About Us
Galata Business Angels is Istanbul’s premier angel investor organization. GBA is a formal group of executives, entrepreneurs and angel investors who are interested in investing their time and money into new, cutting edge, startup companies. GBA members have founded companies such as AirTies, Yemeksepeti.com, Mynet.com, and Markafoni.com and been senior executives at the likes of Apple, eBay, Maxim, Turkcell and DBI.
GBA operates as a not-for-profit organization and acts as a platform where member angel investors and aspiring entrepreneurs meet to exchange ideas about startups and discuss investment opportunities.
Vision
Become region’s premier angel investor group by consistenly investing in world class entrepreneurs and high tech businesses
Mission
Provide a safe investment platform where members can invest in outstanding investment opportunities and entrepreneurs, while maximizing returns, mitigating investment risk, fostering social benefit and funding innovation. Promote entrepreneurship, angel investing and help develop the ecosystem by assisting other angel organizations and working with NGOs, governmental agencies and other relevant parties.
What Makes Galata Business Angels Unique?
It is a group formed by successful entrepreneurs, who know the digital industry first hand. They have been through what the young new entrepreneurs are going through. Therefore they can predict issues as well as advise them directly from their own experiences, rather than theoretical principles.
GBA is an angel-investing club formed by entrepreneurs for new entrepreneurs.
Our Committees
Galata Business Angels has four Committees.
- Screening Committee
- Membership Committee
- Marketing and Communication Committee
Membership
GBA members are generally semi-retired successful high technology founders or executives, and have an interest in investing in high-risk startups. The culture of GBA is to recognize that its members have led serious careers and can decide for themselves how best to use the opportunities made available through GBA. GBA members are expected to attend most of the meetings, invest in one deal per year, help with diligence on potential investments, make their networks available to each other, keep confidential information confidential, and strive to maintain the GBA’s cordiality.
Membership is by invitation only. Generally, one must be sponsored by at least 2 current members who know the new member can recommend them. All prospective members meet with several members of the Membership Committee for informal conversations. It is readily apparent by all sides if a fit exists and, if so, an invitation is extended. If you are interested in exploring membership please contact us.
Membership Benefits
GBA provides its members enhanced deal flow, better due diligence, and the negotiating power of indirectly pooling capital. GBA also provides a forum for fellowship of like-minded successful people. Investing the seed stage companies is very risky. GBA brings together at one place and time some of the most successful people in Istanbul; folks who have walked the walk. By sharing their experiences and judgments the assessment of potential companies is quicker and more accurate. Each member is often a recognized source of capital in their own communities, so each brings to GBA a unique source of new deals. And while dollars are not formally pooled, if 10 members are interested in investing, the ad hoc group interested in investing is more capable of negotiating terms with a prospective investment.
