Venture Capital

One firm for everything VC

At CMS we’re all about innovation and progress – that’s why we are such a good match for VC investors and startups alike. We have boots on the ground where you need them and in addition to offices in London and Edinburgh (and 7 more cities in the UK), we are present in more than 75 cities around the world. Whether you look to invest in a start-up in Central Europe or looking to raise money from VC funds in Israel.

For VCs: fund formation, tax structuring, fund maintenance, secondaries, equity, investments, venture debt and winding-up advice.

For CVCs: tax structuring, investment transactions and associated IP licensing, distribution and other commercial agreements.

For family offices: lawyers that ‘get it’ who can deliver market knowledge and tech experience to new and regular investors in tech.

For early-and late-stage companies: fundraising at all rounds, crowdfunding, sale transactions, IPOs, patent protection, IP licensing, personal tax for founders, company tax for their groups, employee benefits, employment and regulatory advice in data, financial services, energy, insurance and other related areas.

We support investors and their portfolios on the entire fund life cycle from (i) establishing a fund (including regulatory and tax aspects), (ii) fundraising and raising leveraged finance; (iii) deploying the capital, (iv) asset / portfolio management and (v) supporting our clients on their exit (whether IPO, exit to PE or trade). 

By retaining talent through employee share schemes, securing your right to valuable intangible assets (including patents and other IP) and tax structuring we help maximise the value of your investments. 

We navigate you through regulatory and legal risks and support you on commercial contracts, regulatory compliance, employment contracts, intellectual property protection, data protection, share schemes and much more.

equIP

Our global equIP accelerator has helped hundreds of startups to grow and develop, supported by our experienced all-service team. equIP offers discounted fees, introductions to investors and other benefits. Across more than 30 jurisdictions our international equIP team support from seed rounds through to A and B rounds. The same team that helps startups fundraise and VCs invest, leads exits and acquisitions, taking the business and its investors from the beginning of a startups journey to its conclusion, building deep lasting relationships during the way.