Mastering Crowdfunding: Wefunder

Wefunder is like “Kickstarter for investing”, a crowdfunding service which connects startups with investors online. Wefunder has helped more than 300 startups raise over $103 million of capital from 275,445 investors. Unlike other crowdfunding platforms, investors are not buying a product or donating to an artist. Instead, they are investing in businesses with the hope of earning a return.

From 1933 to 2016, it was illegal to make an investment in a private company unless you were an “accredited investor” (i.e., rich). As a Y Combinator alumni company, Wefunder was instrumental in helping Congress pass the JOBS Act in 2012 which paved the way for unaccredited investors to provide equity for entrepreneurial undertakings. Since May of 2016, thanks to a new law called Regulation Crowdfunding, it became legal for everyone to invest small amounts of money in the startups they believed in.

Today, Wefunder is the largest funding portal by dollars raised, number of companies funded, and number of investors. Because they know what it takes to work with good companies, they have one of the best portfolios in the industry. Founders are busy running their startup, so Wefunder does all the grunt work for you. More than that, as founders themselves (not finance guys or bankers), Wefunder knows exactly what you are going through.