Handbook of Research on Crowdfunding

The digitalization revolution has significantly altered conditions for financing new and small firms. Crowdfunding is at the forefront of this movement. While research in this area has increased significantly, it is heavily fragmented. Reflecting on this, the Handbook of Research on Crowdfunding reviews and synthesizes current knowledge on crowdfunding finance and provides an agenda for further research. This Handbook covers the role of crowdfunding and the platforms used, as well as discussing the characteristics of crowdfunders themselves and the businesses that seek finance from the 'crowd'. It also investigates the process once crowdfunding is complete, and how it is used by non-profit, social and creative ventures as well as for-profit businesses. Potential negative aspects are also discussed, including inequality, risk, fraud and regulation. Finally, the future of crowdfunding, including new finance models, is outlined. Bringing together a wealth of previously fragmented knowledge, this Handbook is a key reference for all entrepreneurial finance researchers as well as those interested in the effects of crowdfunding more generally across entrepreneurship, innovation, management and economics.