Tagged: fraud

May 27, 2013 @ 8:47 am By JD Alois  |  

Over Regulation Has Challenged Public Markets, Will Crowdfunding Resurrect These Markets or Will Over Regulation Reign Supreme? Recently venture capitalist, tech entrepreneur and  industry soothsayer,  Marc Andreesen was interviewed on CNBC in an piece entitled “We are Living Through a Tech Depression“.  His talking points… Read More

May 20, 2013 @ 8:13 am By Charles Luzar  |  

A report released last month entitled Equity Crowdfunding and Venture Capital included some interesting revelations regarding what US venture capitalists and lawyers expect from equity crowdfunding. The report surveyed VCs and lawyers based in the states. Questions sought to gauge expectations about the JOBS Act’s trajectory and… Read More

April 26, 2013 @ 8:54 pm By BusinessWeeek  |  

The SEC announced a lawsuit on Thursday against a business in Spokane Valley, Wash., accused of defrauding 21 investors of about $400,000. The agency’s news release leads with charges that the company fooled investors “with claims to raise billions of investment capital under the Jumpstart… Read More

April 26, 2013 @ 7:25 am By MiBiz  |  

Crowdfunding has the potential to revolutionize how small businesses raise capital, but it generates an old worry: the possibility for fraud. But crowdfunding advocates say not to worry. The public nature of the investing model should help investors quickly identify and put a stop to… Read More

April 25, 2013 @ 3:44 pm By Charles Luzar  |  

Alleged promises of huge returns plus access to boats, private jets and more…

April 24, 2013 @ 5:18 pm By CrowdCheck  |  

The New Year has come and gone and we are done with the first quarter of 2013, and yet we are still without SEC rules to implement crowdfunding as authorized by the JOBS Act.  While some commenters on the SEC JOBS Act comment section have… Read More

April 10, 2013 @ 7:00 am By Charles Luzar  |  

Monday’s conference on crowdfunding fraud and regulation in Washington, DC was an event I had been looking forward to for some time. It didn’t disappoint. Organized by Virginia-based CrowdCheck, the speaking roster of this conference was distinctly and obviously set up to put all sides… Read More

April 5, 2013 @ 11:54 am By JD Alois  |  

Crowdfunding due diligence platform Crowdcheck has scheduled a gathering in Washington DC to discuss the possible risks to securities Crowdfunding. The event is featuring keynote speaker US Senator Mark Warner (D – Virginia). Entitled Fraud and Red Tape: Risks to the Potential of Securities Crowdfunding… Read More

March 30, 2013 @ 9:52 am By Business Insider  |  

From the original article… In July 2012, Equiso was living the Kickstarter dream. Now it’s in a Kickstarter nightmare. It has legions of unhappy customers, alleged threats from hacking group Anonymous, and a forgotten co-founder who claims to have been unfairly ousted. It’s also being accused of selling… Read More

March 1, 2013 @ 5:41 pm By Melissa Canone  |  

With the advent of the internet and social media, a completely new way to invest in business has arisen. Crowdfunding is a method of raising capital in small amounts from a large group of people using the World Wide Web. Unlike funds from venture capitalists… Read More

March 1, 2013 @ 5:37 pm By Jennifer Napier-Pearce  |  

Crowdfunding has come to the rescue for hundreds of thousands of startups looking for capital in a tight credit market. Soon, a new dimension to online fundraising, known as equity crowdfunding, will be available to investors, and that has regulators and consumer advocates on edge. Regulations to… Read More

February 13, 2013 @ 7:01 am By JD Alois  |  

It used to be that stock transactions were a laborious task.  Phone calls were made, account verifications were processed, confirmations were mailed and summarily filed away.  The advent of internet based stock trading was a natural and exciting evolution of  investing in equities.  No longer… Read More

February 11, 2013 @ 7:00 am By Charles Luzar  |  

Promises Made An individual identifying himself as Michael Waller of Syracuse, NY launched a Kickstarter campaign in the summer of 2012. The project was called the “MD-Pen,” or “minimal and durable pen.” It is an aluminum housing compatible with many off-the-shelf pen cartridges. Pre-orders were offered… Read More

February 10, 2013 @ 5:38 pm By HITC Tech  |  

Not all games on Kickstarter are what they appear, as a title aimed at US College Football fans was recently pulled from the crowd funding site after potentially fraudulent claims were exposed. Boasting a backing from well-known Atlanta Falcons running back Jamal Anderson, the project claimed that… Read More

February 9, 2013 @ 3:51 pm By CrowdCheck  |  

Crowdfunding offers the ability for early-stage companies to seek investments from friends and neighbors in their social networks, fellow alumni, and others who have similar affinities.  These connections may help reduce fraud that comes in the form of outright theft from investors.  But selling securities… Read More

February 9, 2013 @ 2:43 pm By Outside Magazine  |  

Kickstarter has become the go-to funding source for serious expeditions and boondoggles alike. And that has some benefactors wanting their cash back. Last May, Andrew Badenoch, a thirtysomething former Internet marketer in Oregon, set off on a 7,000-mile solo expedition from Bellingham, Washington, with a… Read More

January 23, 2013 @ 8:30 am By JD Alois  |  

Recently a superlative document was published by the Milken Institute which reflected upon the current state of crowdfunding domestically within the United States but also drawing on parallels abroad.  This missive was authored  by Messrs.  Chris Brummer, a law professor at Georgetown University and Daniel Gorfine,… Read More

January 22, 2013 @ 7:04 pm By CBSNews  |  

Part of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups, or JOBS, Act of 2012 made it possible for the little guy to get a chance to put money into a startup. That’s the charitable interpretation, anyway: Many critics of the legislation worried that it may allow some… Read More

January 17, 2013 @ 8:18 pm By WSJ.com  |  

Regulators are scrutinizing about 200 websites set up by entrepreneurs to profit from a more lenient law on the sale of shares in small companies. State securities officials identified the websites after a sweep of thousands of Internet addresses for possible threats to investors following… Read More

January 17, 2013 @ 9:20 am By Alison Grant, The Plain Dealer  |  

Formal complaints of securities violations in Ohio have fallen sharply in the past five years, but the state’s top securities watchdog says that trend could reverse with the rise of more Internet-based investing. Under a new securities law signed by President Obama last April, companies are… Read More