500 Startups is a big fan of AngelList, the social network-like platform for young businesses. Back in January, the US incubator and investor adopted AngelList as the sole platform for applications to its Spring 2013 batch, and now it is kicking things into another gear as it begins accepting investment for its Fund II via the service.
Founding Partner and Sith Lord (to use his official title) Dave McClure has long used AngelList to help spot and verify promising news startups, and, as a note sent to TNW’s Robin Wauters shows, 500 Startups is raising capital using the service’s online investment tool.
A visit to the 500 Startups profile shows that there is an option to invest for those who are on AngelList with investor status.
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We reached out McClure for more details but he tells us that he can’t comment due to SEC regulations, “much as I would like to”.
AngelList launched the investment tool in partnership with SecondMarket in December, and it helped startups raise $12 million within 30 days of going live.
Targeted at smaller investors — but open to those of all sizes — it allows users who are certified as investors on the service — as Robin is — to invest upwards of $1,000 in companies. Forbes reports that they can get the same terms and discounts as the larger investors and it’s all priced rounds. The only difference is that larger investors get pro rata rights to invest again in the future, access to more financial information, and board seats.
500 Startups is one of AngelList’s most notable backers, but it is far from the only one. As of January, there were 18 incubators that accepted applications via the service, including TechStars, MuckerLab and Mozilla. With 500 Startups now moving up to use it for investment, we might well see others follow suit.
AngelList is much heralded by startups worldwide, particularly those outside of the US and Silicon Valley. Founders in Asia, in particular, value it as a vehicle to network worldwide and validate their startups to global investors by including testimonials, funding histories and other details in their profile pages.
Headline image via 401(K) 2013 / Flickr
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