iSelect AgTech Fund I
Rolling Fund Investment Program
Winter/Spring 2023*
The iSelect AgTech Fund I provides access to early-stage investments in agriculture, food and health.
Founded in 2012, iSelect Fund Management is a global leader investing in technologies that innovate the agriculture supply chain, enhance food security, improve human health and reduce environmental degradation. We have built a significant network of venture capitalists, technology experts, industry leaders and, most importantly, farmers to drive this innovation.
Investment Details
Minimum commitment: $25,000
Management fee: 2% per year
Carry: 20%
Approximately 20 companies per series
*Fund anticipated to be open for investment through June 2023
Benefits:
Access: iSelect offers the opportunity to invest in Venture Capital as an asset class and through our network alongside established venture capital investors in emerging growth technologies at low investment minimums
Diversification: we take a balanced portfolio approach by constructing a portfolio of a minimum number of portfolio companies, not overly concentrating the portfolio in a few investments
Impact: we are focused on supporting soil and crop health solutions to meet surging global protein demand, improve the taste, nutrition and affordability of food, boost farmer profitability, and increase environmental sustainability
What We Invest In
Food System Innovation
We seek to simultaneously solve for:
- Doubling protein production
- Improving the taste, affordability, and nutritional quality of the food we eat
- Improving the environmental sustainability of our agricultural system
- Increasing farmer profitability.
Our specific sub-themes in food and agriculture include:
- Data-Driven Agriculture: Crop analytics and precision agriculture are changing what is possible on the farm, including new biostimulants, crop protection products, and remote sensing technologies providing localized crop and climate data. This shift to in situ measurement enables farmers and ranchers to do more with less, while also increasing biodiversity, decreasing nitrogen fertilizer dependence, reducing chemical inputs, conserving water, and improving soil health.
- Scaling Protein: As the world’s population grows, demand for greater protein access is also growing. That is why iSelect supports what we view as the three pillars of protein to meet this demand: Animal protein, plant-based protein, and cultivated / fermented proteins. Innovation in this area is not only about health but providing more and more people with access to the proteins they need to thrive.
- Synthetic Biology: Innovation around biology, particularly as it pertains to redesigning existing natural systems, is enabling a wide range of capabilities on the farm, in the food system and beyond. iSelect is targeting syn bio segments such as precision fermentation as a service, modular small reactor fermentation and biologics production primarily for use in fermented or cultured proteins, as well as secondary applications in agriculture for genetics and crop protection.
- Maximizing the Human Microbiome: iSelect takes a holistic view of the microbiome, understanding that gut health is important to overall health and is intimately related to a healthy diet in many instances. Our goal is to help support a healthy microbiome through diagnostics and new treatments, with a particular focus on the certain prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics that have important and outsized positive effects in certain populations.
Human Health Innovation
Our goal is to empower the patient to make better, more impactful decisions that improve their health. To this end, we invest in preventative healthcare tools like those used for diagnostics, personal health devices that support measurement & management and the lifestyle change technologies that help people eat and live better. We are also investing in genomics and personalized medicine technologies that offer easier access to personal health data and the help needed to interpret those findings and take action.
- Improving Human Health: Chronic cardio-metabolic diseases such as Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity are among the most costly to treat and indicate the increasing linkage between disease and our metabolism. Often, these diseases are directly related to the food we eat and associated inflammation in our bodies. iSelect is committed to addressing these conditions by combining food and health system innovation.
- Data-Driven Health: Data systems are serving to educate patients and increase self-care, while advanced analytics are accelerating the research and discovery processes for new drugs and treatments, leveraging AI and Big Data to make sense and correlate disparate systems.
- Enabling Technologies to Support Healthcare Innovation: Somewhere we also need to weave in our “enabling technologies story” to explain things like Flywheel, Molecular Assemblies and Cyrus.
Investor FAQ
What is a rolling fund?
A rolling fund is a new type of investment vehicle that is structured as a series of limited partnerships/llcs: at the end of a designated investment period, a new fund is offered on substantially the same terms, for as long as the rolling fund continues to operate. With this fund structure, rolling funds are publicly marketable and remain open to new investors. (Hence the term, “rolling.”) The iSelect AgTech Fund I will end and a new fund will be established once it has invested in approximately 20 portfolio companies.
How does an investor subscribe to a rolling fund?
Right now, accredited investors (“LPs”) can apply to subscribe to the iSelect AgTech Fund I through the iSelect App. The fund, being a 506(c) fund, requires additional steps to verify your accreditation status under applicable securities laws, as well as the fund’s accreditation process, to qualify you as an accredited investor before you can make an investment in the fund.
What is your due diligence process?
iSelect reviews hundreds of companies annually to identify a select few that meet our diligence and suitability standards. We conduct, on average, 120 hours of diligence on every company we offer to investors on our platform. Informed by leading research and industry best practices, iSelect’s diligence standards aim to identify endogenous risks in investment opportunities.
Does the iSelect rolling fund have to deploy all its capital before launching the next Series?
Yes, the fund intends to invest all of the capital it raises in approximately 20 portfolio companies before launching a new series Agtech Fund.
What does the fee structure for rolling funds look like?
For LPs, the key terms and investment details are always disclosed in the offering documents/subscription documents. This includes terms and fees like, but not limited to:
- Management fees (up to 2% per year over the life of the fund, calculated and charged quarterly)
- Carry (up to 20% of the profits after returning investors original capital investment)
How do distributions work for iSelect rolling fund?
There are no targeted distributions. Distributions will be made upon liquidity events with the underlying portfolio companies.
What stage investments will you target?
Mostly seed and Series-A, but we will occasionally do a later stage round where it makes sense. However, our focus will be seed and series-A.
How many deals will you invest in per Series?
Our goal is to invest in 20 companies per Series, however the fund manager may vary such number by a nominal amount in its sole discretion based on the timing and availability of appropriate investments for the fund.
What investment risks are involved?
There are many risks associated with private venture investing, including due diligence risk, underwriting risk, business valuation risk, business plan risk and execution risk. There are also extrinsic risks that are beyond any company’s control. While iSelect’s diligence process seeks to mitigate many of these risks, they remain systemic to private venture investing and are impossible to eliminate, which is why diversification is so important for even the most skilled investor. Potential investors should review the risk factors included in the private placement memorandum (PPM) before investing in the Fund. In addition, investors should understand before investing that venture capital investment is speculative and illiquid, and that they could lose their entire investment.
What is the average amount invested per company?
The fund manager intends to invest in approximately 20 companies, but may increase or decrease that number by a nominal amount based on availability and timing of investment opportunities. The anticipated average size of investment per portfolio company is approximately 1/20th of your total investment, provided that amount may vary in some investments at the fund manager’s sole discretion. If you invest the minimum of $25,000 this would be equal to $1,250 per portfolio company.
After the initial minimum $25k investment, can an investor add smaller amounts?
No, there will be no capital calls or future raises for the iSelect Agtech Fund I. Once all capital initially raised is invested the fund will be closed and a new fund will begin. Investors may invest in the new fund.
With iSelect AgTech Fund I, will investors be able to participate in follow on rounds?
The fund manager intends to offer investors in iSelect AgTech Fund I the opportunity to participate in future rounds of financing for portfolio companies owned by the fund. It is anticipated that these investments will be via a different fund or entity managed by the fund manager and any such future offer is contingent on such offer being permissible and lawful under all applicable securities laws and regulations.
How long will it take for investments to be made after the fund round is closed?
We anticipate that all funds initially raised will be invested within 12-15 months.
Does the fund pay a dividend?
No, iSelect AgTech Fund I intends to invest in a portfolio of illiquid securities sold in offerings exempt from registration under applicable securities laws. iSelect Agtech Fund I will not generate any dividend or other distributions for the foreseeable future. If you need liquidity, dividends or distributions for your investment portfolio and cannot hold this investment for the long-term with no expectation of dividends or distributions you should not invest in iSelect AgTech Fund I.