Crowdfunding

Abstract

Crowdfunding is an innovative fin-tech mechanism for financing sustainable development. As this chapter demonstrates, crowdfunding can prove to be a powerful tool for financial inclusion, as it opens up funding possibilities for stakeholders, activities, and projects which would not be able to tap funding through the banking system or traditional credit and/or equity providers. This chapter provides a review of the most important recent European crowdfunding initiatives and critically evaluates the present Greek crowdfunding mechanism and its extension into a loan-based and equity-based funding system. By identifying the institutional and functional factors that constrain its use, it provides recommendations for their alleviation. The development of a grant-based crowdfunding platform in Greece has proven to be a powerful innovative tool to meet urgent financial needs in the course of the recent crisis as well as a tool for financial inclusion.