We’re celebrating a major milestone this month.
12 years ago — in April 2009, to be exact — the world of startup investing was transformed.
This transformation ushered in a new era of business opportunities for entrepreneurs…
And new profit opportunities for investors like you.
But as you’ll see today, the revolution has only just begun…
Crowdfunding is Born!
What’s this milestone I’m referring to?
The launch of Kickstarter.com, the world’s first crowdfunding platform.
Before Kickstarter came along, entrepreneurs had few ways to fund a new business idea:
- They could go hat in hand to friends and family.
- They could get a loan from a bank.
- Or, if they lived in the right city and had the right connections, they could pitch professional investors.
But on April 28th, 2009, Perry Chen, Yancey Strickler, and Charles Adler launched Kickstarter — and gave entrepreneurs a new way to get funding.
Basically, entrepreneurs could post their idea on Kickstarter, and thousands of people from across the world could commit small amounts of money to support it.
In other words, instead of getting one or two big checks from banks or venture funds, entrepreneurs could now collect lots of small checks from “the crowd.”
A New Crowdfunding Revolution
Kickstarter has had tremendous success over the past 12 years.
As of today, it’s helped raise over $6.5 billion for various projects. And helped launch over 218,000 businesses.
But for entrepreneurs and investors, Kickstarter was just the beginning.
Once Wall Street and the government saw what was happening, they decided to take the Kickstarter “crowdfunding” concept a step further.
You see, if you contribute to a project on Kickstarter, you don’t own a piece of the business behind it. So if one of the companies you fund turns into the next Google, Uber, or Facebook, you don’t get a cent of the upside.
Which is why, in 2016, the SEC enacted a new set of laws that allows individuals like you to back a new startup idea — and receive an actual ownership stake in the business.
This concept is known as “equity crowdfunding.” And just like Kickstarter, it’s been on an absolute tear…
The First Crowdfunding “Unicorn”
Equity crowdfunding has only been around for six years. But in that time, the industry has made enormous strides.
For example, in 2016, the first year that equity crowdfunding platforms existed, startups raised just $27 million. But according to Forbes, in 2021, equity crowdfunded startups raised over $400 million. That’s close to 1,500% growth in just a few short years.
On top of that, many of the startups coming out of the equity crowdfunding world have become very successful — and are already delivering big returns to their early investors.
For example, banking startup Mercury is reported to be equity crowdfunding’s first “unicorn.” In other words, the company is now valued at over $1 billion.
More Gains to Come
Our team here at Crowdability couldn’t be more excited.
We founded Crowdability nearly eight years ago because we believed equity crowdfunding would be transformational:
We believed it would transform the lives of entrepreneurs launching companies… and transform the lives of investors like you who backed them.
It’s been truly rewarding to see that vision play out just as we’d hoped and expected.
But we know we need to do more to educate and protect investors as they enter this new world.
So if you haven’t done so already, check out our free reports, videos, and resources. These will help you quickly get up to speed on equity crowdfunding.
We’ve already witnessed explosive growth in this market. But as I mentioned earlier, the revolution has only just begun!
Happy investing.
Best Regards,
Founder
Crowdability.com
