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UK Equity Crowdfunding
The crowd funding concept has been present for quite some time. However, with the advancement of technology and availability of internet connection, this became popular in several countries around the world. A lot of entrepreneurs are delighted with the crowd funding idea because they are able to get their seed capital and promote their business as well. In these present times, financial crisis is evident anywhere, and it is hard to get credit from banks and other lending institutions because they are also securing their funds. With this, the crowd funding seems to be the best option to make.
Basically, crowd funding is a network or group of individuals who are willing to pool their funds and resources at the same time, in order to establish the necessary funding for a newly established company or business. This kind of funding gained popularity in most independent film makers, but a number of websites like CrowdCube.com are now adopting the crowd funding concept, and they use the social networking platforms to bring in the borrowers and gather the lenders together. This concept still has its pros and cons, and so, let’s have a deep look.
Crowd funding in CrowdCube.com is advantageous in the sense that it is social in nature, and it does not only allow the person to obtain money, but it also enable him to spread his needs on other people and at the same time making them aware of the business concept. People who opt for a crowd funding should start familiarizing themselves with small business, products and services he offers and other relevant details that customers have to know. Some people will be willing to take part in the business because they are interested in the products or services that are being offered. They see a lot of potential in the business particularly on either its’ greater good or potential for a profitable investment. Through crowdfunding, a business person can measure the responsiveness of the future clients and how marketable the business will be.
CrowdCube.com is definitely not an answer to any business concept as crowdfunding is not regarded as a sustainable source of revenue, rather initial capital investment. It will take a lot of work, and is often based on a preexisting audience, although that is dramatically changing with the popularity of crowd funding sites, like crowdcube.com. Moreover, since the transaction on CrowdCube deals a great amount of money as well as soliciting investments, every person has to be careful in violating any laws or regulations that are established by the website and the government. If any of these are not followed, the person will face several consequences of his actions. Always due your due diligence as an investor, whether it’s a crowdfunding investment or any other.
In the UK, we believe the leader in equity crowd funding will continue to be CrowdCube.com. However, every person has to do appropriate research first before choosing which crowdfunding site will suit their business best. Get a recommendation coming from people who have been involved with crowd funding in CrowdCube and check the results of their actions. Also, research the legal issues and regulations that have to be followed. Inestment funding can certainly be obtained through CrowdCube but it can also be a great venue to test the market and launch the desired project or business.
If your business is located in the UK, CrowdCube.com is currently out top rated site for your equity crowdfunding needs as either a small business owner or a potential investor.
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Crowd Cube is a British website that offers statistics for various start-ups. It allows investors to find start-ups, and it allows start-ups to seek investors. Start-ups that are featured on the front of the website get the most exposure. I like the concept of Crowd Cube. It’s not as user friendly as, say, Go Fund Me. However, Crowd Cube is more business oriented than individual focused. Therefore, it makes sense that its interface would be more complexed.
It has a very “forex trading” feel to its general theme which is pretty sleek. I like its intricate details, allowing you to add as many little details as you can about your project. But I think the minimum Euro $10,000 to be met is WAAAY too high. Definitely not suited for smaller scale projects or those who are just looking for a bit of financial assistance. It’s definitely a great place for offline entrepreneurs and business owners who can offer more in return, which will be more attractive to the average sponsors and supporters.
The very fact that it only serves for the UK businesses may be a very big turn-off for anyone outside UK, but it’s probably the best platform for UK business owners since it gets very targeted localized traffic and investors to begin with. Being able to add images, videos, and even documents on the site to convince your potential prospects, its functionality is very well-thought out. You even have a graph to track your investment funds records so you can easily get specific data to evaluate your marketing strategies; something that you don’t see in most crowdfunding sites. As it has a very targeted and narrowed purpose, its laser focus definitely serves well for the UK.
I run an on line reverse auction business that has a very similar business model to Funding Circle but is focused on saving new cars buyer’s money.
The business is http://www.autoebid .com , we have taken orders over £100 (m) and have a great business with thousands of very satisfied customers who save on average £3K on a new car.
We are looking to raise a relatively small sum and considering using crowdcube.com, does anyone have experience raising funding through it?
Regards
The concept of Crowdcube is great but I have a strong dislike to their endless and odd nanny-mentality where they don’t permit investors like myself to chose how much I want to invest, and what I want to invest in.
The company has a funding ceiling for companies seeking funding at about £200,000 which is bad. Some companies are not viable business modules if they are underfunded, while they may be great business models if they are allowed to fund themselves with the right amount.
While crowdcube restrict companies looking for investment, they had no ceiling at all when they asked for more than £1 million in their own funding. It really looks bad and unethical when they can ask limitless funding to themselves but add a ceiling on other companies seeking funding. Makes no sense.
They also apply rigidly control on what companies, what services and/or products can seek funding on their website which I find ludicrous. I don’t know anyone at crowdcube. So why should they nanny over me? I am an adult and fully capable of doing my own decisions. As an investor I want to see a whole variety of projects – not merely what their own management decide to approve.
What is needed is an open crowd funding platform that does not superimpose and police itself on investors like Crowdcube.
I therefore don’t invest in anything involving crowd cube and neither do my colleagues.