Equity Crowdfunding Platforms In United Kingdom In 2017 - A Handbook of 23 Top Equity Crowdfunding Platforms In United Kingdom In 2017

By Davide Magrini

The best market in the world, for equity crowdfunding, is the UK. This is a useful review of the top 23 equity crowdfunding platforms in UK in 2017. It will help you to scan all the possibilities, save time, and quickly decide which is the best platform to raise funds for your project.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Feb 13, 2017
• ISBN: 9781365752636

Book preview

Equity Crowdfunding Platforms In United Kingdom In 2017 - A Handbook of 23 Top Equity Crowdfunding Platforms In United Kingdom In 2017

Equity Crowdfunding Platforms in UK in 2017

A handbook of 23 top equity crowdfunding platforms in UK in 2017

Equity Crowdfunding Platforms in UK in 2017

A handbook of 23 top equity crowdfunding platforms in UK in 2017

Davide Magrini

Copyright

Copyright © 2017 by Davide Magrini

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

First Printing: 2017

ISBN 978-1-365-75263-6

Davide Magrini

Introduction

This book, first of all, wants to be a quick guide for those who are looking to fund their projects using an equity crowdfunding platform. It won't explain what is crowdfunding, its story, how to apply and get funded and so on, there are a lot of such guides for beginners and for experts. Looking in the bookstores, instead, you can find that there's a lack of guides to find the right platform for your project. Yes, there are various websites that are trying to collect as much platforms as possible, but often those websites merely report URLs, head office, emails, and a very short description of one-two lines. And even if, sometimes, with a quick search in web you can easily find the few top platforms in the market, it is certainly sure that discovering all the other takes a lot of time, and you could find between the outsiders the one which better can help you with your project, maybe because it’s specialized in a specific sector or because it can support you more in the execution of the campaign.

In this book you can find 23 of the top equity crowdfunding platforms in UK, with their self descriptions, third party descriptions (like Wikipedia and others, when available) and some articles published in the media. So that you can get as much information as possible, all in one guide book, you can understand the slightly different objectives of every platform and eventual different approach. We don’t report all the specific features (fees, duration, eligibility, and more), because they are changing continuously and, anyway, after the first selection of some potential platforms to use, we strongly suggest to visit carefully their website and read carefully terms and conditions before the final choice.

So this book aims to shorten your time for taking a decision, and let you focus on the crowdfunding campaign execution. Because time is money and good timing is one of most important points in business.

Why only platforms in United Kingdom?

If you read this book, probably you already know what equity crowdfunding is, and basically how it works. A specific characteristic of equity crowdfunding is that it is usually subject to different regulations in every country. This happens because investors get shares of the companies (or similar investment products) in exchange of future revenues (dividends or selling shares at higher price). So, being this similar to other financial products (bonds, convertibles, stocks), almost every country decided to let this sector be regulated by the financial authority; in United Kingdom it is the FCA. So, usually, only companies registered in the same country can apply for equity crowdfunding, and the platforms have to be certified by the authority.

It means this market is strictly connected to the country. That’s why this book regards only the UK market. That said, sometimes the platforms decide to certify in different countries, so you will find the country specification for every platform.

Furthermore, although the biggest reward crowdfunding market in the world is the United States, the biggest equity crowdfunding market seems to be the UK.

Important notices, before you start reading.

•                      For every platform you will find the following description:

•       Name of the platform

•       Website

•       Country (some of them may be available in different countries)

•       Self-description (usually from their website or other in-house sources)

•       Wikipedia (when available it is a good and well recognized source)

•       In the media (different news and articles to know something more, when available)

Platforms are reported in alphabetic order.

This work was done from October 2016 to February 2017, so in the meanwhile some changes could have happened, in that case we'd be glad if you report it to my email: [e-mail]

We would be glad, anyway, to receive your opinion and specially recommendations to improve this guide. As you understand this guide could be edited again, brushed up and with more platforms reviewed, so please help us doing that!

Now you're ready to go!

Enjoy the reading and good luck for your project!

Abundance Investment

Web: www.abundanceinvestment.com

Country: UK.

Self-description

Why Abundance

Investing with Abundance lets you turn a profit without turning a blind eye.

Maybe you’re growing your money to fund your family’s future, or you are looking to use your savings to generate an income for extra peace of mind. Whichever it is, Abundance can help make your long term goals a reality.

We allow you to invest directly in projects that offer estimated returns of 6 - 9% IRR for you, as well as social and environmental benefits. It’s our approach to investing. Step by step, project by project, you’re taking control of how your money helps build a better future for you and the world you live in.

Our products

Investments that help you make a decent return and a nicer planet.

Whether it’s her university fees, their wedding, or his first home, our products can help grow your money in a more efficient way to fund your family’s future – and your retirement. We offer investments in the form of Debentures, regulated investment products which offer regular payments across their term. And you can hold them in our tax-efficient pension or Innovative Finance ISA to make your returns go that bit further.

Wikipedia

Abundance Investment (formerly Abundance Generation) is a regulated online platform that lets people lend money to projects providing a social and/or environmental good from as little as £5 per person. To date investments have gone to renewable energy projects in the UK and investors from across Europe receive a share in the returns from generating low-carbon electricity. When investors buy a Debenture through Abundance, they are lending money to a project and in return they have the right to a percentage of the revenue or profit generated, mostly from the sale of the electricity produced by the project. Abundance Investment is open to all UK residents over 18, residents from the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland and not US citizens and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Currently, Abundance focuses on a range of renewable energy projects but is looking to offer other ethical and social beneficial investments in the future that contribute to a green economy.

Risks of investing in renewable energy

All investment carries risk, and Abundance, as a regulated crowdfunding platform, is required to clearly set out these risks for all potential investors. For renewable energy projects, something could go wrong and an investor may not get back all or any of their original investment. Abundance Debentures are usually long-term investments which investors should expect to hold for the full 20 years. Although Abundance facilitates a process for Debentures to be bought and sold before the end of their life, there is no guarantee that this can be done, or what the value will be. 2015 saw Abundance raise over £2m for its first short-term (one year) Debenture supporting the construction of a wind turbine, which it expects to re-finance with a long-term Debenture. Finally, rates of return are estimated and not guaranteed. Offer Documents set out risks related to specific projects and should be read thoroughly before an investment is made.

History and aims

Abundance is based in London, UK and launched to the public in April 2012. The company was set up in 2009 and went through a two year process to become the first community finance platform / crowdfunding platform to be authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (now the Financial Conduct Authority).

Abundance aims to support projects that deliver benefits for society and the environment, including renewable energy, which give "people control over where their money is invested and how it generates a return. Renewable energy is the starting point,