Following cash injections from Angel and Seed funding totaling some $775k, the Start-Up Stock Exchange (SSX) kicked off earlier this month – and so far six Aussie companies have listed.
Regulated by the Dutch Caribbean Securities Exchange (DCSX), supervised by the Central Bank of Curacao and St. Maarten (CBCS), and based in Curacao, Kingdom of the Netherlands, the SSX accepts listings from around the world. Overall, 97 start-ups have reportedly listed, with the majority of listings coming from India and Nigeria.
According to Ian Haet, CEO and Co-Founder of SSX, around 1% of of the start-ups worldwide have had access to funding.
“Start-ups located outside of Silicon Valley don’t know where to turn for capital. They simply don’t have access to a broad group of investors. Globally, each region has its specific needs and wants. With our targeted campaigns we want to make sure that start-ups in each region understand that we cater to their needs,” Haet said.
The vision for the SSX is to be a regulated global marketplace for start-up investing and funding. The basic premise is that companies publicly offer their shares, and investors purchase those shares. “SSX solves the problem of start-ups worldwide not having access to investors, and vice-versa investors not having access to vetted companies,” the SSX said on its website.
As the SSX is operating out of Curacao, it is run in compliance with Dutch law.
The process for listing is highly structured, and according to the SSX website: “SSX offers a multi-step fee structure to ensure you are only paying for what you receive. The total application fee, from initial registration through funding of your company, is only $5,525, no matter the amount you are raising. This means the fees paid for the application process are the same for a company raising $500,000 as a company raising $1 million.”
Neither the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) nor the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) were willing to comment.
