Want to be a venture capitalist? You can start with just $5,000.
Two prominent tech firms that help startups raise money are joining forces, paving the way for a new form of micro-venture investing.
New York-based SecondMarket, a platform for trading shares of private companies and other assets, is partnering with Silicon Valley’s AngelList to allow investors to buy stakes as small as $5,000 in startup companies.
“Our qualified users can now make small investments in featured AngelList startups over the SecondMarket platform and create a diversified portfolio of early-stage investments with only a modest amount of capital,” SecondMarket said in a statement.
The move is another effort by the firm to expand beyond its roots as an exchange for trading shares of later-stage private companies like Facebook.
SecondMarket also offers accredited investors access to exotic investment types such as funds associated with fine wines, diamonds and peer-to-peer loans.
The partnership opens the way for startups that list their company profiles on AngelList to find pools of investors through SecondMarket.
AngelList until now has been a place for traditional venture capitalists to find startups for investments.