How to Attract Over $500,000 in Investments: A Case Study of the Startup Verifix

Mumin Salimov, CEO of Verifix

About the Startup and the Founder
I am the CEO and one of the three founders of Verifix, and I have been involved in product development and management for about 10 years. We launched the startup in late 2019, and today Verifix offers a comprehensive HRM solution for small, medium, and large businesses, with a focus on retail and HoReCa. The platform helps optimize HR processes, personnel management, and payroll, making companies' operations more efficient.

Investment Rounds and Key Achievements
We fully closed our only investment round in August 2025. We began actively communicating with investors in late May, received the first funds in late July from two investors, and the third investor's contribution came in late August. The round totaled $500,000, with investors including Aloqa Ventures, IT Park Ventures, and SQB Ventures.

This round was important to us not only for the funding but also for market trust—clients see that venture funds have placed their confidence in us.

Strategy and Approach to Fundraising
We decided to seek investment after recognizing a clear market need and developing a more defined product vision. I understood that achieving rapid scaling while simultaneously developing new modules and services would be difficult at standard growth rates, so investment became a way to buy time.

We raised funds in stages to secure a runway of approximately 10–12 months, allowing us to make necessary improvements rather than attempting to raise a large sum all at once.

Mistakes and Lessons Learned
There is always a risk of errors in such deals. Theoretically, we could have achieved a higher valuation, but it was more important to secure funding quickly and strengthen market trust, while keeping the equity stake we gave up acceptable.

Another key lesson is not to cut corners on legal matters. We engaged a lawyer experienced in venture deals to review all terms and risks, ensuring we made informed decisions.

Advice for Founders
I advise against reinventing the wheel; instead, leverage your network and advisors' expertise when you lack certain competencies. Time is critical, so if possible, accelerate growth through investment to develop your product and services faster and avoid missing market opportunities.

It is crucial that co-founders share aligned values—disagreements at the founder level will create problems, whereas a strong team with clearly divided responsibilities delivers better results.

When preparing for the next round, start early—build relationships with funds and share your progress at least six months in advance, because the speed of closing a round can vary significantly, and luck does not always repeat itself.