Get your raise in front of the right investors in 30 days, with a ยฃ1bn+ funder in your corner
I've raised over ยฃ250m for my own companies and over ยฃ50m for clients, and I've lent over ยฃ1bn to more than 750 businesses. For 12 weeks I'll work on your raise with you: the business, the deck, the investors and the pitch.
You'll be in front of the right investors by day 30 and receiving term sheets by day 90.
Why raises fail
You know what the money would do for your business. So you put a deck together, send it to every investor you can find, and wait.
Most of the time, nothing comes back. Raises fail for 6 reasons.
The business doesn't look investable.
Sometimes it's a good business that doesn't show it. Sometimes it needs work before it's ready for investors. Either way, it gets marked down before anyone reaches slide 3.
The pitch deck isn't right.
Too long. Too short. The number buried on slide 14. Pages about the product and nothing about the return. Investors see hundreds of decks a year. Yours gets a few minutes.
You're pitching the wrong people.
An angel who only backs restaurants won't touch your software business. A fund writing $5m cheques won't read a $300,000 ask. Send your deck to the wrong investors and your raise will never even begin.
You don't speak their language.
Your deck and your emails talk about the product and how it's going to change the world. Investors are reading for EBITDA, margins, CAC, lifetime value, burn rate and how they get their money back out. If they can't find those fast, you don't get the meeting.
The numbers don't stand up.
The valuation is a number you can't defend. The forecast falls apart at the first question. Or the amount isn't tied to what the money pays for. Any one of those and they stop reading.
The raise isn't run properly.
One batch of emails, no follow-ups, nothing tracked. Interested investors go quiet and nobody notices for a month.
Who's going to be working on your raise
I'm Matt Haycox.
Over the past 25 years I've started and run over 30 businesses and raised over ยฃ250m for my own companies. I once raised over ยฃ15m from a single investor, and I've raised over ยฃ50m for the businesses I advise.
I've also been the one handing the money over. I've lent over ยฃ1bn to more than 750 businesses and I have invested in over 100 more, so I know exactly what makes a funder say yes and what makes them say no.
Most people who'll help you raise have only ever asked for money. I've asked for it as an operator, and I've decided who gets it as a lender and an investor. When I look at your business, I see it the way your investors will. Then we fix what they'd mark down before they ever see it.
Investors from over 50 countries. I've raised capital from investors in over 50 countries, for companies based in the UK, the US, the UAE and Indonesia too.
Capital Raiser works the same wherever you're based and wherever your investors are.
Who Capital Raiser is for
Anyone raising $250,000 or more. Especially if:
- You're about to raise your first serious round and want it done properly the first time
- You've already sent the deck out and heard nothing back
- You've had meetings that you thought went well but the investors never came back to you
- You're running the business full time and can't spend 6 months learning how raising works
- You want someone who's raised hundreds of millions checking every step before an investor sees it
Raising less than $250,000? Capital Raiser isn't the right fit. Capital Catalyst Premium is.
Live in 30 days: how Capital Raiser works
It's done with you. You do the work, and I make sure every piece of it is right before an investor sees it.
The 90-minute onboarding call
Possibly the most useful 90 minutes you'll spend on your raise. We go through your business the way an investor will: what's strong, and what they'll mark down. By the end of it we've settled how much you're raising, what it pays for, how the deal is structured, what you're worth and why, and exactly what we're building. You get your written raise plan the same day, with a go-live date 30 days out.
Making your business investable
The deck can only describe your business, so we start with the business. Every weak spot an investor would pick on gets listed. We fix what can be fixed before go-live, and you get a straight answer ready for the rest. We work on pricing, margins and the revenue model for changes that show up in your numbers. We look at who's missing from the team. We set up monthly reporting so you can show your numbers the day you're asked. And we write the case for your business: why it wins, why now, and what the money turns it into.
Week 1 getting the company in order
- Use of funds costed line by line
- Shareholder list and share register brought up to date
- Anything promised and never written down found and documented
- Articles and any shareholders' agreement checked for what a new investor will want changed
- Intellectual property confirmed as owned by the company
- Accounts current and management accounts up to date
- Tax relief for your investors checked, and applied for where you qualify
- A lawyer for the round, and an accountant if you need one, introduced by me
Week 2 making the case
- Business plan written
- Financials presented looking back and forecast looking forward
- Valuation pressure test. You set the number. I attack it the way an investor will until it holds up.
- Financial model review. I go through your forecast the way a funder will, before any funder sees it.
- What you're offering investors, and the terms, settled
Week 3 the documents
- Pitch deck, with my recorded teardown. I pull your deck apart on video, you watch it as many times as you need, and we work through the rewrites together.
- One-page summary to send ahead of the deck
- Data room built and indexed
- Every hard question written down and answered before an investor asks it
- Deck and outreach checked against the rules on raising money from individuals
Week 4 ready to go
- Your 100 names. I build a list of 100 investors personally for your raise, matched to your business, sector, stage and size.
- A warm route mapped to every name that has one
- Outreach sign-off. Your first approach and follow-ups, approved by me before any of the 100 get them.
- Raise tracker set up
- Mock pitch session. You pitch. I play the investor and ask every hard question you're going to get.
- Final sign-off on the whole pack
You're live
Your first approaches go out.
Running the raise
Your approaches go out in waves, every reply is handled, and your strongest investors are pushed towards terms.
Weeks 5 and 6 the first wave
- First approaches out to the investors best matched to your raise
- Every reply answered and every follow-up sent on time
- Pipeline reviewed with me on the weekly call
- Anything the first replies show up in the deck or the pitch, fixed before the second wave
Weeks 7 to 9 meetings and the second wave
- Prep with me before every investor meeting, and a debrief after
- Second wave out to the rest of your list
- Investor questions answered straight from the data room
- An investor update sent to everyone interested, so nobody goes cold
Weeks 10 and 11 getting to term sheets
- Interested investors taken to second meetings and due diligence
- Your strongest investors pushed to commit and put terms on the table
The handover
Your raise may have closed by now, or it may still be running. Either way, you finish the 12 weeks with everything you need to take it over the line yourself. On our final call:
- Every investor on your tracker, one by one. Where they stand, and your next move with each.
- Your closing plan, in writing. Your raise plan from day 1, rewritten for the next stage: who to chase, when, and what to send them.
- Your term sheet checklist. What to look for when terms land, what's negotiable, and when to bring in your lawyer.
- Everything we built is yours. The deck, the model, the data room, the tracker and every template, ready to use again on your next raise.
- Where you go from here. Carry on yourself with Core and Premium, or move to VIP and keep me on WhatsApp, on a monthly call and on your term sheets.
Everything you get
Me on your raise
- 90-minute onboarding call with me
- Weekly 30-minute calls with me for 12 weeks
- WhatsApp access to me for 12 weeks
- Valuation pressure test
- Financial model review
- Recorded pitch deck teardown
- Outreach sign-off
- Mock pitch session
Built for your raise
- Written raise plan with your go-live date
- Making your business more investable
- 100 investors picked by me for your raise
- Introductions to lawyers and accountants
Yours to keep
- Every template your raise needs deck, business plan, financial model, use of funds, one-page summary, data room index, outreach emails, raise tracker and investor update. Plus the legal documents: NDA, term sheet, subscription agreement, shareholders' agreement and the resolutions to issue the shares
- AI prompts for raising capital for writing and checking every document
- Capital Catalyst Core the full course
- Capital Catalyst Premium for life weekly live calls, deal teardowns and the whole library
One flat fee. You keep everything you raise.
No success fee. No percentage of your round.
Raise $250,000 and it's all yours. Raise $5m and it's all yours.
And you go out with a better business, a deck that's been torn apart and rebuilt, a list of 100 investors picked for you, and someone who's raised hundreds of millions checking every step.
And you keep Core and Premium for life, so the next raise starts from the best place possible.
I work on every raise myself. That means I only take 4 new clients a month. When the places are gone, applications move to the following month.
Add-ons
Every investor Googles you before they meet you. Profile Raiser makes sure they like what they find. It starts in week 1, so it's all in place by the time you go live.
- Your LinkedIn and your company's LinkedIn rebuilt, and kept active through the raise
- 10 press articles about you and your business, in Google News
- Your Google results worked on, so page 1 shows what investors should see
- Guest spots on 2 podcasts
- A personalised PR & marketing plan to make sure you look like this year's greatest investment opportunity
Personal introductions
I'll personally introduce you to 10 investors, and put my name behind you and your business.
Capital Catalyst directories
Every investor & lender directory, at half price for Capital Raiser clients.
Questions people ask before applying
What if my business isn't ready?
That's what the first 30 days are for. We find everything an investor would mark down and fix what can be fixed before you go out.
How much of my time will it take?
A lot, and I won't pretend otherwise. Running a raise is a serious commitment of your time and your resources. Doing it with Capital Catalyst makes sure none of it is wasted: you do the right work, in the right order, and nothing goes out until I've checked it. That's what gives your raise the best chance of success.
Does it matter where my business is based?
No. I've raised from investors in over 50 countries. Wherever you're based, it works the same way.
Will I definitely raise the money?
Nobody can promise that. What we can ensure is that the right investors see a business worth backing, pitched properly. That part you control, and that's what we spend 12 weeks on.
What happens after 12 weeks?
You keep Capital Catalyst Core and Premium for life. If you still want me on WhatsApp, a monthly call and my eyes on your term sheet, you can move to VIP at $1,999 a month. But you will have all the knowledge and tools you need by then, so there is no pressure to sign up to anything else.
How do I apply?
Click apply and answer 9 short questions. If it looks like you are a fit, you'll get a call with me.
Ready to raise?
P.S. You can spend the next 6 months sending a deck to people who were never going to invest. Or you can spend 30 days getting the business, the deck and the list right, and be well on the way to getting the capital you need.
P.P.S. Every month you go without the money is a month of growth you're not getting. What's that costing you already?