Collaborative Lab Is tapping the crowds the future of funding? Crowd funding matches entrepreneurs with members of the public who are keen to investEnterprises pitch their business plans to potential investors onlineUK-based Crowdcube has so far helped SMEs find almost $450,000 in equity funding (CNN) -- Small and medium size businesses (SMEs) struggling to convince banks to loan them money are turning instead to the masses, in a new strategy being called crowd funding. It works like this: Enterprises pitch their business plans to potential investors online. It allows for a large number of people to contribute smaller amounts, rather than a SME needing to attract a couple of big investors. Crowd funding for businesses is a relatively new idea. Government regulations across different countries can make it difficult, but the concept is growing in the UK and the Netherlands, among other countries. The practise has been previously used by organizations such as charities, but the internet has allowed for more people to get involved.
Crowdfunder's red tape talks at Downing Street Comments (0) The co-founder of an Exeter-based company which secures finance for enterprises from members of the public has briefed the Cabinet Office's Red Tape Challenge task force on his pioneering business funding model. Darren Westlake of crowdfunding business finance initiative Crowdcube, was among a handful of 'disruptive business model' entrepreneurs called to 10 Downing Street to discuss the start-up hurdles and barriers they faced from regulations drafted in a bygone era. Crowdcube, which was launched by Mr Westlake and Luke Lang in March last year, helps SMEs and start-ups raise finance, by providing them with an online platform to connect with a nation of 'armchair dragons' – which they say was the first business in the world to do so. Via the Crowdcube website, entrepreneurs showcase their business to potential micro-investors by uploading a Dragons' Den-style video pitch and supporting documents.
MindLab Business Loans without Banks An investment through the ThinCats platform involves making secured loans directly to individual businesses and therefore your capital is at risk and interest payments are not guaranteed if the borrower defaults and it transpires that the value of security held to protect against borrower default is insufficient to repay your capital and interest. Your experience of defaults will affect your earnings through lending on the Platform. Please click on the "What are the risks?" button to read more. Member of the peer to peer finance association ThinCats are proud to be a member of the Peer to Peer Finance Association, the industry association which represent debt based alternative finance providers operating electronic platforms. Risk warning - please read Investment with ThinCats involves making secured loans to small and medium sized businesses and like all investments that involves some risk. Please note we are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act or JOBS Act, is a law intended to encourage funding of United States small businesses by easing various securities regulations. It passed with bipartisan support, and was signed into law by President Barack Obama on April 5, 2012. The term "The JOBS Act" is also sometimes used informally to refer to just Titles II and III of the legislation (an example is here), which are the two most important pieces to much of the crowdfunding and startup community. Title II went into effect on September 23, 2013.[1] Title III is still pending. Legislative history[edit] In November 2011, the House passed several bills aimed at economic revitalization,[2] including Small Company Capital Formation (H.R. 1070),[3] Entrepreneur Access to Capital (H.R. 2930),[4] and Access to Capital for Job Creators (H.R. 2940).[5] The Entrepreneur Access to Capital Act was introduced by Patrick McHenry (R-NC) and revised in collaboration with Carolyn Maloney (D-NY). Reception[edit]
Team For years, we saw passionate consumer entrepreneurs struggle to find the support they need to grow their brand—to hire more employees, produce more product, and share their dream with more consumers. Consumer companies were often forced to reach out to friends and family—a long and often awkward process. At the same time, we saw investors that were passionate about these innovative consumer product and retail companies, but didn't know how to get in touch with the entrepreneurs. We created CircleUp to make this process more efficient. Great entrepreneurs deserve funding from passionate investors. Technology allows for accredited investors to find, vet, and invest in companies in a new way. Zubin Beesla Business Development Analyst Zubin's professional experience includes previous roles in investment banking and investment management. Zubin earned his BS in Finance from Wake Forest University. Zubin Beesla on LinkedIn Ryan Caldbeck Founder and CEO Ryan Caldbeck on LinkedIn Wagner Camarao
Crowdfunding creative projects » | Smarter money | weblog about crowdfunding & crowdsourcing Crowdfunding has many faces; when someone talks about crowdfunding, he or she either means investing, supporting, loaning or donating. The concept of investments, loans and donations are clear, but what is supporting exactly? Crowdfunding creative projects is about supporting: the crowd finances a creative project in return for rewards. For example: in the case of a musician, the reward for a $10 funding could be a copy of a CD, for $25 a signed limited edition of the same CD and for $250 a meet and greet with the musician. “Crowdfunding is a collaborative funding model; many people give smaller amounts of money to make big things happen“ Slava, IndieGoGo IndieGoGo & RocketHub Two open crowdfunding platforms for creative projects are IndieGoGo and RocketHub. “Crowdfunding is there to be able to make an emotional connection with strangers! IndieGoGo IndieGoGo is “the crowdfunding platform for anything creative” and is founded in 2008. The numbers Successful projects Vlad’s Holy Grail 1.
JOBS Act: 5 things to look forward to (and 5 to dread) | Rafe's Radar Today, President Obama passes the JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act, a collection of laws that relaxes regulations on capital raising for startup companies and gives all companies more flexibility in how and when they go public. It's the "crowdfunding" provisions of the JOBS Act that are getting the most attention, and for good reason. The JOBS Act will allow startups, from taco trucks to mobile apps builders, to solicit the general public for investment -- an activity that was previously illegal. It will allow any individual to invest in these advertised startups as well. There's a divide between Silicon Valley and Wall Street on JOBS. JOBS is good Mo' money for startups. JOBS is bad A field day for scammers. It starts today I've been talking to entrepreneurs, to angel investors, and to many (too many) people who are running or launching crowdfunding portals (everyone wants to have the Kickstarter of investing).
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Elevation Dock: The Best Dock For iPhone by Casey Hopkins Thanks for checking out our project! If you missed out, you can get your Elevation Dock at ElevationLab.com, along with updates and future projects. And thanks again to all the backers, these would never have been made without your support. - Casey Wired: "The Dock Apple should have made in the first place." John Gruber: "An exquisitely well-crafted, beautiful, useful iPhone dock. I'm in." New York Times: "...but wow, what a stand. Gizmodo: "I'm tempted to buy an iPhone just so I can use the Elevation Dock" SlashGear: "Elevation Dock for iPhone blows up on Kickstarter" UberGizmo: "Dock aims to make undocking your iPhone a piece of cake" Jason Fried: "Love the thinking that went into the design!" Marco Arment: "Elevation Dock for iPhone raised $75k in 8 hours" MJ Siegler: "out Apple'd, Apple." Cult of Mac: "Elevation Lab Has Designed The Most Gorgeous iPhone Dock Ever Made" GigaOM: "A dock becomes a darling of the tech world" Digital Trends: "Great design if you ask us. Silicon Florist "I...
Prepare for the onslaught of crowdfunding marketplaces | Rafe's Radar Crowdfunding will probably become a legal and government-approved way to raise startup capital--eventually. Congress needs to figure out how to pass a version of the JOBS Act for that to happen, but while there is bickering over key components of the Act, on the whole both parties agree that opening up startup investing to more people is the right thing Once this occurs, and small businesses can raise money from anyone, how will they find these new investors? One of the first new information markets to come on the scene will be Crowdfunder. The competing site Wefunder has just shy of 3,000 early users, who collectively have pledged $7.2M in investment. Just as Kickstarter acts as a market for early work products of art and technology projects, these services will be information markets for early investment. Barnett says that the amount of money per transaction will be much higher than it is on Kickstarter.
Impact investing: What’s in it for your nonprofit? Are you a nongovernmental organization wondering how to benefit from impact investors? You are not alone. The Nonprofit Finance Fund recently surveyed U.S. nonprofits, and 20 percent of respondents said they will be seeking funding other than grants and contracts — such as loans and other types of investments — within the next year. In addition, 26 percent are considering pursuing an earned income venture as a way to diversify their sources of revenue. And the timing couldn’t be more perfect. It’s safe to assume that impact investing will play an increasingly important role in the funding of organizations involved in making an impact in developing countries. While the appeal of impact investing is undeniable, nonprofits should know that taking investors on board is a major step, and implies a vast number of changes in the way their organization operates — changes that might conflict with their mission. From NGO to social enterprise Impact investing for nonprofits The hybrid model