Patreon is one of the most popular public content creator funding platforms in the market. The company helped pioneer the content creator subscription services industry and remains a dominant force in the market. Today, Patreon has +8M active users, +279K content creators, and a growing number of strategic partnerships.
All of these factors continue to drive demand for Patreon stocks. However, the company is privately held, meaning that pre-IPO shares are the best option for those seeking an ownership stake in the firm. Patreon’s success, market positioning, and strong backing are all additional reasons why you should learn how to buy Patreon pre-IPO shares. Here’s what you need to know.
What is Patreon?
Patreon is a public content creator funding application that enables creators to enhance their monetization efforts via subscription services and more. The company entered the market in 2013. It was founded by a developer named Sam Yam, and a musician named Jack Conte to provide creatives with additional revenue streams.
Patreon’s launch was celebrated, and within the first 18 months, the platform secured 125,000 content creators. The platform had many unique characteristics that helped it create such a following. For one, it was free to start, meaning that content creators could focus their efforts on their art and offerings.
Several features make Patreon a smart maneuver for creators. They can access a variety of tools designed specifically to help them build organic communities. For example, they can offer access to exclusive content and create and distribute digital assets, tickets, collaborations, contests, and even personalized messages.
Creators can sell both digital and real-world merchandise while building up a subscription-based income from their community. For their effort, Patreon charges an 8-12% commission on their income and various payment processing fees. This simplistic and straightforward business model continues to bring success as the creator economy is now intertwined with Patreon on a new level.
Today, Patreon remains a go-to option for content creators seeking to offset the demonetization or other methods used by big tech to reduce their revenue or censor their messages. This positioning adds to the overall perceived value that Patreon brings to the market and ensures that it will continue to see demand in the coming years.
Historical Funding Rounds
Summary of Patreon Funding:
- Total Funding: Patreon secured $412M across 7 funding rounds.
- Largest Round: Patreon’s largest funding round secured $155M on Apr 06, 2021.
- Investors: A total of 39 institutional investors and 9 Angel investors back Patreon
- Latest Round: The latest funding round raised $155M and was a Series F round held on Apr 06, 2021.
Funding Rounds Breakdown:
- 1 Seed
- 2 Early-Stage
- 4 Late-stage
Key Investors:
Patreon has support from many prominent investors including Tiger Global Management, Woodline Partners, Wellington, Lone Pine Capital, New Enterprise Associates, DFJ Growth, New Enterprise Associates, Wellington, Glade Brook Capital, Thrive Capital, DFJ Growth, Index Ventures, Lone Pine Capital Glade Brook Capital, Index Ventures, Freestyle, Serj Tankian, Hannibal Burress, Initialized Capital, CRV, and more.
Funding Data Sourced from Tracxn
Why Invest in Patreon?
There are multiple reasons why you might want to consider investing in Patreon Pre-IPO shares. For one, the company has a straightforward business model that continues to show profitability and potential. According to company documentation, Patreon’s economy is on the rise. Specifically, monthly payouts are up by 2.2% in 2024, pushing the total made by creators to +$8B. Patreon content creators now average around 60% more revenue compared to 2019.
Another factor to consider is that Patreon remains In touch with the content creator community. For example, the management dropped adult-themed content support in 2017, broadening the appeal of the platform. At the time it reduced revenue but the losses were quickly recovered due to new clientele.
There are several acquisitions that Patreon has made which enhanced its capabilities, and customer confidence. In 2015, the firm acquired the subscription platform Subbable and a year later, Memberful was acquired. These acquisitions provided the platform with additional features and technology.
As a market leader and first mover, Patreon provides investors with a unique opportunity. The company hasn’t posted any plans to host an IPO yet. However, if the company does signal intentions to go public, demand for its stock would increase significantly.
How to Buy Patreon Pre-IPO Shares
Patreon remains a privately held company, meaning that you will need to utilize a specialized approach to get access to shares. There are many analysts that believe the company may never hold public funding rounds and may instead decide to only host private funding. If so, here’s what you need to consider.
1. Pre-IPO Secondary Marketplace
Secondary markets are purpose-built exchanges that connect pre-IPO shareholders with potential investors. These marketplaces can offer these assets because they work closely with employees, early-stage investors, and venture capitalists, which are crucial to the company’s pre-IPO growth.
Investing in pre-IPO shares for Patreon could open the door for additional ROIs if the company’s valuation is less than when its IPO launches. It’s common for company valuations to increase following an IPO. As such, it makes sense to add pre-IPO shares to your portfolio before the firm announces plans to go public.
Secondary marketplaces have many requirements. Here are some concerns you should be made aware of:
Eligibility: Notably, this approach requires you to be an accredited investor, meaning you will have to show at least $1M in liquid assets to qualify.
Liquidity: Pre-IPO shares can’t be traded like regular shares. They often include some lockup restrictions that prevent you from trading them before the IPO. Some firms have permanent “no sell” clauses that prevent any transfer of the shares following your investment.
Linqto is a reputable investment platform that connects accredited investors with pre-IPO shareholders in a secure manner. The network streamlines pre-IPO investing via an easy-to-navigate interface that provides access to all relevant data at a glance. Accredited investors seeking pre-IPO shares in Patreon should consider Linqto.
Visit Linqto →
2. Private Equity Firms
Private equity firms gain access to pre-IPO shares during investment rounds. They then offer these shares to high-net-worth accredited investors with a commission. Notably, private equity firms are known to have extra stipulations, including blocking the sale of shares for years in some cases.
3. Employee Equity Sales
Many consider employee equity sales as the best way to acquire pre-IPO shares in Patreon. This method of acquiring pre-IPO shares requires you to connect with former employees. It’s common for companies to issue shares as part of an incentive package. Notably, this profit-sharing method has become more popular, leading to more pre-IPO share opportunities for investors.
Private Transactions: there are a lot of hoops you will need to jump through to complete a private pre-IPO transaction, including creating specific legal agreements, conducting valuations, and setting in place any limitations on the transfer of the asset.
Brokerage: Brokers will take a lot of the confusion out of the pre-IPO process. These professionals can guide you through each step, ensuring full compliance and avoiding common errors untrained professionals make.
There are several risks that you should consider before jumping into the pre-IPO shares investment arena. Here are the top concerns:
Liquidity Risk
If you are looking for an asset that you can sell right away, pre-IPO shares are not the best option. These investments can include sales and transfer clauses that prevent the transfer of the asset until certain criteria, such as the IPO’s completion. It’s even common for pre-IPO shares to require you to wait years before gaining the ability to sell your assets.
Regulatory Risk
The blockchain market has seen considerable scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers. While the technology is far better understood than in its early days, there are still many lawmakers who see it as a threat to the traditional financial system. As such, you need to always consider how new regulations could affect the value of your pre-IPO shares.
Market Risk
Purchasing pre-IPO shares in Patreon means that you stand behind the project and its team. The company has secured a reputation for excellence and has previously expressed a desire to go public. However, no concrete data has been provided yet. As such, it’s vital to understand that the blockchain market is an active space that experiences strong fluctuations that could result in a different share value between now and any future IPO launch.
Valuation of Patreon and Future IPO
Patreon’s valuation is $4B as of Apr 07, 2021. The company has achieved Unicorn status due to its pioneering efforts in the content creator markets. Patreon is seen by many as an essential tool to deal with increased censorship and demonetization from the tech giants including Meta, Youtube, Google, and more.
Patreon continues to expand its community and features. The company has shown a willingness to adapt to the fast-changing market, enabling its users to take advantage of the latest and greatest options, including NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and more. All of these factors demonstrate why so many competitors have failed in their efforts to remove Patreaon from among the top options.
It’s likely that Patreon could decide to go public in the coming years. It already has strong backing from the investor community and the public. This decision could result in one of the largest and most anticipated IPOs to date. For now, the only option is pre-IPO shares.
Conclusion
Holding Patreon Pre-IPO shares opens the door for lots of upside potential. The company has proven to be reliable, secure, transparent, and capable of working with regulators when needed. All of these factors have cemented Patreon in the content creator community as a valuable resource to be protected.
There are still several risks involved when investing in pre-IPO shares that you need to consider. There’s no guarantee that the value of your pre-IPO shares will increase or that the company will decide to go public. As such, you need to conduct in-depth research into Patreon’s financials and business model prior to making any final decisions.
You should consult a financial expert to ensure that Patreon Pre-IPO shares fall within your risk appetite. For those who complete their research and find the asset to be a smart maneuver, there’s lots of upside potential.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Pre-IPO shares are typically available only to accredited investors and carry significant risk. Always perform thorough due diligence and consult a financial advisor or legal expert before making investment decisions.
