Honeycomb Credit has helped small businesses raise capital from more than 25,000 retail investors and foundations since it launched eight years ago. The investment crowdfunding site has supported thousands of restaurants, makers and mom and pop shops, many in underserved areas, in raising close to $50 million for equipment purchases, working capital and expansion.
Honeycomb’s focus on diverse, creative businesses helped it snag a $750,000 investment from Upstart Co-Lab.
“By investing in a platform like Honeycomb we help create the infrastructure for these small businesses to grow,” Upstart’s Laura Callanan told ImpactAlpha.
Callanan helped mobilize $600,000 from foundations in 2022 to invest in local, creative businesses alongside Honeycomb’s individual investors.
Crowdfunding merger
Honeycomb this week acquired IFundWomen, or IFW, a business crowdfunding peer that has helped mostly women-owned businesses raise $200 million in grants and early investment capital.
“Our two companies have been addressing distinct phases of the funding lifecycle,” Honeycomb’s George Cook told ImpactAlpha.
With IFW’s early-stage funding and support and Honeycomb’s focus on growth-stage funding, “we found our businesses complement each other in an almost uncanny way, in addition to being a tremendous cultural fit,” said Cook.
The deal follows Honeycomb’s acquisition late last year of Raise Green, a crowdfunding site for green project finance.
Terms of the IFW deal were not disclosed.
