Absolutely no dilution or warrants. Ever.
Drive your SaaS company's recurring revenue growth with up to $10m in venture finance.
.jpeg)
Let’s face it, not all debt is created equal. We believe there’s a different way to grow and finance should be straightforward and tailored to the needs of the business.
Meet John Gallagher, Element SaaS Finance Partner, and CEO. Learn about the company's history and the future of venture debt finance.
.png)
“The team at Element SaaS Finance were great to work with - They helped us get the funds needed to finance a bolt-on acquisition, increasing our number of products, customers, and revenue.”
.png)
“From our first meeting, it was clear that John and his team just get it. Element SaaS Finance knows what SaaS companies are looking for and what our unique challenges are. We wanted smart, quick, and efficient directions, and we got it. We’re looking forward to continuing our partnership.”
"Element SaaS Finance has been a key part of the growth and success that we've been able to achieve at Karbon. John and the Element SaaS Finance team understand how SaaS companies like us operate, they don't try and over-complicate things, and they allow us to focus on the most important stuff without giving up any control."
"Element SaaS Finance has been a great partner to AG, investing time and effort to understand our business and deliver unique and innovative financing solutions to help us fund rapid growth. They are responsive, transparent, and collaborative in everything they do. John and his team have been extremely supportive and have provided tremendous contributions as we continue to scale our business."
"Element SaaS Finance has been a true partner in our growth. They recognized the potential of our solutions and helped us secure funding that is strategically tied to our business model and allowed us to scale."
We are committed to helping SaaS founders build their capital stack while limiting their cost of capital equity.
Venture capital is a common element of the capital stack for early-stage businesses that need large amounts of money to get going and plans on building a complex product or is targeting a broad customer base. However, equity financing involves selling a portion of a company's equity in return for capital, resulting in dilution and loss of control of different elements and directions.
Strategic investors will provide different types of equity and debt solutions to businesses that correlate to their own business and see an overlap in services, customers, or products. Strategic investors sometimes ask for a first right of refusal if the company owners try and sell the business.
Private equity investors buy partial or complete ownership stakes in mature businesses, but where there is an opportunity to expand the business, make it more efficient or a strategy that the current owners do not want to or cannot take. These investors put in their own management teams and board directors and often provide advisory support and consultancy.
Seed capital is provided by private investors – usually in exchange for an equity stake in the company. The type of investor will include founder personal investment, friends and family, angels, or investment funds set up specifically for an early-stage venture.
Investors and business communities set up accelerators to help early-stage businesses access both services, a network of advisors, and early-stage investors. Some accelerators have specific funds that will invest in high potential participants.
Venture debt is a loan product offered mostly by non-bank lenders. These types of loans are for growing companies where there is more risk than a traditional bank loan would work. They can involve a higher interest rate, different fees, and maybe equity warrants to allow the lender to benefit from the upside in highly successful companies.
In recent years more options around Growth Finance have become available. Revenue-based finance provides an option for SaaS founders where the loan is repaid with a percentage of monthly revenue, with a set cost. SaaS companies can leverage recurring revenue venture debt to grow their business without warrants, prepayment penalties, persona guarantees, or equity dilution.
A business grant is money awarded to businesses undertaking innovation or have the prospect of growth, resulting in employment creation. Government agencies usually issue them, and unlike loans, grants don't have to be paid off.
Commercial banks give loans to businesses that have advanced to a mature stage in revenue, customers, product, and cash flow. Banks can support these more stable businesses due to the low risk involved in the loans and the high confidence that the loan will be paid back.
Element SaaS Finance got its start out of necessity. It was founded in 2019 by Scaleworks – a group of seasoned SaaS operators who faced the challenge of accessing growth capital to grow their family of SaaS companies.
They didn't value the SaaS recurring revenue model and wouldn't lend to companies with no profit or tangible assets, even with fantastic customer metrics and growth. Most other alternative lenders required equity warrants, board seats, and business covenants that did not make sense.
So, we raised our first lending fund so our companies could easily access growth finance without dilution. It went so well that we expanded to help companies around the globe with growth finance. In three years, we have helped our customers grow ARR on average 38% each year and increased available capital to founders as they have grown.
SaaS finance should be straightforward and tailored to the needs of a business with no hidden terms and conditions, board seats, personal guarantees, or equity. Our finance experts and SaaS business operators have a proven track record of driving solutions to help founders ensure access to growth capital without dilution and loss of control.
