‘Crowdfunding’
entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2011, and is defined therein as, “the practice of funding a project
or venture by raising money from a large number of people who each contribute a
relatively small amount, typically via the internet.” Essentially, with a new business or project idea, one can
seek to raise funds from friends, family and the general public online, instead
of going to banks or the ‘Dragons’ Den’.
The global Crowdfunding industry
is growing exponentially, having raised an estimated $6.1 billion in 2013,
$16.2 billion in 2014, and more than doubling again to $34.4 billion in 2015.[1]
The World Bank forecasts that it will be worth $93 billion by 2025 – perhaps a
conservative estimate considering recent growth – as it is set to top the
venture capital market ($45 billion) in the near future.[2]
Figure 1 shows the recent growth, alongside a growth curve to the World Bank’s
2025 estimate based on compound annual growth rate (CAGR, dotted green) and what is a
more likely convex curve following recent growth (dotted black).
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| Figure 1 |
