This paper analyzes a large dataset of 2171 equity crowdfunding campaigns launched between the years 2012 and 2017 on two of the world’s largest platforms Crowdcube and Seedrs. Our data shows that the equity crowdfunding market has matured: more recent campaigns tend to be launched by larger and older companies with better access to external financing. Given the market’s dynamics, we use a rolling three-year window to forecast funding success and develop a simple model based on information that is available at the time of the campaign (e.g., retained equity, external fundraising before the campaign, accelerator attendance, and information about the directors’ team). Our proposed forecasting method can be beneficial to both platforms and entrepreneurs for improving outcomes on the equity crowdfunding market. ... Read more

This chapter discusses the crowd–entrepreneur relationship as an important foundation for crowdfunding success. We present community benefits enjoyed by the crowd as crucial in shaping the entrepreneur’s choice between different business models (crowdfunding vs. crowdinvesting). Then, in the crowdinvesting context, we show that this crowd–entrepreneur relationship is plagued by persistent asymmetric information problems of hidden information and hidden action, which undermine financing decisions and campaign outcomes. We highlight how entrepreneurs can address these problems by taking sophisticated investors or a syndicate of investors on board. ... Read more