in4startups received its second investment based on a valuation of 50 million TL
In4startups, founded by Ahmet Sefa Bir and Şerafettin Özsoy in April 2022, has received its second investment at a valuation of 50 million TL. The investment round was participated by Save Teknoloji Anonim Şirketi, Abramak Bilgi Teknolojileri Sanayi ve Ticaret Anonim Şirketi, and Cogito Park Bilişim ve Teknoloji Yatırımları Ticaret Anonim Şirketi, with a 2% share allocation. In4startups, which had a company valuation of 7.5 million TL at the establishment stage, has thus increased its company valuation by 6.6x in 8 months.
After the first seed investment received in April, in4startups started bringing entrepreneurs and investors together and developed its own digital infrastructure to continue conducting detailed entrepreneur analyses on its own platform.
In the past 8 months, in4startups has organized several acceleration programs, events, and collaborations outside of Istanbul. Efforts have been made in Trabzon, Artvin, Giresun, Tekirdağ, Bursa, Sakarya, and Gümüşhane, and applications were received from 23 different cities across Turkey for the Future Promising Entrepreneurs competition. On December 14, the Startup Investment Summit was held, bringing together 35 entrepreneurs and investors physically. Furthermore, online sessions were held to connect entrepreneurs and investors from countries such as Malaysia, Germany, and Kazakhstan, taking the first steps towards globalization.
Additionally, in4startups, through its project titled "Global and Investment-Focused Technology Development and Commercialization Mentoring Platform" supported by TÜBİTAK, will provide mentoring services to 30 technology-focused startups in partnership with Tekirdağ Namık Kemal University NKÜTEK, Istanbul Teknokent A.Ş., and Bursa Technical University Technology Transfer Office.
Regarding its business model, in4startups initially provided detailed analyses of startups' business models, financials, valuations, and competition to member investors. However, responding to market demands, investment-focused acceleration programs were introduced to expedite the investment process for entrepreneurs. Thus, entrepreneurs were first enrolled in the acceleration program, where they were evaluated closely in one-on-one meetings. Subsequently, digital analyses were prepared by in4startup, shortening the investor's decision-making time.
More than 250 mentors were involved in the acceleration programs, allowing startups to test their products in the business world. During these meetings, entrepreneurs not only tested their products and services in the market but also developed collaborations with corporate firms.
As a result, corporate firms wanted to take their commercial collaborations with entrepreneurs beyond partnerships. In this context, they sought to provide cash capital investment and non-cash resources (such as corporate sales networks, individual sales stores, production environments, and logistic vehicle fleets) in exchange for equity in the partnership. In response to these demands, in4startups aims to announce its Venture Studio model of services shortly. Thus, partnerships between early-stage startups and large corporate firms in traditional business sectors can be established quickly, generating revenue and accelerating new investment rounds. In4startups will facilitate the establishment and governance of such partnerships.
in4startups has succeeded in reaching startups from all over Turkey throughout the year, and recently, it has also managed to reach foreign entrepreneurs and investors. Therefore, it wants to establish its own VC investment fund in order to invest in promising startups quickly. The fund will be open to corporate investors, individual investors, and R&D companies that are subject to the 2% incentive program, as in the case of individual investors. The fund aims to conduct special promotion programs for capital owners and institutions, especially in Anatolian provinces in Turkey. The fund aims to be global from its establishment. In terms of attracting investors, the fund targets EU countries, Asia-Pacific countries, and Gulf countries, while focusing on Turkish Republics, Balkan countries, and Caucasian countries for the startups to invest in. The official operations of the investment fund are expected to begin in February 2023.
*https://webrazzi.com/2022/12/19/in4startups-50-milyon-tl-degerleme-uzerinden-yatirim-aldi
