Investors
About Angel Investment
Who are business angels?
Angel investors are private individuals who invest their own funds directly into early stage companies. They provide ‘patient capital’, recognising the longer term timeframe for returns and the risk to capital in this type of investment.
Investors typically take a portfolio approach, investing across different sectors, companies and timeframes, to increase their chances of generating a positive return.
Many choose to become actively involved with investee companies, such as acting as a non-executive director, mentoring a company founder or providing introductions to their networks.
Who can be an angel?
Angel investors need to have an appropriate knowledge and understanding of the risks of early stage investment and be able to make their own investment decisions. Many angels are company founders who have achieved an exit, but others have senior level business experience, financial services expertise or have previously worked with early stage companies.
To access investment opportunities via an angel syndicate, investors will need to complete a high net worth or self-certified sophisticated investor declaration. This waives the right to the financial promotions protections given to retail customers.
All angel groups in Scotland welcome enquiries from prospective angels, particularly those from under-represented groups such as women, people under 40 and minority ethnic groups. Before getting in touch, you may wish to speak to a professional adviser about your individual circumstances.
Tax reliefs
Most angel investment in Scotland will qualify for the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) or Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) tax reliefs. These schemes provide tax reliefs on income tax, capital gains tax, inheritance tax and losses which can be important to investors. For details, please see the latest government guidance or speak to a professional adviser.
Our Members
Our angel group members curate investment opportunities into early stage businesses across Scotland and further afield. Details of all our current members are available in our member directory.
Find angel groups in Scotland
Becoming a member of an angel syndicate can help investors access pooled knowledge and expertise in identifying investment opportunities, due diligence, creating investment documentation and supporting companies post investment. Group members may also benefit from larger scale portfolio effects, access to resources, expertise in scaling early stage companies and the creation of diverse networks.
Visit our Member Directory to identify which angel groups you might want to contact for more information. Angel Capital Scotland is happy to speak to prospective angel investors and provide an overview of the Scottish market. To get in touch, please complete our Contact Form.
If you want to support early stage companies, but are not looking to invest via an angel group, other investment routes such as crowd funding or peer to peer lending are available.
