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Type of site | Crowdfunding |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| URL | http://www.sponsume.com |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Launched | August 2010 |
Sponsume was an online multicurrency crowdfunding platform founded by French entrepreneur Gregory Vincent in 2010. [1] However, it ceased its crowdfunding services in 2014. [2]
During his time as a doctoral student at Oxford University, Vincent developed a strong interest in the works of Muhammad Yunus, a pioneering figure in the world of microfinance. Vincent recognised the potential of peer-to-peer microfinance as an alternative method for funding innovative ideas. [3] In 2009, the financial crisis and subsequent cuts to subsidies in the UK arts scene highlighted the need for a community-led approach to fundraising for artists and innovators. This prompted Vincent to establish Sponsume. [4]
The site used the power of social networks and the wisdom of crowds [5] to help fund a variety of projects ranging from films [6] and documentaries, [7] to music, theatre, photography, fashion, technology, scientific [8] research, green and social enterprise. By 2012, Sponsume had helped crowd fund over 1000 campaigns. [9]
Project owners set a funding goal and a deadline for their campaigns. In return for contributions, they offered non-monetary rewards typically related to their projects. [10] The platform charged a 4% fee for campaigns that reached their funding goals, while unsuccessful campaigns incurred a 9% fee.
Microcredit is the extension of very small loans (microloans) to impoverished borrowers who typically lack collateral, steady employment, or a verifiable credit history. It is designed to support entrepreneurship and alleviate poverty. Many recipients are illiterate, and therefore unable to complete paperwork required to get conventional loans. As of 2009 an estimated 74 million people held microloans that totaled US$38 billion. Grameen Bank reports that repayment success rates are between 95 and 98 percent.
Fan-funded music is crowdfunding for music. Often, fan-funded music occurs in conjunction with direct-to-fan marketing. Fans of music have the option to donate and collectively raise money with the goal of jump-starting the career of a given musical artist. The fan-funding of music occurs primarily through web-based services using a business model for crowdfunding. Fans are typically given rewards based on their monetary contributions.
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of February 2023, Kickstarter has received US$7 billion in pledges from 21.7 million backers to fund 233,626 projects, such as films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, board games, technology, publishing, and food-related projects.
CrowdRise is a for-profit crowdfunding platform that raises charitable donations. CrowdRise was founded by Edward Norton, Shauna Robertson, and the founders of Moosejaw, Robert and Jeffrey Wolfe. CrowdRise was acquired in 2017 by GoFundMe.
Indiegogo is an American crowdfunding website founded in 2008 by Danae Ringelmann, Slava Rubin, and Eric Schell. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, California. The site is one of the first sites to offer crowd funding. Indiegogo allows people to solicit funds for an idea, charity, or start-up business. Indiegogo charges a 5% fee on contributions. This charge is in addition to Stripe credit card processing charges of 3% + $0.30 per transaction. Fifteen million people visit the site each month.
Pozible is an Australia-based crowdfunding platform and community-building tool for creative projects and ideas. It was developed to help people raise funds.
FundaGeek was a crowd funding resource designed for funding project involving technology, scientific research, inventions and community support. Funding is provided through backers who make pledges in return for rewards provided by the project owners. Fundageek does not regard crowd funding as an investment or a debt instrument, and pledges do not involve any form of equity interest. The April 2012 JOBS Act opens up the prospects for "equity crowdfunding" however the SEC has not yet defined the required rules for participation. The industry expects this to happen in 2013.
Zequs.com is an online crowd funding platform that operates in an 'All or Nothing' method for individuals or groups to raise funds for creative projects. The site utilises social networks, with the use of social media, to help promote current projects. There are no restrictions from where those looking for funding are based. The head office is located in Queens Club, London.
InvestedIn is a crowd funding website for fund raising projects and charity events such as walkathons and celebrity cause-based campaigns. InvestedIn is also a technology provider offering a white label crowdfunding platform for commercial and non-profit use.
Seedrs is an online equity crowdfunding company, headquartered in East London's Tech City, founded in 2009 and launched by Jeff Lynn and Carlos Silva in 2012. Since 2022 it has been a subsidiary of American crowdfunding company Republic.
FundRazr is a free crowdfunding and online fundraising platform released in 2009. FundRazr operates internationally in 35+ countries with the largest markets being United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia. It allows users to run a wide-range of crowdfunding campaigns by creating fundraising pages and sharing it via social media, messaging apps, email and more to raise money for over 100 types of causes such as nonprofit, medical care, education, community help, poverty alleviation, arts, memorials, and animal rescue causes. FundRazr also works with more than 4000 nonprofits, charities and social enterprises with an advanced fundraising toolset for free. The digital fundraising platform provides 8 different campaign types. They include microproject fundraising, peer-to-peer campaigns, wishlist campaigns, recurring donations, branded sponsorship campaigns, DIY projects, sweepstake campaigns, and storefront campaigns.
Peoplefund.it is an online crowdfunding platform in the UK that operates in an 'All or Nothing' method for individuals or groups to raise funds for creative projects. It was started by KEO digital, a digital media company based in London, UK.
MicroVentures is an equity crowdfunding website that offers investments in early stage companies. It connects accredited investors with startups, businesses and services looking to raise funds or participate in select secondary market opportunities.
Crowdcube is a British investment crowdfunding platform, established by Darren Westlake and Luke Lang in 2011.
Tilt.com, Inc. was a crowdfunding company founded in 2012 that allowed for groups and communities to collect, fundraise, or pool money online. James Beshara and Khaled Hussein launched the platform under the name Crowdtilt out of Y Combinator.
WeDidIt is a New York City-based company founded in 2012, that provides an online platform and a mobile app for nonprofits to raise funds. It allows nonprofits to launch campaigns online, collect donations through their website, and collect funds and scan credit cards in person through the WeDidIt mobile app.
Brainly is an education company based in Kraków, Poland, with headquarters in New York City. It is an AI-powered homework help platform targeting students and parents. As of November 2020, Brainly reported having 15 million daily active users, making it the world's most popular education app.
Onevest, a New York–based investment crowdfunding site for startups that was acquired by Business Rockstars in April 2018, allowed entrepreneurs to raise capital from accredited investors. In July 2014, startups launching on Onevest had collectively raised over $66 million.
Rebeca Minguela is a Spanish entrepreneur and startup advisor. She was the founder and CEO of Blink Booking, now Blink by Groupon, an award-winning mobile app to book hotels last minute in Europe. When Blink was acquired by Groupon in September 2013, she joined Groupon.
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over US$34 billion was raised worldwide by crowdfunding.
