Frequently Asked Questions

Companisto is a professional investment platform that facilitates investments in startups and growth companies. These investments are made by several investors who join forces to collectively invest in a company. As a service provider, Companisto assumes the role of an intermediary between companies and investors. The investors - also called Companists - can participate in a company with an amount of their choice and thus collectively raise the required capital. In return for their investment, the Companists receive a share in the profits and possible proceeds from the sale of the startup.

Companisto is an artificial word derived from the words "company" and "companions." It aims to reflect the professional collaboration between companies and their supporters (Companists), which results from the collective financing of startups and innovations.

We call the investors on the investment platform Companisto "Companists." These are the people who want to invest in promising companies through Companisto and follow the development of the companies on the platform.

Companisto is financed by a purely performance-related commission of 15 percent of the collected investment sum. This commission is paid by the startup - not the Companists. All costs incurred by Companisto are financed by the commission. These include e.g. personnel costs, server costs, payment processing costs, and the costs for the accompanying marketing of a financing campaign on Companisto. The startup only has to pay the commission if the financing round was successful. Companisto also receives a solely performance-related commission ("carry fee") of 15 percent of the profits from the company participation. This means that if a company distributes profits or sales proceeds to the Companists, Companisto participates: "We win if you win!"

The Companisto Angel Club is the closed area for professional investors and business angels on Companisto. Members of the Companisto Angel Club have access to our Angel Room. In this particular area of Companisto, it is possible to participate in exclusive, closed financing rounds at particularly attractive conditions. 

Access to the exclusive Companisto Angel Club is granted to Companists who qualify through at least one of the following conditions:

• Placement of a single investment in a startup on Companisto of at least EUR 10,000
• Investments in several startups on Companisto totaling more than EUR 24,999
• Membership in a recognized business angel network (such as the Business Angels Netzwerk Deutschland e.V. (BAND) or the Business Angels Club Berlin-Brandenburg (proof required))
• Recommendation by an existing member of the Business Angel Club

The expert network allows Companists to support their startups with their expertise and experience. Companists can add the "Expert Profile" section to their user profile. There, they can indicate their skills and professional experience. They can also decide whether to make their profile visible for the entire Companisto community or only for their startups and/or associated Companists.

This way, startups are able to recognize individual expertise and access it in a targeted manner. The startup only receives the information provided in the "Expert Profile" section; all other personal details are not published. The startup can ask Companisto for contact information upon consent of the experts. This contact is intended to establish a productive cooperation beyond the investment.

Any person of legal age and legal capacity can invest in Companisto.

In the "Invest" section of the Companisto investment platform, investors select an active investment offer in which they wish to invest. The investment process at Companisto occurs entirely online and takes only a few minutes. After the registration (one-time) and payment process, the investment process is completed upon receipt of the investment confirmation. The investors receive all documents related to the investment electronically. This includes the participation agreement, participation certificate, pooling and carry agreement, investment information sheet (VIB), general terms and conditions, and revocation instructions.

The investments on Companisto are free of charge. Companisto only benefits if a Companist makes a profit with his investment: "We win if you win! Companisto receives a purely performance-based profit share ("Carry-Fee") from the profits of the investment in the amount of 15% of the amounts distributed to the Companists. This means that if a start-up is sold or profits are distributed to the Companists, Companisto participates in it and thus underlines its own ambitions to place the most successful companies on the platform.

The minimum investment sum is 250 euros.

The legislator demands that every investor must identify himself once before an equity investment is made. The legal basis for this is the Money Laundering Act (§ 11 GwG), which obliges platform operators such as Companisto to clarify the identity of their investors before they make an equity investment. Without a successful identification, investors are not allowed to make an equity investment. Identification is a one-time process and does not have to be repeated for further investments.

Investors must identify themselves once before making an equity investment. Two possible methods are available to them for this purpose: PostIdent and VideoIdent. Investors should have a valid identification document ready for identification. In order to guarantee the entire process, they also need a computer with a webcam (not older than 3 years) or a mobile device (smartphone or tablet). In this document you will find all information about the identification process.

Each startup financing round has an investment threshold and a financing target. The investment threshold must be reached in order for the equity crowdfunding round to proceed. It is usually set at € 100,000. The startup has two months to reach the investment threshold. Once the investment threshold has been reached, financing runs for a maximum of 12 months from the starting point of the financing campaign until the financing target has been reached.

Yes, this is possible without any problems. Companists with a residence outside Germany can also invest in Companisto. Exceptions are investors from the USA, who cannot invest in Companisto for regulatory reasons. Furthermore, investors must identify themselves in accordance with the German Money Laundering Act. You can check here whether your identification documents are supported by the German financial supervisory authority. For investors from the Netherlands, we recommend identification via the PostIdent procedure near the German border.

We offer several payment methods which are also available internationally, such as instant transfer and bank transfer (prepayment). Therefore, a German bank account is not required.

Yes, this is possible. You can choose whether you want to invest as a private individual or as a company on the investment page. It can be advantageous to invest as a company. For example, companies are exempt from the legal investment cap of EUR 10,000 per company invested in that is applicable to private individuals. Investing as a company can also have tax advantages.

According to the Money Laundering Act, every equity investor must be identified. In addition, a strong investor community is characterised by the fact that it is networked and knows each other.

Simply send us an email to service[at]companisto.com. We will then resend the participation certificate to you.

Your entitlement to a yield remains as long as your investment exists. Your investment will remain until the company is sold or you sell your investment.

Companisto exclusively offers equity investments. For professional investors and business angels, equity investments are the means of choice for start-up investments. The investments are implemented with state-of-the-art venture capital contracts.

The Companisto equity investments can be deposited with the vast majority of securities accounts without any problems. This applies in particular to the large securities accounts and online brokers. However, there are also a few exceptions. Some securities accounts do not offer this service for various reasons.

We recommend the Onvista security account for investors from the DACH region. For investor from outside the DACH region we recommend FLATEX.

Here is a list of the exemptions:

• Augsburger Aktienbank (only traded securities)
• Degiro (only traded securities)
• DEKA Bank (only investment funds)
• ebase (to be checked on a case-by-case basis)
• Fund bank (only investment funds)
• Umweltbank (only sustainable stocks, traded)
• Union Investment (only investment funds)

Investors' equity investments are made either directly shareholders or indirectly via a special purpose vehicle. The type of investment can be found in the respective investment agreements of the company.

Since most startups regularly need additional capital for their future growth, Companisto contracts are optimized for follow-up financing by venture capital companies. This is to the advantage of both the startup and the company. Only startups that continue to have the opportunity to raise venture capital can grow and be successful in the long term. This requires contractually regulated coordination processes. To ensure that these can be carried out smoothly, the Companists' investments are pooled, i.e. bundled. The startup or venture capital company thus has a central contact for follow-up financing rounds. Without this pooling, a startup would no longer be interesting for venture capital companies who do not want to deal with a large number of contacts. More information on pooling can be found in our Academy.

In principle, each Companist is free to transfer his/her participation independently and in its entirety to third parties. The startup and Companisto have to be informed about the transfer and the buyer has to confirm that s/he will take over the participation. There is no regulated secondary market. This means that the shares can be sold privately if a buyer is found. There are no public marketplaces.

Companists benefit in several ways from investing in a start-up: On the one hand, companists benefit from the current profits of the start-up. The investors decide together annually on a dividend distribution. Since start-ups often reinvest their profits in the first few years in favour of rapid company growth, companists also participate in exit proceeds. If the start-up is sold to a major investor or competitor or goes public, this is referred to as an exit. In the case of an exit, the companists participate in the proceeds according to their shareholding quota.

Each year, Companists receive an overview of all profits, exit proceeds, and other income from their investment. In addition, they are given access to the published annual financial statements and quarterly investor updates, which provide information on the current course of business.

Participations are also associated with obligations. This includes an obligation to maintain secrecy with regard to all matters of the startup that are marked as confidential. The investor also obliges him-/herself to inform Companisto of his/her tax ID and to keep his/her bank details and email address up to date at all times. There are no further obligations resulting from the participation. There is no obligation to make additional contributions for subsequent investments.

The respective dates for year-end reports and investor updates are stored in the Investor Area of the respective startup for Companists to view at any time. Startups that launched an equity crowdfunding campaign on Companisto after 01.08.2014 are obligated to address the following points in the investor update:

• Revenues of the last completed quarter
• Gross profit
• EBIT
• Comments on liquidity
• Strategic orientation & product
• Marketing & sales
• Personnel and press

Note: Startups that still have old contracts with Companisto (before 1 August 2014) are encouraged to use these key figures as a reference.

Investments in startups offer great opportunities but are also associated with high risks. We are dealing with venture capital. In the worst case, there is a risk of total loss of the entire investment. However, there is no obligation beyond this (obligation to make additional contributions). Companists can minimize risks by spreading investments over several startups. This strategy of risk diversification is also used by professional investors. Moreover, startup investments should not be used to provide for retirement. It is advisable not to invest more than 10 percent of one's available assets in venture capital.

No, there is no liability risk for investors. If a startup becomes insolvent, Companists run only the risk of a total loss of their investment. There is no obligation to make additional contributions beyond the contribution. Companists, therefore, do not have to invest additional money under any circumstances.

The participation contracts are concluded directly between Companists and startups. Accordingly, an insolvency of Companisto would have no influence on the investments. The Companists' holdings in the startups would thus continue to exist even in the event of Companisto's insolvency.

Every startup financing round has an investment threshold and a financing target. The investment threshold must be reached in order for the investment via equity crowdfunding to take place. The threshold is usually € 100,000. The startup has two months to reach the investment threshold. Once the investment threshold has been reached, the financing runs until the financing target is reached.

The financing target is the amount that the startup would like to achieve in its financing round. If this goal is reached, the startup can end its campaign at any time or collect a sum exceeding the goal. A financing round is completed when the maximum duration of 12 months has been reached, the financing goal has been reached and the campaign has therefore been terminated by the startup, or when the maximum amount has been reached. According to existing laws, startups operating as limited liability companies (GmbHs) can collect a maximum of € 2.5 million via Companisto. Since 27^th of June 2018, stock corporations (AGs) can raise up to € 8 million annually via Companisto without a prospectus.

As soon as the investment threshold is crossed, financing is considered successful. Should the investment threshold not be reached by the time limit, financing will not be achieved. In this case, the Companists who have already invested will be refunded their money in full.

If the company has generated profits, the investors jointly decide on a dividend distribution. Investors can already benefit from current profits and do not have to wait until the company is sold.

In the case of private individuals, profits from the shares are considered income from investment of capital and are thus subject to the capital gains tax (25 % plus solidarity surcharge).

The capital gains tax is withheld and paid to the tax authority directly by the start-ups.

In the case of corporate investors, the profits from the shares are subject to corporate income tax and trade tax. Thus, the capital gains tax withheld by the start-ups may be deducted from the corporate income tax and the trade tax.

Profits from shares in start-ups whose equity-based cr

Capital gains tax (25 percent), solidarity surcharge (5.5 percent on capital gains tax) and, if applicable, church tax (8 percent or 9 percent on capital gains tax, depending on the federal state) are payable on all forms of participation on Companisto. This results in a maximum total tax burden of 26.38 percent.

The capital gains tax is paid directly by the startups as withholding tax. In the case of venture loans, there is no direct tax deduction for regulatory reasons. Investors must declare the taxes themselves and pay them to the tax authorities. You can find more information on the taxation of startup investments in our Investors Academy in the Tax Guide and in our article on offsetting losses.

Yes. If it is a withholding tax, it is paid directly by the startups. As an investor, you will then receive a corresponding tax certificate.  In the case of venture loans, the taxes must be paid by the investor him-/herself. For regulatory reasons, there is no tax deduction on the distribution of venture loans, which is why the startup only issues an interest statement. Investors must declare this income themselves in their income tax return (see Annex KAP) and, if necessary, pay tax on it.

The documents can be found as follows:

• Login to Companisto.com
• Click on "Investor Relations" under the menu item "My Account" on top.
• Here you will see your portfolio with your startups
• Click on the desired startup
• On the startup page, you will find your investment amount on the right and various tabs underneath.
• Interest statements/tax statements are stored under the Payout Documents tab.

Yes, as an investor you can apply for an exemption order from the start-ups. You can do this here on our platform, but only for those investments for which a tax is already due at the time of payment. Please note that exemption orders can only be issued by private investors taxable in Germany and only for investments in German companies.

When a startup generates profits, the Companists participate according to their participation rate. The decisive factor for profit distribution, however, is the annual financial statement under commercial law. It is possible for the annual financial statement under tax law to be positive, while the annual financial statement under commercial law may be negative (e.g. due to depreciation).

Start-up investments are long-term investments. When a professional venture capitalist decides to invest in a start-up, it is always a long-standing commitment to the start-up team and the business model. A start-up needs planning security. It should invest all its energy in the development of its products or services and not constantly have to search for new investors. This is the only way for the start-up to transform itself into a successful company in order to attract the interest of a buyer or to go public. In this way, the companists in turn profit the most from their investment. The legislator has therefore stipulated that equity investments cannot be terminated in principle, but only end when the company is sold or the investor sells his investment.

Companisto is financed by a purely performance-based commission of 15% of the collected investment amount. This commission is paid by the startup - not the Companists. The commission finances all costs incurred by Companisto. These are, for example, personnel costs, server costs and payment processing costs, but also the costs for the accompanying marketing of a financing campaign on Companisto. The commission is only payable by the startup if the financing round was successful. In addition, Companisto receives a purely performance-based commission ("carry fee") of 15% of the profits from the company's investment. This means that when a company distributes profits or sales proceeds to Companists, Companisto participates in it: "We win if you win!"

The Secondary Market is a central and digital marketplace for investments. Here you have the opportunity to offer your investments for sale and to purchase investments of already funded startups from other Companists.
Our Secondary Market is thus a supplement to the actual financing rounds to offer you more freedom and flexibility when investing.
It is possible to purchase GmbH shares, shares, profit participation certificates, participatory subordinated loans and sub-participation in silent partnerships.

Any person of legal age and capacity who has an account with Companisto identified through our partner IDnow can access the Secondary Market. Secure access is granted through a two-step verification via SMS code. 

Communication during negotiations takes place via a chat integrated in the Secondary Market. After agreement, Companisto receives a notification from the buyer and seller and informs both of them about the next steps via email at short notice.
Depending on the type of investment, the next steps differ. In the last step, the investment is transferred from the Companisto account of the seller to the account of the buyer.

Using the Companisto Secondary Market is safe for all participants. Every user of the secondary market is identified, as required by the Money Laundering Act. This way we always have the personal data of the buyer and the seller. Furthermore, the access is additionally protected by the two-step verification.

On the Secondary Market, investments are purchased by private individuals. Trading is exclusively between the buyer and seller. The process of posting offers, trading, and reaching an agreement takes place without any intervention from our side, as we are not allowed to have any influence on the market for regulatory reasons.

Offers from startups that are in the process of liquidation or insolvency are excluded from trading. It is also not possible to offer for sale shares in startups that are currently in a financing round on Companisto. Only shares that are already in the possession of the seller may be offered for sale.
In the case of participation certificates and shares, the securities must already be in the seller's securities account, and in the case of GmbH shares, the seller must already be entered in the commercial register.

Buyers can request information about the investments directly from the seller and additionally view the campaign profile in the Investments section, with which the startup presented itself in the financing round.

VC compatibility: As a professional investment platform, Companisto has coordinated the investment agreements with venture capitalists (venture capital companies and business angels) and corporate finance specialists. In over 85 percent of our start-ups, venture capital companies and business angels have also invested alongside the venture capitalists, making it clear that the two models are easily compatible in any order.

Reach: A relatively small minimum investment enables many people to invest in a company. This immediately pays off for start-ups. They not only attract investors, but also potential customers and brand ambassadors. They can also draw on the professional expertise of individual investors.

No administrative effort: The start-up benefits from a broad audience, but has no additional administrative effort. Companisto pools the investments and serves as the start-up's main contact.

Marketing: In addition to funding, Companisto provides the start-ups with an excellent marketing tool. The start-up can present itself to a broad audience and thus considerably increase its level of awareness. This gives the start-ups publicity, marketing and their own fan base.

Open Innovation: If the companists themselves are involved, then they also have a strong self-interest in the positive development of the company. They are therefore particularly motivated to get involved and support the company in the best possible way. Through the crowd experts network, investors can contribute their expertise to the start-up.

Startups can easily apply directly via our website. Simply click on "Apply as a Startup" and fill out the application form. There you will also find more detailed information about the application process.  

Companisto finances startups and growth companies with a capital requirement of between € 500,000 and € 2.5 million in the seed and early-stage phases. In addition, we offer an equity financing model for growth companies with a capital requirement of € 3 million or more. We are looking for ambitious teams from all industries with headquarters in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. You can find more information about the selection process on our blog. Ultimately, the team and business model must convince the Companists.

Companisto’s selection process is faster than that of venture capital companies. It often only takes about eight weeks from the application for financing to the review of the application and the start of the campaign. You can find more information on our page for founders.

Companisto can be used to finance companies operating as limited liability companies (GmbH) in the amount of up to € 2.5 million without an investment prospectus. Stock corporations (AG) can raise up to € 8 million without a prospectus through Companisto. Financing beyond these sums is only possible with an investment prospectus.

Companisto's portfolio companies gain exclusive access to a large network of investors. At present, around 110,000 investors are organized in this network. These include many experts from different economic sectors who share their knowledge and expertise with their startups. Furthermore, portfolio companies gain access to the Companisto Family Program. This includes discounts on service providers such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), PricewaterhouseCoopers (pwc), and Avnet Silica, as well as high-reach market access for physical products through Amazon Launchpad. For more information, please visit our page for founders.

Companists have the opportunity to make their expertise available to startups in their user profile. This way, startups have access to a network of experts. The startup only receives the information provided in the "Expert Profile" section; all other personal details are not published. With the consent of the experts, the startup can request their contact details via Companisto. This contact can lead to a productive collaboration.

The platform directly regulates the acquisition of shares and the handling of payments. Neither the Companists nor the startup are subject to any administrative effort. The Companists' shareholdings are pooled and the startup has only one point of contact in Companisto.

Companisto collects a purely performance-related commission: "We win if you win! Companisto charges a performance-based commission of 15 percent of the collected investment sum from the companies for the entire handling of the financing round. This also includes the costs for the entire payment processing. In addition, there is a fixed administration fee of 0.65 p.a. percent of the funding sum for all administrative activities carried out by Companisto for the company.

Yes. As a professional investment platform, Companisto drafted the investment agreements in coordination with venture capitalists (venture capital companies and business angels) and corporate finance specialists. In addition to the crowd, venture capital companies and business angels have also invested in over 85 percent of our startups, which shows that the two models are easily compatible.

Go to the Companisto homepage and log in with your access data. At the top right you will find the tab "My Account." At "My Profile" you will find the menu item "Change email address & password."

You can find the menu item "Log In" at the top right of the Companisto homepage. Click on it. Below the fields for username and password, you will find the menu item "Forgot password." If you click on it, a new password will be sent to your email address.

User comments and questions are an integral part of Companisto. They enrich our content and also represent valuable suggestions and helpful feedback for our startups. The tone and quality of the comments are also important to us. We want to offer an environment in which all users are happy to participate on Companisto with ideas and suggestions. We provide advice and define some rules to follow when writing comments in our netiquette.

When interacting with the startups, it is important to bear in mind that these are usually small teams that often work on the development and success of the company for 60 hours or more per week. The startups try to answer questions in addition to the day-to-day business but have to focus first and foremost on their core business. This is also in the interests of the Companists who have invested in them. In this respect, startups should be able to count on the common understanding - to direct their energy towards achieving maximum corporate success - of their Companists.