Fast-track your fundraise

Mercury Raise fundraising programs connect you to experts and investors, so you can spend more time building and less time fundraising.
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Support at every step of your fundraising journey

Find the right program for your current goals

  • First-time founder? Try Fundraising Lab.
  • Actively fundraising? Try Investor Connect.
  • Plus, fundraising-focused tools and resources for support at every stage.
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Fundraising Lab

Fundraise like an expert the first time. Level up how you network, pitch, and navigate the fundraising process with live virtual lessons and office hours hosted by experts and investors.

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Investor Connect

Finding your last few checks shouldn’t feel like your full-time job. Submit your pitch to Investor Connect for the opportunity to connect with investors in our network. 


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Upcoming dates

Fundraising Lab / Q1

Applications open February 3, 2025

Investor Connect / Q1

Applications open February 3, 2025

More fuel for your fundraise

Fundraising Expert Sessions

Get answers to your fundraising questions directly from top investors and experts — live on Zoom or on demand.

See Upcoming Sessions
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Investor Database

Explore our database of active investors and funds to find your next investment partner.

Browse Database
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The proof is in the progress

Fundraising Lab sessions were incredibly helpful with actionable takeaways from each session. If you've ever done a fundraising workshop and thought "okay but how do I actually implement that?"- Fundraising Lab is what you're looking for.

Tyce Herrman

Founder

Ulama

Software

We raised $2.5M from firms like Mucker, Pear, and Foundation Capital. Mercury has been crucial to our success & vision.

Justin Clegg

Founder

Allset

Software

Raise has been a great source of new and exciting companies who are actively fundraising.

Josh Kopelman

Investor

First Round Capital

Seed-stage VC firm

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Your questions, answered.

All you need to apply to Mercury Raise fundraising support programs, including Investor Connect and Fundraising Lab, is your pitch deck or memo, along with some basic information about you and your company. Follow the application buttons above to start the process. 

  • Fundraising Lab
    • For first-time, pre-seed and seed-stage founders kicking off their fundraise, or planning to within ~3 months following the program. The program is open to founders based in the U.S., Canada, and United Kingdom. You’re welcome to apply if you’re pre-product or pre-revenue. There is no cap on valuation size, and we’re open to considering startups of all sectors and business models. You don’t need to be a Mercury customer in order to apply (although we hope you’ll become one, one day).
  • Investor Connect
    • For pre-seed, seed and series a founders actively fundraising and looking for their final few checks. You’re welcome to apply if you’re pre-product or pre-revenue. We don’t have a cap on valuation size, and we’re open to considering startups of all countries, sectors, and business models. You also don’t need to be a Mercury customer in order to submit a pitch (although we hope you’ll become one, one day).
  • Please note: you will only be able to apply to one program per quarter. You can use the guidance above to determine which program you are best suited for.

Fundraising Lab takes place over three weeks: 3/3 - 3/21. Learn more about each week of programming:
  • Week 1: Perfect your Pitch — refine your story and craft a visually engaging deck to captivate potential investors. With Jack Zerby (Head of Design at Gumroad), Office Hours with Sam Eisenberg (Founder, Design for Decks)
  • Week 2: Build your Investor Pipeline — learn how to grow your network, build relationships, and find the right investors for your company. With Zehra Navqi (Investor, Founder of The Z List), Office Hours with Lolita Taub (GP at Ganas Ventures)
  • Week 3: Close your round — learn best practices for navigating due diligence, negotiating your term sheet, and closing out the fundraising process. With John Bautista (Partner at Orrick).
  • Week 4 + 5: If you choose to participate in Demo Day, we’ll have a week to help you practice your pitch between the last week of programming and Demo Day.

Investors are welcome in all forms — from VCs and angels to scouts and early-stage funds. We ensure that each investor is available to invest and are who they say they are.

To become a Raise investor and receive personalized deal flow, request access at ic-access.mercury.com Each quarter, you’ll receive a fresh curated “drop” of top startups that fit your investment criteria. With one click, you can request a warm intro.

  • Pitches will be reviewed by our panel of judges — composed of top VCs and angel investors. Each quarter, they’ll select a cohort of ambitious companies to share with our network of 800+ investors, or to join our Fundraising Lab program. You’ll be notified about your selection status within 2 weeks following the application deadline.
  • If you’re selected for Investor Connect: your pitch will be forwarded to investors ~1 week following selection, based on their investment criteria (i.e. stage, industry, business model, location, or round size).
  • If you’re selected for Fundraising Lab: we’ll follow up with more info on session dates and office hours. You’ll also have the opportunity to pitch investors during our virtual Demo Day, and be included in an exclusive Investor Connect drop following the program.
If you’re not selected for either program, you’ll be able to pitch again after you’ve made some more progress (at least three months after your first pitch).

  • For Investor Connect: We’ll share companies with our investor pool within ~1 week of company selections. If an investor is interested, we’ll make a warm intro. Although we cannot guarantee interest, recently selected pitches have received an average of five to ten investor intros. If you don’t receive any investor intros, that means that unfortunately, no investors were interested in meeting with you at that time.
  • For Fundraising Lab: If your application is selected, we’ll follow up with more info on session dates and office hours. You’ll also have the opportunity to pitch investors during our virtual Demo Day, and be included in an exclusive Investor Connect drop following the program. Please note: if selected, you are required to attend 50% of sessions.

If selected for Fundraising Lab, attending Demo Day is optional, as is participating in our exclusive Investor Connect drop following the program, but both are great opportunities for exposure and connection so we do encourage it.

We’ll invite investors from our Investor Connect pool to join demo day, along with other approved investors outside of the community.

Due to the volume of submissions we receive, we unfortunately cannot provide individualized feedback on pitch submissions. However, you can find opportunities to workshop your pitch or prepare for your next submission by joining our Slack community, registering for our expert sessions, or browsing our published content on our blog.

You can apply to one program, once per quarter. We especially encourage you to re-submit if you’ve recently raised a new round.

Investor Connect is neither a program nor an accelerator. It is a data-powered platform focused on optimizing the fundraising process, and Mercury as a company does not currently provide any funding to the selected startups. If you are interested in founder programming and community-building, we encourage you to explore our community offerings, founder events, and workshops.Fundraising Lab is not an accelerator, and no investment will be made by Mercury in selected companies. Fundraising Lab is a 3-week program to prepare first time founders who are kicking off their fundraise or planning to do so within ~3 months, to lead a successful process.

Mercury uses a panel of judges that evaluates submissions based on criteria such as TAM, business model, and idea/solution/technical novelty. However, our judges don’t do any financial vetting — it is up to investors to conduct their own due diligence. Mercury does not endorse or recommend investment in any of these companies and this program should not be seen as financial advice and is not an offer to buy or sell any security.

Let the deals flow

We're here to help you secure the capital you need to grow.
Apply Now

Disclaimers and footnotes

    Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC. Deposit insurance covers the failure of an insured bank.