Empowering the Crowd: Equity Crowdfunding's Contribution to Startup Funding and Retail Engagement

Shihoriwala, Habil Firozbhai (2023) Empowering the Crowd: Equity Crowdfunding's Contribution to Startup Funding and Retail Engagement. Masters thesis, Dublin, National College of Ireland.

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Abstract

Equity crowdfunding serves as a gateway for retail investors to partake in early-stage startup investments, thereby democratizing access to such opportunities. This study consists of five prominent US-based equity crowdfunding platforms, namely SEEDINVEST, STARTENGINE, WEFUNDER, NETCAPITAL and REPUBLIC. By analysing data spanning 2018 to 2023, the author investigates factors catalysing retail engagement and funding success. Focusing on pivotal attributes like funding amount, investor count, and funding status, the researcher employs a statistical approach encompassing data visualization and machine learning models, including SVM, Random Forest, and PCA.

Incorporating a dataset of 4144 campaigns, author establish a significant linkage between attributes such as number of investors, annual revenue, analyst report, amount raised and average daily raise. The survey acts as an additional guidance in helping identify factors that the crowd thinks are relevant in making an investment decision. This supplementary analysis corroborates the robust relationship between variables and identified independent factors, thereby underscoring their pivotal role in bolstering retail investor participation and steering startup funding dynamics.

In summation, the study augments the understanding of the intricate dynamics underpinning equity crowdfunding. By illuminating the substantial impact of variables, the researcher accentuates their significance in fostering investor engagement and shaping the trajectory of startup funding.

Item Type:	Thesis (Masters)
Supervisors:	Name Email Mendonca, Theo UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Equity crowdfunding; retail participation; funding; success; platform; campaign
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HG Finance > Fintech T Technology > T Technology (General) > Information Technology > Fintech H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > New Business Enterprises H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Specific Industries > Retail Industry
Divisions:	School of Computing > Master of Science in FinTech
Depositing User:	Tamara Malone
Date Deposited:	10 Aug 2024 09:34
Last Modified:	10 Aug 2024 09:34
URI:	https://norma.ncirl.ie/id/eprint/7034

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