What this guide covers
The funding sources open to a US company, what each assumes in legal form and governance, and the real timelines. A European founder often discovers the question is not “where is the money” but “can my structure receive it”.
What exists
Venture capital
Expects a C-Corporation, generally incorporated in a state whose corporate law investors know. An LLC or a foreign company requires a prior restructuring, which takes months.
Angel investors
More flexible on form, often organised in local networks. The corridor has some, and they readily invest in their own ecosystem.
Federally guaranteed loans
The Small Business Administration guarantees loans made by partner banks. Eligibility depends among other things on the owners’ nationality and status.
Federal research grants
The SBIR and STTR programmes fund research and development without dilution, through agency solicitations. Reserved for companies majority-owned by eligible persons or entities.
What surprises people arriving from Europe or Quebec
Legal form decides access to capital more than the project does. A founder who set up an LLC for its tax flexibility is asked to convert before any serious discussion with a fund, and the conversion is a taxable event.
Where it gets complicated
Federal programmes carry ownership and nationality conditions that exclude some foreign-owned structures. It is checkable before applying, and it is rarely checked.
Official sources
- U.S. Small Business Administration
- SBIR / STTR, federal R&D programmes
- SEC, capital raising and exemptions
What French Executive Network can do
Introduce you to the French-speaking business lawyers, accountants and tax advisers in the network who handle this subject, and to the members who have already been through it.