Startup Exemption for Crowdfunding

= drive to make Crowdfund Investing (aka equity-based crowdfunding) legal

URL = http://www.startupexemption.com/

Description

Motivation:

"Post the 2008 financial crisis, the media made it seem like there were lots of loans, grants, programs, and private (Angel, PE & VC) money available to small business/entrepreneurs. When they actually explored these options, they found that banks were not lending, credit was limited, private money scarce and the available programs so difficult to work through that they gave up. They couldn’t comprehend why with today’s technology they could fund entrepreneurs in Uganda through Kiva or an ipod nano developer through Kickstarter but not use the same principles to raise capital from their community to create business and jobs. They, like everyone who has raised capital, knows it is illegal to publicly solicit money in the USA from unaccredited investors so they figured it was time to update the laws to reflect the advances in technology and the Internet. They created a regulatory framework that balanced the needs of entrepreneurs and investor protection in order to make CrowdFund Investing legal." (http://www.startupexemption.com/about-us)

"Crowdfunding is where a group of people use small dollar donations to fund an idea. For the past 5 years it has been donation-based because soliciting the same few dollars as an investment is illegal in the USA (although not in countries like the UK & China). We, the entrepreneurs behind the Startup Exemption, are the ones that developed the framework to make Crowdfund Investing (CFI) aka equity-based crowdfunding legal and brought it to Washington. (http://www.startupexemption.com/crowdfunding-101)

More Information

• website: www.startupexemption.com
• summary of opposition to the proposal

See also:

• Media hits: www.startupexemption.com/media-hits • The Startup Exemption, Crowdfund Investing (CFI) Framework: http://bit.ly/mRWXcZ • Our Congressional Testimony from September 15, 2011 http://1.usa.gov/oHrFy5 & link to Video of Hearing: http://bit.ly/raknZY • Our Congressional Testimony from May 10, 2011: http://scr..bi/izF4ib • Our Petition to the SEC & Congress: http://bit.ly/hQ2GXE • Our #1 idea on Startup America’s website ... Add YOUR vote: http://bit.ly/ivPQw5 • Follow us on Twitter: woodien • Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/startupexemption