Ludwine Dekker

Why I designed the Dutch Crowdfunding Awards and Why it’s a Success Already

Crowdfunding is coming of age. Crowdfunding is at turn point from being “alternative” towards being “normal”. This is a good development as it should unlock more funding as more people, who might still consider crowdfunding a bit exotic, will join. In addition, normalisation indicates that… Read More

One Month into 2015: Die, Survive or Thrive? What Platforms Will Be The Winners of 2015?

One month into 2015 and we’ve seen a lot of predictions being made.  But what is much harder to predict than exponential growth, is a selection of crowdfunding platforms that will be the winners of 2015! What are the platforms that we’ll have to watch… Read More

2015 Crowdfunding Trends: Mergers, Acquisitions & Extensive Collaborations

The crowdfunding industry in 2014 has experienced immense growth. In the last three years crowdfunding has tripled according to Clearity, and according to NESTA the growth percentage even was an amazing 400%. The expectations of a $10 billion crowdfunding industry are hardly a month away… Read More

The Big Boys Say Crowdfunding is a Drop in the Ocean: And They’re Right

Crowdfunding ­is ‘hot & happening’. So ‘hot & happening’ in fact, that a lot of valid criticism, however badly formulated at times, is discarded. One of the points made that is taken as an outright insult, is the mention that “Crowdfunding is just a drop… Read More

Convertible Loans as a Band-Aid Solution to the Valuation Problem in Equity Crowdfunding

What’s happening: the industry wants equity It’s ironic that crowdfunding makes it possible to set up companies that otherwise never would’ve come into existence, only to ruin them later by postponing the valuation issues that any start up will have to solve sooner or later…. Read More

McKinsey says ‘Business Needs More Women’: Crowdfunding Can Support This Goal

Why do we want more women in business? Practicing gender equality is usually not the reason one starts a company. Are men making a mess of our economies and companies? Is “the men’s world” not functioning or failing in creating sustainable growth within our economies?… Read More

The Real Difference Between VC and Crowdfunding? Investment Marketing

A few weeks back the value of VC’s for the crowdfunding industry was extensively discussed. Why? Because there are lot of areas where crowdfunding and VC’s can connect. And though traditional funding and alternative funding are not as rigorously separated as many want to believe,… Read More

Seeing Crowdfunding for What It Is: A Sales Method

As a proposition manager for Symbid, we’ve recently ran an amazingly successful campaign called “Kidswatcher”. After his little niece went missing in a ski resort, Eric Recter had an idea: develop an App for parents in combination with a digital watch for their children so… Read More

France’s First Mover Advantage in Crowdfunding Legislation: A Separate Legal Status for Crowdfunding Platforms

Last February Europe, Fleur Pellerin, the former minister of SME’s & Digital Economy, introduced a first draft that outlines a separate legal status for crowdfunding platforms in France. Though France was and still is lagging within the crowdfunding industry in terms of volume and entrepreneurial… Read More

Securing an Exit: Trouble in Crowdfunding Paradise

Greg Anderson posted an interesting question in the beginning of 2013: “Should we celebrate equity crowdfunding at the first investment or first exit?”. More and more savvy (crowdfunding) investors like Nelson Gray and Daniel Isenberg are leaning towards the latter, pointing out the problems of… Read More

Equity Crowdfunding Needs Educated Investors

Crowdfunding is hopelessly dependent on traditional funding sectors to educate a new generation of investors and fully develop the industry. The alternative funding industry values its’ own innovative and somewhat ‘rebellious’ character – two characteristics the traditional financial industry isn’t well known for. On top… Read More

Startup Hubs in Europe: What’s Their Added Value for Your Startup?

Forbes already knows: smart startups start in Europe. But why? Startups are a thriving resource of jobs and competitive advantage through innovation, and what they need are great startup ecologies. Europe is well on its way to develop several entrepreneurship hubs, and the lists with… Read More

Legislating Crowdfunding & Industry Accreditation

The recent commotion concerning crowdfunding legislation is easy to understand considering Europe’s seemingly passive attitude concerning crowdfunding (J.D. Alois) and the discussion on open or closed crowdfunding markets. Accreditation can help to speed up the development of industry-fit regulation, but it requires companies to play… Read More

Figuring Out Crowdfunding: Should We Support Open or Closed Markets?

  As the European Union continues to monitor crowdfunding developments, countries in Europe, like France and the U.K., are already developing legislation in an attempt to establish a cohesive government approach. These developments make an interesting case study that can help to decide whether or… Read More

European Crowdfunding Legislation: What’s Taking So Long?

As the U.S. is making major efforts to implement the JOBS Act, the European Union seems to be only capable of analyzing the developments, as J.D. Alois’ article “EC Releases Communication on Long Term Financing Including Crowdfunding” shows. The most important conclusion was that the… Read More

Considering crowdfunding? Burst the bubble first!

It could fund your project, boost our companies, create jobs and maybe even save our entire economy: crowdfunding. Advertised as the go-to digital cash machine if the bank doesn’t get you the money you need, crowdfunding is well on its way to become a major… Read More

Introduction To Crowdfunding, Part 2

These tips were compiled by Ella van Leeuwen, Margit Laurs and Melvin Loggies, Master students Entrepreneurship & New Business Venturing at the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University), Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Content shared in partnership with Symbid. Check back next week for the third part of the… Read More

Introduction To Crowdfunding, Part 1

These tips were compiled by Ella van Leeuwen, Margit Laurs and Melvin Loggies, Master students Entrepreneurship & New Business Venturing at the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University), Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Content shared in partnership with Symbid. Raising capital through traditional financing methods has become harder… Read More

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