Crowdfunding Now!

As one article notes, "The Texas  State Securities Board, led by Commissioner John Morgan, is scheduled to meet August 27, 2014 to pass the new (crowdfunding) rules slated to go into effect the first of September." Another article states that "Texas as is now the 13th state to create its own equity crowdfunding rules and by-pass the JOBS Act. The U. S. SEC has not released or finalized the federal rules and some states see the billion dollar opportunity equity crowdfunding presents and they have decided to take the bull by the horn and jumpstart small business and economic development in their state. Section 3(a)(11) of the 33 Act exempts from registration any security that is part of an offering sold only to persons residing within a single state if the company is also doing business in that state. So, as long as a company complies with the federal intrastate exemption, it only needs to be concerned with the state’s crowdfunding rules when conducting a crowdfundin...

The full Securities and Exchange Commission voted today to approve rules allowing full crowdfunding. This means that, in short order, you will be able to sell stock in your small or startup company over the Internet . Title 3 of the JOBS Act means that issuers can sell securities online to anyone. The SEC voted to create a new SEC Act exemption to do so. The amount of money you can raise and the amount of money you can invest is limited, however. SEC Staff Members John Ramsey and Sebastian Gomez were two of the authors of this exemption. Ramsey noted the new rule requires crowdfunding intermediaries to register with the SEC and FINRA. The new rules create an entirely new type of business financing firm: a Funding Portal (FP). Portals bring investors, companies together. He noted that FINRA will issue a regulatory notice on FPs. SEC Staff Member Lela Bond noted that the proposed rules exclude foreign companies, investment companies, companies with no business plan, and co...

Letter from the US Senate to the SEC about the JOBS Act . October 21, 2013 The Honorable Mary Jo White Chairman U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 100 F Street, NE Washington, DC 20549 Dear Chairman White: We write in response to recent news reports that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is nearing the point of proposing regulations on crowdfunding .  Proposed regulations have been delayed significantly, and we urge the SEC to move forward with its proposal as soon as possible. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act was adopted with bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House of Representatives . The legislation was signed into law on April 5, 2012, and in it Congress directed the SEC to publish rules on the crowdfunding provisions within 270 days of enactment.  It has now been over 530 days since the JOBS Act became law, and we have not seen a proposal from the SEC on crowdfunding.  We are concerned that so much time ...

At Blackcrowdfunding.net , we support  "The White House Champions of Change program highlights the stories and examples of citizens across the country who are " Winning the Future " with projects and initiatives that move their communities forward. This May, the White House Office of Public Engagement will host a Champions of Change event for entrepreneurs who exemplify the promise of crowdfunding to fuel the growth of startups and small businesses across the Nation. "Crowdfunding" means raising money in small increments from many individuals, typically using an Internet platform. Donation-based crowdfunding is already empowering many entrepreneurs, while investment-based crowdfunding platforms will soon be facilitated by the bipartisan Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, which the President signed one year ago and the SEC will implement. We are asking for your help to identify crowdfunding entrepreneurs who may be "Champio...

According to TechCrunch , "The SEC today paved the way for a new era of venture capital investing by  stating  it won’t pursue enforcement action against  FundersClub , whose platform lets any accredited investor fund startups in exchange for equity. Before, some thought FundersClub’s founders could face jail time for violating finance laws . FundersClub’s model could be used by others to raise capital online for startups before the JOBS Act goes fully into effect." This is a good sign, but not the small scale equity crowdfunding approval we have been waiting for. The SEC validated something that is currently legal to do: it let investors with over a million in net worth invest using an online platform. Yawn. See article links below. Nothing to see here. Please move on. Related articles JOBS Act Expected to Increase Diversity in Funding SEC recognizes FundersClub as first-ever online VC The Crowd's Money Can Dominate Early-Stage Investing, But Only If T...

As I noted in the Washington Post, in about six to nine months, the Securities and Exchange Commission will put forward rules that will govern how companies can raise equity capital using crowdfunding. See:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/commentary-the-quest-for-crowdfunding-enters-a-complicated-but-critical-phase/2012/12/23/d15ef280-4939-11e2-ad54-580638ede391_story.html My sources tell me that the SEC will lean heavily toward registered broker/dealers to take the lead, as evidenced by the fact that FINRA issued the first official regulatory paperwork related to Crowdfunding.  http://crowdfundingnow.blogspot.com/2013/01/first-regulatory-paperwork-related-to.html This has the added benefit that the JOBS Act gives several preferences to broker/dealers, as I note in my book:  http://www.amazon.com/The-JOBS-Act-Crowdfunding-Businesses/dp/143024755X Related articles First Regulatory Paperwork Related to Crowdfunding Released Commentary: The...

Crowdfunding News 1/25/13 Three awesome crowdfunding projects going on now Boston.com (blog) From an adorable puppy Facebook game to fresh produce for everyone, these local crowdfunding projects on Kickstarter and Indiegogo offer a little of something for everyone. Fresh Truck. What they do: Convert an old schoolbus into a mobile farmers ... See all stories on this topic » Solar Crowdfunding Startup Lets Ordinary Investors Own A Piece Of The Sun Forbes Solar Crowdfunding Startup Lets Ordinary Investors Own A Piece Of The Sun. This story appears in the February 11, 2013 issue of Forbes. comments , called-out. Comment Now. Follow Comments Following Comments Unfollow Comments. Comment Now ... See all stories on this topic » Forbes Crowdfunding Helps Bring Xconomy to Colorado; Now Writers Needed Xconomy If you've spent much time in the Colorado back country , you probably remember feeling a profound sense of elation that comes after hours of...

Today, FINRA issued the first official regulatory paperwork related to Crowdfunding: a voluntary, interim form that Cowdfunding portals can use to register with FINRA. If you are a portal helping people raise equity capital online, you must register with FINRA, so this gets the process started. An important move. According to FINRA, "Filing of this interim form will not entitle you to FINRA membership. We will make membership available to funding portals after the SEC adopts funding portal rules and approves FINRA's funding portal rules. Once funding portal rules are in place, FINRA will issue a final funding portal application that will be necessary for you to file to become a FINRA member. In applying for membership, you will not be bound by the responses you provided on this interim funding portal form."  To see the form, go to FINRA's website or go here:  https://docs.google.com/open?id=0Bx3S91AlzNJ4MElNb1pfYmktYjg

Since President Obama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act last spring, the most successful crowdfunding campaign — for an e-paper wristwatch called Pebble Watch — raised $10 million. Another campaign — this one for a video game, raised $6.3 million from 90,000 fans online — shows that companies with innovative products and services can raise significant amounts of money online. In about six months, the beleaguered Securities and Exchange Commission will put forward rules that will govern how companies can raise equity capital using crowdfunding . It has been slow going. The SEC, staggered by its role in the financial crisis, is extraordinarily cautious now. The agency remains under the influence of the industry it regulates, which is frightened by crowdfunding . Industry officials have built obstacles in the SEC’s path to creating crowdfunding rules. Critics of crowdfunding say that the risk of fraud is high, but their case is weak given that individual dollar in...

According to news sources, "The Ontario Securities Commission released a paper today intended to initiate a broad consultative process to consider a number of potential new capital raising prospectus exemptions.." including crowdfunding. This is another example of a foreign regulatory agency beating the SEC (and the U.S.) to the punch. The paper examines how several countries, "including the U.S., Australia and the U.K.", manage the exemption process. According to one review, these countries generally base exemptions on one or more of the following: investor attributes (such as income and financial assets);  relationships with the issuer (such as the family, friends and business associates exemption available in jurisdictions other than Ontario);  investment size (such as Ontario's $150,000 minimum investment amount exemption);  disclosure;  'crowdfunding'; and  offering size." You can download the paper here .

The crowdfunding provisions of the JOBS Act are one of the most exciting developments in the world of finance this year. The ability of companies with innovative products and services has already been proven. This effectively disintermediates venture capital firms and banks from a process they have been purposefully obstructing, the process of providing small businesses and entrepreneurs with start up capital.  As I mention in several blog postings ( http://under30ceo.com/ignore-the-naysayers-the-job...  and in my book (The JOBS Act: Crowdfunding for Small Businesses and  Startups  http://www.amazon.com/The-JOBS-Act-Crowdfunding-Businesses/dp/143024755X)   I understand that this is a complicated question, but it is also a critical one.  Here is what I think the SEC must do now:  Broaden the base. At its November 15th Forum on Small Business Capital Formation, the SEC did not have a single African American on any of the panels. (I guess the S...

Crowdfunding News 9/26/12 How to make the best crowdfunding pitch Washington Post (blog) The Securities and Exchange Commission is drafting regulations for crowdfunding – a not yet legal practice allowing companies to sell stakes to large numbers of small investors, potentially online. Startups looking to pursue those dollars will need to ... See all stories on this topic » National Crowdfunding Association Partners with Equity Advertising Ventures to ... The Herald | HeraldOnline.com 26, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Crowdfunding Association today announced that it has partnered with Equity Advertising Ventures, a San Diego-based marketing and communications firm, to create enhanced marketing campaigns in ... See all stories on this topic » Gambitious Launches, Brings Equity and Donation Crowdfunding to Video Games Crowdsourcing.org While pledges can be made by anyone over 18 years old, the equity crowdfunding model is open primarily to...