Crowdfunding News – All The Latest Updates
Hi guys and welcome to our fortnightly crowdfunding news edition, as usual we will be covering an array of interesting crowdfunding topics from around the world as well domestic news. If you missed our last edition, you can catch up here.
Axol Biosciences Smashes Its Crowdfunding Target
In our very first crowdfunding blog of 2016 one of the stories we covered was on the biotech industry turning to crowdfunding. We thought we would cover another biotech story since it was announced that Cambridge based firm Axol Bioscience has officially smashed its crowdfunding target.
The biotech firm has already pledged £656,000 to its’ campaign on local crowdfunding platform SyndicateRoom. The campaign doesn’t end until the 28th of February and the company is now over-funded up to a total of £1million according to Cambridge News.
So what does Axol do exactly? In a nutshell they make stem cell-derived human cells for use in medical research. Their team of scientists create the stem cells from human blood and skin cells which can then be turned into heart, brain and blood vessel cells for testing new drugs, they hope by applying this approach, it can slash costs for pharmaceutical companies.
Abcam (another biotech firm from Cambridge) founder Dr Jonathan Milner who has pledged £400,000 to the crowdfunding campaign told Cambridge News that “I’m really excited by what the future will hold for Axol due to the colossal market opportunity we’re addressing and how well Yichen (company CEO) and his team have been delivering our plans.”
He goes on to say that initially he intended to invest £200,000 but as he previously mentioned about the colossal market opportunity, he doubled his investment in the biotech firm.
Axol continue to go from strength and have recently hired Professor Chas Bountra to its advisory board.
Professor Bountra will use his array of contacts to help Axol build strong links with the public and private sectors respectively.
Image Source : Cambridge News
First equity crowdfunding deal in Australia for 2016 raises more than $675,000
A global student support platform has raised more than $675,000 through VentureCrowd in the first equity crowdfunding deal in Australia for 2016 according to Start Up Smart.
Zookal, which was founded in Sydney and is now based in Singapore, has raised well over its $500,000 target on the crowdfunding platform. The startup provides a platform offering a variety of services and products for university students.
The campaign has only a couple of days left and has raised $675,000 from 15 wholesale investors, which in total values the company at $US20 million.
Currently in Australia, equity crowdfunding is restricted to what is deemed as a ‘sophisticated investor’ with a net asset of $2.5 million or have an aggregated gross income for each of the last two years of at least $250,000.
The Australian government revealed its legislation to loosen these restrictions by the end of the year as Start Up Smart mention in their equity crowdfunding article. The legislation places a cap of $5 million on companies who to choose to follow this particular path, plus a $10,000 cap on the amount a retail investor can pledge.
Last year the Labor Party in Australia withdrew its support for the bill as they strongly felt that the startup community had been dealt a “great disservice” by it.
VentureCrowd’s Luke Fay mentioned to Start Up Smart that he hopes the Australian government will consult with those impacted by the reforms, he stressed that successful campaigns won’t come to a halt as a result of the legislation.
If you would like to know about this story visit Zookal’s site here we also recommend reading OzCrowd’s brief blog post on Equity Crowdfunding in Australia.
Invest in your favourite football players and clubs
Israeli fintech startup Football Fans Marketplace (FBFM) is using crowdfunding for footy fans to feel closer to their players and their clubs.
Israel 21c mention that the online marketplace will allow fans worldwide to invest in their favorite players and clubs. The platform, footballcrowdfans.com, is now open for early registration of fans and European clubs that meet FIFA and UEFA conditions and are expected to yield high returns for investors.
Users can build dream football teams, track the teams’ progress and support players and clubs by offering them low-interest long-term loans managed through the platform and really brings fantasy football to an entirely different playing field.
Unfortunately at The House Crowd we can’t help you invest in the latest wonder kid who has been dubbed ‘the new Sergio Agüero’ however, we can offer you at our very own Manchester guides (North and Central) and an ideal place to experience world class football!
You can read more about Football Fans Marketplace here.
Image Source : Israel 21c
Making Manchester Shiiiiiine – Lighting up Manchester with community energy
Eighteen organisations from the city have joined in unison to launch Community Energy GM – a project aimed at lighting up the city with community-owned solar power.
Following the recent floods in the North West of England, the issues of climate change and fuel poverty have once again crept up in the news. The project is raising funds for 20 buildings to get brand new solar rooftops – powering their community activities and strengthening ties with local neighbourhoods.
The solar power project was created by the Greater Manchester Centre for Voluntary Organisations (GMCVO) and climate change charity 10:10.
Interested in the project? If so, you can find more information on the project, including how to make a donation from £5, at http://www.cegm.org.uk.
Shacky tiny house startup supports Aussie farmers
We return once again to Australia and this time look at Shacky introducing holiday tiny houses to rural Australian properties to offer farmers an added source of income.
Twenty-five year-old Dutch native Joep Pennartz founded Shacky after moving to Australia last year and learnt about the hardships being experienced by local farmers.
Pennartz told Domain.com.au that the sheer financial stress from decreasing farm income leads to rising depression rates, an ageing farmer population has left rural farmers to leave their land.
The idea of Shacky project is to position tiny houses on rural properties, allowing farmers to generate income from renters who lease the space as holiday accommodation.
The first Shacky house will be located on the Tarndie Farm in The Otways in Victoria and the crowdfunding campaign will run from February 17 to March 28 where people can pledge funds towards the business via the Pozible crowdfunding platform.
For more information on the Shacky houses click here.
Image Source : Domain.com.au
What Are Your Thoughts?
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The post The Latest Crowdfunding News – 3/2/16 appeared first on The House Crowd.