RAIN® funds: A Network of Angel Funds for the Mid-Market

Steve Mercil and his Minnesota Investment Network http://www.mincorp.org/index.html are helping build local capacity to make equity investments a reality by organizing RAIN® funds in communities in the northern Midwest and plains states. RAIN® funds are a series of investment funds, organized as LLCs that pool the intellectual and financial resources of accredited individuals and institutional investors for equity seed and startup investments in emerging companies in their communities.

So far, Steve has organized 11 funds in 3 states and has several more funds under development in his pipeline. Fund size ranges from 7 to 61 members, who have pooled $500,000 to $2 million dollars. Minimum investment per member is typically in $50,000 units.

Members screen and scrub deals and vote on investing, typically $200,000 per company, while the Minnesota Investment Network handle the administration as well as deal flow and investment tracking using a website common to all funds. Minnesota Investment Network makes an investment of 10% to a maximum of $100,000 in each fund, while charging each a small administrative fee and a typical carried interest.

By:
Bill Payne
NASVF

Full Story: http://www.nasvf.org/web/allpress.nsf/pages/11720