Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Houston Branch and ThinkCrowdFund.com to Host Equity Crowdfunding Town Hall in Houston
Houston, Texas (PRWEB) March 23, 2015 -- As the wait continues for the SEC to finalize Title III crowdfunding rules, several states have moved forward with the passage of intrastate crowdfunding exemptions. Texas was the thirteenth state to pass its intrastate crowdfunding rules in 2014.
Texas-based crowdfunding consulting, technology and transparency agency, ThinkCrowdFund.com, is the first in Texas to create a small business forum allowing entrepreneurs and non-accredited investors to connect with equity crowdfunding portal developers and state securities experts. The Think First Equity Crowdfunding Town Hall event is coming to Houston, Texas on March 25, 2015 and will be hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Houston Branch and ThinkCrowdFund.com.
ThinkCrowdFund.com has partnered with newly approved Texas-based equity crowdfunding portals MassVenture and TruCrowd.com to offer expert advice to issuers looking to raise capital utilizing the new Intrastate Crowdfunding rules passed unanimously by the Texas State Securities Board in November 2014. Management consultant and small business development expert Cynthia Nevels is the Founder of ThinkCrowdFund.com.
“We believe in order for intrastate crowdfunding to work in Texas, we must educate the crowd and bring all stakeholders together to understand the rules of the game,” Nevels said.
More than $400 million has been committed through equity crowdfunding since Title II of the JOBS Act was approved on September 23, 2013, through the end of 2014, according to Crowdnetic, which aggregates data from nearly 20 equity crowdfunding platforms.
Texas State Securities Board Commissioner John Morgan, whose agency enacted the rules, recently predicted that Texas will become a leader in equity crowdfunding investment and growth. The new crowdfunding rules allow Texas-based entrepreneurs to raise up to $1 million per year. Offerings must be carried out through a registered broker-dealer or state-approved portal like MassVenture, TruCrowd, NextSeed or CrudeFunders. Texas-based non-accredited investors may contribute up to $5,000 per offering, with no individual limits for accredited investors.
The Think First Equity Crowdfunding Town Hall in Houston will host panelists from the Texas State Securities Board, two of the five approved equity crowdfunding portals, banks, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Houston Branch and the U. S. Small Business Administration. The event is designed to help issuers and investors present their questions to the experts to ensure entrepreneurs and non-accredited investors understand what is needed to comply with the state's rules and to safely raise funds.
“Some industry leaders believe the crowd will regulate the market and will prevent bad apples from committing fraudulent acts against non-accredited investors, however we believe education and full transparency are the keys to ensuring we create a safe crowd and a vibrant economic development eco-system,” Nevels said.
Equity crowdfunding online could help local small business owners who do not have the initial seed capital or ability to obtain a loan from their local bank or credit union. The portals will link issuers to investors and create a source to take their idea, prototype or business to the next stage. Microlenders and some banks see crowdfunding as a first round option for innovators looking to prove their product or business has an audience and can raise the capital it needs to potentially leverage for a second round of funding.
The next town hall will be held on Wednesday, March 25, 2015 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Houston Branch at 1801 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas 77019 from 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. The event is open to the public. Pre-registration on Thinkcrowdfund.com and a state ID are required.
About ThinkCrowdFund.com
ThinkCrowdFund.com, based in Dallas, is Texas’ first equity crowdfunding consulting, education and transparency technology agency. With a focus on market research, crowdfunding strategy development, financial accounting and crowdfunding campaign management. ThinkCrowdFund.com helps issuers research, design and develop a crowdfunding strategy before investing capital and resources into a crowdfunding campaign. The company is the creator of, SafeCrowd, a web application that automates the transparency process for crowdfunding platforms to ensure regulatory compliance.
For more details, please visit http://www.thinkcrowdfund.com
Tyler Nelson, ThinkCrowdFund.com, http://www.thinkcrowdfund.com, +1 8776013211, [email protected]
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