Crowdinvesting Pre-funding FAQ

 

What is crowdinvesting?

Crowdinvesting is a way for you to invest in a startup.

Usually, investing in a start-up requires a six or even seven figure amount of money. That means you usually need to be a wealthy angel investor or a venture capitalist to get involved. Crowdinvesting makes this type of investing accessible for everyone – it’s a great step towards democratising finance!

 

Why is Inyova doing crowdinvesting?

We have always wanted to make Inyova more accessible and take more people on our journey because we know that maximising our impact means creating a growing movement. There are two main reasons why we are excited by this campaign now:

1. We’re on a mission to democratise finance and help you take back control of capitalism. Until now, Inyova has been funded by an amazing group of angel investors and family offices – but to be true to our values, everyone in our community needs to have the opportunity to become an owner in Inyova. We believe in the power of active ownership and want to make sure that Inyova is also owned by people who care about our long-term success.
2. This is something our community has always asked for. In a recent survey, more than 1,000 Inyova impact investors said they are interested in owning a stake in Inyova. It was time to take action! We also just completed a funding round and thought the time to bring Inyova to more people is now.

We’re planning on using the additional capital from the crowdinvesting to accelerate our customer growth and build cool new features like enabling people to vote at annual general meetings through proxy voting or seeing stock-level performance in portfolios.

 

What is the minimum and maximum investment amount?

Inyova plans to issue Swiss common stocks for a total amount of up to CHF 3 million. The minimum investment amount will be 1 share, which is valued at CHF 235. The maximum amount you will be able to invest, if you are based in Switzerland, is CHF 50,000.

 

What will I get in return for my investment?

By investing in Inyova, you will become a shareholder and therefore may participate in Inyova’s success financially and you get to influence our way through your vote. 

Inyova will issue Swiss common stocks. Common stocks represent a piece of ownership in a company, and this means that if Inyova’s valuation increases, your stocks will increase in value, too.

As an investor in Inyova, you will also have the right to participate, through a proxy (which is just a fancy word for intermediary), in our annual general meeting. You will have a vote and a voice in important company decisions – an important part of being an impact investor!

 

How can I make money from this investment?

If Inyova’s valuation increases, so will the value of your shares. There are four potential scenarios where you can ‘exit’ from the investment and potentially make money:

1. Inyova becomes listed on a public stock market and you sell your stocks (like any other stocks from publicly traded companies). 
2. Another company buys Inyova, and you get paid for your share of the company.
3. Inyova aims to make a platform available where its own shares can be bought and sold. This, however, would only happen after the end of the lockup period, which is currently planned to run until 31 December 2026. You would not be able to transfer or sell shares before that. 
4. Inyova reserves the right to buy back your shares at any time. In the event that we make use of this option, we will purchase the shares back based on the latest valuation of the company.

Investing in a start-up can be risky. Therefore, do not invest money that you cannot afford to lose.

 

What are the risks for me?

If you invest in Inyova, you are investing in a startup. Compared with a stock market investment, your potential returns may be much higher but so is the risk of losing your investment. 

If Inyova should fail, you are not liable for any debts. However, you may lose all the money you invested. With that in mind, only invest money that you don’t need. 

In addition, there is a so-called liquidity risk. At the moment there is no liquid secondary market for the shares of Yova AG. As there is currently no marketplace for the Inyova shares that you are purchasing, you will not be able to sell these until Inyova either gets bought, goes public, buys back the shares issued or Inyova makes a platform available that allows you to sell these shares. Please see details in the section above. 

 

How is Inyova doing? Are you making money?

Inyova makes money by charging customers a management fee on their investment. Like many startups, we’re not profitable yet. Until now, we’ve used investment money from angel investors and family offices to grow – that includes things like hiring team members and building our app. 

The money from this crowdinvesting campaign will be used to further Inyova’s product innovations and to launch initiatives to gain more customers. Our current strategy is to continue to fuel our growth because we know that we need many more investors to generate a maximum impact. So, turning a profit isn’t something we’re planning on doing for another 3 to 4 years. 

You’re probably wondering why anyone would invest in a company that isn’t turning a profit. And you’re right: it’s a risky undertaking! People who invest in startups are investing in the long-term vision of the company. 

 

Do I already commit to an investment if I sign up on the investment platform?

No, not yet. Your registration on the investment platform just provides you with the option to get more information and additional details on the crowd investment. Due to your Early Access status, you have the option of investing ahead of the crowd. On 27 April, we will open this investment broadly so make sure you secure your shares in advance by clicking on “invest now” and following the steps.

 

What timelines do I need to be aware of?

You have received access to the pre-funding phase, which means you will be able to invest ahead of the crowd. Our general investment opens on 27 April and our subscription window closes on 4 May. There is however a chance that we may end up being oversubscribed in which case we will have to close our crowdinvesting ahead of 4 May. The last day to transfer your investment amount is 13 May.

 

What happens if I need to access my money?

Investing in a private company is different to investing in a publicly listed company. It will not be possible to withdraw your investment until one of the four possible ‘exit’ opportunities that we outlined above occurs. As a result, you should only invest money that you do not need. 

 

What are the tax implications of this investment?

As Inyova is not in a position to provide you with tax advice, the following information is for general knowledge only. It’s important to discuss your individual situation with your tax authority or advisor. 

The shares you own in Inyova will be treated like any other share you buy. If you are in Switzerland, you must declare the value of your securities as you would with any other share that you buy. The same applies in case you receive a dividend – you would need to declare it as income from securities.

 

How can I track the value of my investment in Inyova and stay up to date with company developments?

A new feature is planned for the Inyova app, which will show you the latest value of your investment. Because Inyova is not a publicly traded company, the value of your investment will only be updated when Inyova’s valuation changes, which usually happens during the next funding round. Until now, this has happened approximately every 12 months. 

In addition, you will receive an annual shareholder update with information about Inyova’s latest developments and achievements. 

 

Which partner are you working with for crowdinvesting?

CONDA is one of the biggest crowdinvesting platforms serving German-speaking markets and has been around since 2013. In that time, CONDA has completed over 150 crowdinvesting campaigns in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

 

Can anyone participate in Inyova’s crowdinvesting?

Almost anyone can participate, but there are some conditions. You’re eligible if you fit the following criteria:

• You’re at least 18 years old 
• You’re a resident in Switzerland
• You are not a US person
• You are not a Politically Exposed Person (PEP) 
• You are not over-indebted, insolvent, or bankrupt
• You have the capacity to enter into legally binding contracts

 

What do I need to do to participate?

Watch our video now to see how you can become a crowdinvestor in a few minutes.

 

What rights do I have as a shareholder?

As a crowdinvestor you have the same rights in respect to voting as the other common shareholders of the company, which means that each share grants you one vote at Inyova’s annual general meeting. 

Since we are likely to have thousands of crowdinvestors, voting rights will be pooled through a representative appointed by Inyova. This person will represent you and all other crowdinvestors at our annual general meeting. 

You will also get access to an electronic shareholder management platform through which you can access key documents (e.g. contractual documents, annual financial statements), be invited to vote and instruct the trustee on how to vote. 

 

Investing in stock comes with risks. Please read the applicable disclaimer.