Crowdfunding is a financial model that allows people to raise funds for a project, business, or other initiative. This process usually takes place via the Internet, where people make small contributions. The history of crowdfunding is quite old and interesting.
Ancient times The early form of crowdfunding can be traced back to ancient times. For example, in ancient Greece, Rome, and India, people used to collectively raise money to build statues, temples, and other public projects.
18th and 19th centuries There are also some examples in the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1884, New York’s pedestrian paper ‘The World’ used crowdfunding to raise funds for the foundation of the Statue of Liberty.
20th century In the mid-20th century, modern crowdfunding emerged. In 1997, British band Marillion raised funds from fans for their North American tour, becoming a major example of the first crowd funding using the internet.
21st century With the advent of the internet and social media, crowd funding became widely used in the 21st century. Some of the major events and platforms include:
2000-2005: Some of the earliest crowd funding websites such as ArtistShare (2003) and Kiva (2005) launched.
2008: Indiegogo launched, a flexible crowd funding platform.
2009: Kickstarter was founded, which played a key role in bringing crowd funding to the mainstream.
2012: The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act was passed, making equity crowd funding legal.
Today Today, crowdfunding is used for a variety of projects, including art, music, film, technology, agriculture, medicine, education, skill, water, e-commerce, startups, and social projects. Various platforms have raised millions of dollars and made countless projects possible.
Crowdfunding has not only brought a significant change in the financial sector, but it has also given entrepreneurs, artists, startups, filmmakers, social activists, and community leaders an opportunity to realize their dreams.
