Announcing Our First LV2 Fund Company
Own Up is disrupting the consumer mortgage industry
Some updates following on from our recent funding announcement; over the next 2–3 years, our portfolio will consist of companies launching out of Cogo Labs, as well as companies founded outside our incubator. The Fund’s first investment is an external company that is disrupting the consumer mortgage origination market: Own Up.
A bit of background on Own Up: they are disrupting the mortgage industry with a proprietary pre-approval software that delivers qualified leads to local banks, allowing them to save on commissions while passing savings down to borrowers in the form of lower interest rates. To date, Own Up has been responsible for nearly $1B in loan volume in its first three years with only $5M in prior funding, which is more than any other mortgage company has accomplished in three years, and with significantly less capital. The founding team is top-tier, having spent more than a decade in the mortgage loan origination market, with elite MBA educations.
Link Ventures has been working with Own Up’s management team for close to a year since initially investing $1M through a convertible note in late 2018. They are the perfect startup to take advantage of Link Venture’s vast consumer targeting resources and they align with our ‘data for good’ philosophy. We are excited about our investment in this company; we know that we can help them reach the right consumers for growth. Since our initial investment, we have been extremely impressed with the founding team. They really know this market, having worked in the mortgage origination business. Own Up is a great example of the type of company Link Ventures hopes to invest in; characterized by a large addressable market, demonstrating rapid growth, scaling in a very capital-efficient way, plus, their founders are significant stakeholders. We also love to hear comments like this one from Patrick Boyaggi, Own Up’s Co-founder and CEO:
“We’re honored to partner with Link Ventures and look forward to executing on the promise they saw in Own Up. Their trust in our team, coupled with their offerings and capabilities, will help Own Up ensure that all consumers get a fair deal on their mortgage.”
We look forward to sharing more exciting news soon!
