments can only be made by members of Crowd121.com on the basis of information provided in the pitches by the companies concerned. Further restrictions and Crowd121’s limitation of liability are set out in the Investor Terms and Conditions.
Investment opportunities are not offers to the public and investors must be eligible Crowd121 members. Please seek independent advice as required as Crowd121 does not give investment or tax advice.