Carolina Angel Network members are required to be affiliated with UNC Chapel Hill and to be accredited investors. Most Carolina Angel Network members are alumni, but faculty, staff, students, parents, and donors are also eligible for membership. Graduates from any of UNC Chapel Hill’s undergraduate or graduate programs are eligible for membership. To be an accredited investor an individual must have over $200,000 in annual earned income (or $300,000 together with a spouse) or have a net worth of over $1 million (excluding the value of their primary residence). For more information on accredited investor requirements, please see the SEC’s accredited investor bulletin.

The Carolina Angel Network invests in UNC-affiliated, high growth potential startups and early stage companies. Companies must meet the following criteria to be considered for investment:

1: Have a founder, executive, or board member who is a UNC alumnus, faculty, staff, student, or parent.

2: Raising seed or Series A equity capital of $100,000 to $3 million or syndicating later-stage equity financings with an existing institutional lead investor.

3: Located in the United States.

The Carolina Angel Network facilitates investments by its members in companies that have the potential for high growth and significant financial returns. When considering opportunities for review by CAN Members, the CAN Screening Committee looks for the following attributes:

    A large market opportunity;
    A unique value proposition;
    Proprietary technology, intellectual property, or other basis for sustained competitive advantages;
    A dedicated management team;
    A corporate structure that allows for equity investment at defined terms and conditions;
    A strategy and plan that has the potential to produce venture grade returns.

The Carolina Angel Network’s operating team actively seeks input and feedback on members’ areas of interest and focuses its efforts on areas in which members have particular preferences.

No. CAN is not a fund and investments made by members are at their own discretion and are made directly in a company. There is also no minimum investment requirement.

                    

There are no minimum annual investment amounts for Carolina Angel Network members. Members are expected to be active in the network and, where a member has relevant experience, to be available for advice, guidance, and opinions to support investment decisions and to help portfolio companies grow.

Members are required to pay a $1,500 annual membership fee. This fee helps fund the operations of the Carolina Angel Network, which includes both services and resources. CAN is a manager-led angel network with an operating team of professionals that devote all or a portion of their time to delivering services to members, as well as the following resources:

    An online software platform that enables the operating team and members to communicate and collaborate on diligence and investment decision-making.
    A website that describes the network in detail for entrepreneurs and investors.
    Pitch events and networking events for members around the country and on campus.


                    

No, the Carolina Angel Network does not collect ongoing management fees or transaction-based investment fees. All operations are funded by membership fees, UNC Chapel Hill, and donor support.

The Carolina Angel Network is run by an operating team that includes:

    Screening Committee: Entrepreneurial leaders at UNC who guide strategy and screen potential deals.
    Managing Director: A professional with experience in deal sourcing, diligence, transaction structuring, and investor relations who runs the operations of the network.
    Student Fellows: Students from across UNC Chapel Hill who provide support across all aspects of the network including deal diligence, transaction management, and communications.
    The Operating Team is supported by guidance and oversight from a Board of Directors, consisting of world-class experts from inside and outside the UNC entrepreneurial community.

Deal Sourcing
Actively seeking out investment opportunities that fit with member preferences.
Developing early access to investment opportunities with companies where the UNC Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative leadership has previously developed a trusted relationship.

The Carolina Angel Network actively sources investment opportunities from existing members, the Operating Team, and the global UNC community, as well as direct applications via the Carolina Angel Network website.

The Carolina Angel Network’s operating team screens investment opportunities based on the preferences of angel members and readiness for investment before presenting opportunities to members.

                    

The operating team provides active guidance and support throughout the investment process, including:

    Sourcing deal opportunities to supplement deal referrals from members
    Screening initial company applications
    Managing information dissemination between the companies and members
    Managing process and communications during diligence
    Performing diligence tasks and analysis as needed
    Supporting the investment transaction process
    The team does not provide investment recommendations.

All investment decisions are made by individual members and all investments are made directly from members to companies. The team operates a platform and process that enables informed decision making in a timely manner.

                    

Carolina Angel Network members are expected to be active in the network. This includes actively sourcing investment opportunities for the group, collaborating and contributing to diligence processes and investment decisions, participating in the investment process on a regular basis, and providing support and guidance for portfolio companies based on experience and expertise.

The Operating Team is active in monitoring and advising Carolina Angel Network portfolio companies. Such support can take many forms, including advice on business strategy and tactics, introductions to potential customers or partners, assistance with recruiting, and facilitation of future financing rounds or exits. CAN also has a close relationship to the Blackstone Entrepreneurs Network which will make its Entrepreneurs in Residence available to companies at the direction of the Managing Director.

No. The Carolina Angel Network respects the privacy of members and will not publish a membership list. As companies enter the formal diligence process with the Carolina Angel Network, interested members will be introduced to the company. Background information can then be shared directly by members with companies.

                    

The Carolina Angel Network invests in UNC-affiliated startups. Companies must meet the following criteria to be considered for investment:

1: Have a founder, executive, or board member who is a UNC alumnus, faculty, staff, student, or parent.

2:Early Stage or Series A equity capital of $100,000 to $3 million or syndicating later-stage equity financings with an existing institutional lead investor

3:Located in the United States

The Carolina Angel Network facilitates investments by its members in companies that have the potential for high growth and significant financial returns. When filtering opportunities for review by CAN Members, the CAN Screening Committee looks for the following attributes:

    A large market opportunity;
    A unique value proposition;
    Proprietary technology, intellectual property, or other basis for sustained competitive advantages;
    A dedicated management team;
    A corporate structure that allows for equity investment at defined terms and conditions;
    A strategy and plan that has the potential to produce venture grade returns.


                    

In addition to the involvement of members with relevant experience and expertise, the Carolina Angel Network enables portfolio companies to leverage the broader resources of the global UNC community. This could include support from University faculty, project assistance from student internships, and targeted access to the University’s alumni and partner network. Most importantly, the operating team will actively match companies with expertise in the global UNC network.

In addition to the involvement of members with relevant experience and expertise, the Carolina Angel Network enables portfolio companies to leverage the broader resources of the global UNC community. This could include support from University faculty, project assistance from student internships, and targeted access to the University’s alumni and partner network. Most importantly, the operating team will actively match companies with expertise in the global UNC network.

                    

In addition to being shareholders in portfolio companies, Carolina Angel Network’s members will provide support and guidance for portfolio companies based on experience and expertise. This could include advice on business strategy and tactics, introductions to potential customers or partners, assistance with recruiting, and facilitation of future financing rounds or exits. When appropriate, members may be asked to serve on the board of directors of portfolio companies. Members will not be required to serve on boards.

In addition to the involvement of members with relevant experience and expertise, the Carolina Angel Network enables portfolio companies to leverage the broader resources of the UNC community. This could include support from University faculty, project assistance from student internships, and targeted access to the University’s alumni and partner network. Most importantly, the operating team will actively match companies with expertise in the UNC network.

                    

                    

Companies initiate the process by completing an online application. Once the application is complete, the following process steps will be followed:

Initial Screening: The Screening Committee will assess the company’s readiness for investment and fit with investor member preferences. Companies should be informed of the initial screening decision within one week of completing an application.

Posting: Company information will be posted to a private, secure, online collaboration platform that allows members to review company information and indicate any initial interest in the investment opportunity. If sufficient interest is generated from members, the company will be informed that the network would like to move into diligence.

Diligence: Interested investors will form a diligence team with a diligence lead who will interact directly with the company to move through the diligence process as quickly and effectively as possible. This process may involve pitch sessions in person or remotely via video/teleconference.

Subscription: Results of the diligence process will be disseminated to all members, and interested members will subscribe to the investment opportunity.

Transaction: With the help of the operating team, the syndicate of interested members will work with the company to structure and complete the investment transaction.

The operating team will provide support and resources at all stages of the process.

                    

                  

For initial meetings, companies should at minimum have a corporate overview presentation describing the market opportunity, the company’s solution, and the current team, as well as other information such as current and potential customers and partners, competitors, and any other information the company would deem appropriate. A long-form business plan and financial projections would also be appropriate for an initial meeting.

 

Subsequent meetings and due diligence will cover additional topics more in-depth, and could include product usage statistics (e.g., orders, shipments, subscribers, active users, downloads, website traffic, etc.), product development plans / roadmaps, pricing plans, detailed historical and projected financial statements, capitalization tables, hiring plans, partnership and licensing agreements, customer contracts, customer and prospective customer reports, marketing survey results, product ratings and reviews, intellectual property documentation, and other corporate documents.

                  

Members will consider investments in follow-on financings on a case-by-case basis. In general, companies should assume that the Carolina Angel Network will not be a source for significant additional capital. Members are typically focused on helping companies get through the early stages of growth with seed stage capital.

The Carolina Angel Network does not sign non-disclosure or confidentiality agreements. Company information is shared with members through a private, secure online platform. Members are expected to keep all information confidential and to use information only for purposes of making investment decisions. Members are not bound by a confidentiality contract with the Carolina Angel Network; however, the operating team closely monitors the dissemination of information within the network, and any investor member who distributes information outside the network without consent will likely be asked to leave the group. At later stages in the diligence process, individual members may be asked to sign an NDA or CA directly with the company. These agreements will not include the Carolina Angel Network as a party.

No. The Carolina Angel Network respects the privacy of members and will not publish a membership list. As companies enter the formal diligence process with the Carolina Angel Network, interested members will be introduced to the company. Background information can then be shared directly by members with companies.

                    No. The Carolina Angel Network respects the privacy of members and will not publish a membership list. As companies enter the formal diligence process with the Carolina Angel Network, interested members will be introduced to the company. Background information can then be shared directly by members with companies.