The last few years have seen a handful of new and often revolutionary ways for both companies and individuals to raise capital. Initial coin offerings (ICOs) and peer-to-peer lending are just a couple of these groundbreaking methods, offering an unprecedented level of directness between the fundraiser and the investor.
Alternative finance, the marriage of finance with technology, is transforming the financial-services industry by providing lending opportunities through popular vehicles such as peer-to-peer and crowd funding. The decentralization of lending is experiencing explosive growth around the world but especially in developing countries, in which budding entrepreneurs face limited conventional borrowing options.
Crowdfunding has been defined as an effort by various parties based around the world to pool their resources together in order to collectively support a project, initiated by an individual or an organisation.