Growth-stage startups cannot access capital between seed and Series A funding rounds

Entrepreneurs with validated products and early traction face a critical funding gap (the 'valley of death') where they need $500K-$5M to scale but don't qualify for traditional venture capital or bank loans. This forces founders to bootstrap unsustainably, dilute equity excessively, or abandon promising ventures. Current solutions (angel networks, accelerators, crowdfunding) are fragmented, time-consuming, and often insufficient for the capital amounts needed.