Venture financing and bank loans are no longer the only (and not always the best) financing tools for startups seeking growth. In 2025, entrepreneurs are starting to use more flexible, technological and safe ways to raise capital.
After analyzing hundreds of successful cases, we identified 7 non-trivial financing strategies that work today and are suitable for different business models - especially if you do not want to share your equity in the company.
Revenue-Based Financing models have come a long way from the idea of "give 5-10% of monthly revenue to the investor." Modern platforms adapt to your growth, use AI to analyze financial indicators and offer flexible repayment terms. This is an alternative to venture capital and bank loans for companies with regular income. Especially relevant for SaaS, subscription services and e-commerce.
How it works:
You connect your business to the platform.
The system analyzes your data: revenue, churn rate and dozens of other metrics.
Based on the analysis, you receive an offer - how much money can be raised and on what terms.
The return of money is made as a percentage of future income, but not fixed: if revenue falls, payments are reduced, and vice versa.
Advantages:
No need to give up a share.
No fixed payment schedule.
You can finance growth without putting pressure on working capital.
Crowdfunding is transforming. People want to not just support a product, but become part of its success. New platforms allow you to attract small investments from a wide audience, while complying with legal regulations thanks to tokenization.
How it works:
A startup issues tokens that secure a “share” in the form of future profits, discounts, or special rights for the investor.
Loyal customers and fans invest small amounts (from $100), and in return receive exclusive bonuses or access to the product.
Advantages:
Investments + marketing in one bottle.
High community engagement.
The ability to launch even without a legal structure at an early stage (in some jurisdictions).
Many startups miss out on tens of thousands of dollars simply because they do not know about suitable grants or do not have time to apply. New AI tools solve this problem.
How it works:
You fill out a form with information about your business.
AI compares your profile with thousands of grants (government, private funds, corporate programs).
You get a list of suitable options, filtered by country, industry, and stage of development.
The system can automatically remind you of deadlines and even help you fill out applications.
Advantages:
Free (or non-refundable) money.
No need to return funds or give up a share.
Especially relevant for social, technological, and green projects.
The new accelerator model eliminates the main drawback: the need to give up a share at the start. Instead, they give money as real results are achieved.
How it works:
You enter the acceleration program without transferring a share.
Together with trackers, you set KPIs (revenue, customer growth, market entry, etc.).
When you reach each KPI, you receive funding in tranches.
The better the indicators, the more favorable the conditions and fewer obligations.
Advantages:
Support plus capital without selling a share of the company.
Motivation to grow faster.
Accelerators are interested in your success.
Startups should look into corporate pre-orders. If your product solves a pressing business problem, there will be a corporate willing to pre-order it, even if it’s still in development. This is both funding and market validation.
How it works:
Find companies that have a problem that your product solves.
Pitch an MVP and propose a pilot or minimum order.
Get a letter of intent or a contract with an advance payment.
Use these documents to attract additional funding or production.
Benefits:
Guaranteed demand.
Pre-production funding.
Improved, stronger negotiating position with investors.
Crowdfunding requires fine-tuning: the right texts, images, videos, bonuses. Now AI does it for you.
How it works:
The system analyzes hundreds of successful campaigns on your topic.
Recommends optimal names, offers, bonus levels.
Tests hypotheses and changes the campaign structure in real time.
Communicates with sponsors, sends automatic updates and segments the audience.
Benefits:
Increase in conversion and average check.
Saving the team's time.
Increase in the chances of refinancing.
The financial landscape of startups is changing dramatically. You don't need to give up your share or take high-risk loans. The main thing is to choose the right strategy for your model, industry and growth stage.
In practice, a combination of several tools works best: for example, a grant + pre-orders + flexible financing for revenue. This approach provides stability, flexibility and independence.
Finally found some useful information for myself in the field of finance. Thanks to the author for a brief overview of a topic that is important to me and would like to get a little more detailed information.
I've been wanting to find an article like this on finance and investing for a long time, so I can get some detailed information on what to do next and learn how to manage my finances.
Well-written and thoroughly researched, this article sheds light on emerging trends in finance and provides actionable advice on optimizing investment returns.
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