Don't invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.
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Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be high risk.
What are the key risks?
- You could lose all the money you invest
- If the business you invest in fails, you are likely to lose 100% of the money you invested. Most start-up businesses fail.
- You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong
- Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here.
- Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA-regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
- You won’t get your money back quickly
- Even if the business you invest in is successful, it may take several years to get your money back. You are unlikely to be able to sell your investment early.
- The most likely way to get your money back is if the business is bought by another business or lists its shares on an exchange such as the London Stock Exchange. These events are not common.
- If you are investing in a start-up business, you should not expect to get your money back through dividends. Start-up businesses rarely pay these.
- Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
- Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
- A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments.
- The value of your investment can be reduced
- The percentage of the business that you own will decrease if the business issues more shares. This could mean that the value of your investment reduces, depending on how much the business grows. Most start-up businesses issue multiple rounds of shares.
- These new shares could have additional rights that your shares don’t have, such as the right to receive a fixed dividend, which could further reduce your chances of getting a return on your investment.
If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here.
Haatch Ventures has recently announced its exit of institutional risk management software QIS Risk. The company, established in 2021, was acquired by US crypto trading platform CoinRoutes for $5 million in cash and stock. Its founder Fred Cox will join CoinRoutes as global CTO to lead its European expansion.
Haatch SEIS fund invested in 2022 and followed on in 2023. The exit delivered a return of 1.18x for the Haatch SEIS Fund, including many Wealth Club investors. Note, the 2023 investment was realised in under three years.
This is the fifth positive exit across Haatch’s SEIS and EIS portfolios in 2025. Three of these originated from SEIS investments, the earliest, highest-risk stage. Past performance is not a guide to the future; there have also been failures.
What does QIS Risk do? Why did Haatch invest? How did the company progress? And how might you invest in similar companies?
Important: The information on this website is for experienced investors. It is not a personal recommendation to invest. If you’re unsure, please seek advice. These investments are for the long term. They are high risk and can fall as well as rise in value: you could lose all the money you invest. Tax rules can change and benefits depend on circumstances. Quotes in the article represent the views of those quoted and not necessarily those of Wealth Club.
“QIS Risk has built a best-in-class risk analytics platform that institutional investors depend on for critical decision-making. This acquisition allows us to amplify everything that made QIS Risk valuable while integrating it with our execution technology to deliver a complete solution.
Why did Haatch invest?
Haatch targets B2B software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. This reflects the founding team’s experience and expertise: four entrepreneurs with a history of profitable personal exits in this sector.
Because of their sector specialism, post-investment Haatch can provide its portfolio companies with hands-on support advising in areas such as growth strategy and exit routes.
The investment in QIS Risk appears to validate this approach.
Haatch invested because it believed the company was developing a credible solution to a problem increasingly experienced by institutional investors.
Digital assets are complex and information on them fragmented. Whilst institutional investors continue to increase exposure to digital assets, portfolio monitoring tools haven’t quite caught up.
QIS Risk was set up to address this. Its platform aggregates data from more than 70 on-chain and off-chain trade sources, making it easier for investor to manage risk and monitor portfolios, tracking crypto and traditional investments within a single interface.
Progress post-investment and how Haatch steered the company to an exit
Haatch SEIS invested £150k in 2022 at pre-seed stage. At the time, this was the maximum investment a company could receive under SEIS. When SEIS limits increased to £250k in 2023, Haatch invested a further £100k.
Post investment, the company faced a common challenge for B2B SaaS companies: its technology was getting recognition – it was named Risk Management Solution of the Year in 2024 and 2025 by HedgeWeek in its Global Digital Assets Awards – but the company struggled to scale and generate meaningful revenue, casting doubt over its prospects.
Haatch knew from previous experience a possible way forward is to find someone who values the technology and has a specific need the company could meet. CoinRoutes, a crypto trading platform, fitted the bill.
With the acquisition, CoinRoutes was able to add QIS Risk’s portfolio monitoring and risk management tools to its execution technology, creating the first comprehensive end-to-end institutional platform in the industry. Moreover, as part of the acquisition, QIS Risk’s founder Fred Cox joined CoinRoutes as Global Chief Technology Officer, bringing expertise in institutional risk management and expanding CoinRoutes’s European presence.
The $5 million cash and stock transaction allowed Haatch to realise its investment for a modest profit and return cash to investors.
Please note, as part of the investment had been held for less than the three years – the minimum holding period for SEIS tax relief – some investors will not benefit from SEIS tax reliefs and will need to repay any income tax relief already claimed.
As Fred Soneya, Haatch's Co-Founder & General Partner, commented: "The QIS Risk story shows how the support of a specialist investor like Haatch can pay off, particularly when a company is struggling to commercialise and has a difficult future on its own.
"We have seen what QIS was experiencing many times before – we were in a similar situation with our own company Elevaate, our first SEIS investment. The tech was great, but it was only generating around £30k in monthly revenues. Yet, we were able to sell it for £25 million, after finding someone who valued the tech and wasn’t too concerned about the commercials. It’s the same with QIS Risk.
"CoinRoutes needed two things: tech and a new CTO. QIS was perfect for them."
How might you invest in similar companies?
The Haatch SEIS Fund is currently open for investment and you can apply online.
SEIS investors should be able to claim up to 50% income tax and capital gains tax reliefs, amongst other reliefs. Tax rules can change and benefits depend on circumstances.
Since February 2021, the fund has invested £24.3 million across 121 SEIS companies. In that time, it has returned £1.9 million in proceeds from three successful exits, most recently QIS Risk, with a remaining portfolio balance of £28.6 million (November 2025). Past performance is not a guide to the future.
Haatch SEIS targets a return of 5x over 5-10 years – high risk and not guaranteed.
See performance of Haatch SEIS
Performance of Haatch SEIS Fund per £100 invested
Source: Haatch Ventures, as at November 2025. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The chart shows realised returns (where share proceeds have been returned to investors as cash) and unrealised returns (where cash has not yet been returned and the value of the investments is based on the manager’s own valuation methodology). There is no ready market for unlisted shares. The figures shown are net of all fees and do not include any income tax relief or loss relief.
Wealth Club aims to make it easier for experienced investors to find information on – and apply for – investments. You should base your investment decision on the offer documents and ensure you have read and fully understand them before investing. The information on this webpage is a marketing communication. It is not advice or a personal or research recommendation to buy any of the investments mentioned, nor does it include any opinion as to the present or future value or price of these investments. It does not satisfy legal requirements promoting investment research independence and is thus not subject to prohibitions on dealing ahead of its dissemination.