In just a few short years,
AngelList has very quickly emerged as an indispensable resource for connecting entrepreneurs with investors. Started as an email newsletter, the website now has more than 18,000 accredited investors, including more than 6,000 that it would consider “sophisticated investors” — i.e. superangels and VCs who do a lot of deals. AngelList also has more than 100,000 startup profiles, of which about 3,000 have been funded through AngelList.
About 500 introductions happen between investors and entrepreneurs every week, according to AngelList founder and CEO Naval Ravikant. Another 2,000 introductions happen between startups and talent, as developers and engineers who like working in the startup world increasingly turn to AngelList as their go-to place for job listings. Those introductions are double opt-in, with both sides agreeing they want to meet each other.
Based on the data that they’ve been able to track, AngelList has resulted in more than $10 million worth of investment per month. But it’s difficult to tell exactly how much investment comes from the platform, since so much actual investing ends up happening offline.
What it can track is investing that happens directly on its platform in small dollar amounts — $1,000, $5,000 and $10,000 checks. AngelList handles all the transactions for those types of investments, bundling them all up into a single fund to put into the company. AngelList moves about $2 million a month in direct investments that happen through its platform.
“I don’t see us making money through introductions or charging investors or startups. I don’t think anyone wants middle men in the mix,” Ravikant told me. And while there are costs associated with forming funds for smaller investments in startups on the platform, AngelList will likely only charge to cover its own costs there.
Where there could be an opportunity to make money is on the recruiting side of things. Right now, AngelList is still scaling up that part of its platform and still sees it as a public service, but over time, Ravikant believes it can make money on that side. That said, it will probably charge much less than anyone else does today.
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