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Human capital, investor trust, and equity crowdfunding

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  • Barbi, Massimiliano
  • Mattioli, Sara

Abstract

In equity crowdfunding, human capital is an important signal of a venture’s quality, as early-stage companies are risky and opaque to the market, and the crowd of investors is financially unsophisticated. Using a sample of 521 funded companies between 2011 and September 2017 on the platform Crowdcube, we show that the education, professional experience, and—more mildly—gender of team members materially affect the total capital raised, as well as the number of investors backing the initiative. Other attributes of human capital (such as volunteering experience) are instead ineffective.

Suggested Citation

  • Barbi, Massimiliano & Mattioli, Sara, 2019. "Human capital, investor trust, and equity crowdfunding," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 1-12.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:riibaf:v:49:y:2019:i:c:p:1-12
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ribaf.2019.02.005
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    Cited by:

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    3. Julia Neuhaus & Andrew Isaak & Denefa Bostandzic, 2022. "Million dollar personality: a systematic literature review on personality in crowdfunding," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 72(2), pages 309-345, June.
    4. de Andrés, Pablo & Correia, Ricardo & Rezola, Álvaro & Suárez, Nuria, 2022. "The role of funding portals as signaling offering quality in investment crowdfunding," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 46(PA).
    5. Ferrer, José María & Ulrich, Klaus & Blanco-González-Tejero, Cristina & Caño-Marín, Enrique, 2023. "Investors’ confidence in the crowdlending platform and the impact of Covid-19," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PA).
    6. Samuel Ribeiro-Navarrete & Juan Piñeiro-Chousa & M. Ángeles López-Cabarcos & Daniel Palacios-Marqués, 2022. "Crowdlending: mapping the core literature and research frontiers," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(8), pages 2381-2411, November.
    7. Vincenzo Butticè & Francesca Pietro & Francesca Tenca, 2022. "They do not look alike: what kind of private investors do equity crowdfunded firms attract?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(6), pages 1707-1736, December.
    8. Arif Perdana & Pearpilai Jutasompakorn & Sunghun Chung, 2023. "Shaping crowdlending investors’ trust: Technological, social, and economic exchange perspectives," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 33(1), pages 1-17, December.
    9. Filippo Marchesani & Francesca Masciarelli, 2022. "Crowdfunding as Entrepreneurial Investment: The Role of Local Knowledge Spillover," Papers 2211.16984, arXiv.org.
    10. Jerry Coakley & Aristogenis Lazos & Jose Liñares-Zegarra, 2022. "Strategic entrepreneurial choice between competing crowdfunding platforms," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(6), pages 1794-1824, December.
    11. Faten Ben Slimane & Antoine Rousseau, 2020. "Crowdlending Campaigns for Renewable Energy: Success Factors," Post-Print hal-02371926, HAL.
    12. Mohammed Alharbey & Stefan Van Hemmen, 2021. "Investor Intention in Equity Crowdfunding. Does Trust Matter?," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-20, January.
    13. José Manuel Santos‐Jaén & Antonia Madrid‐Guijarro & Domingo García‐Pérez‐de‐Lema, 2021. "The impact of corporate social responsibility on innovation in small and medium‐sized enterprises: The mediating role of debt terms and human capital," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1200-1215, July.
    14. Yaokuang Li & Li Ling & Daru Zhang & Juan Wu, 2021. "Lead investors and information disclosure: A test of signaling theory by fuzzy‐set qualitative comparative analysis approach," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 42(4), pages 836-849, June.
    15. Daniel Czaja & Florian Röder, 2022. "Signalling in Initial Coin Offerings: The Key Role of Entrepreneurs’ Self‐efficacy and Media Presence," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 58(1), pages 24-61, March.
    16. Geiger, Mark, 2020. "A meta-analysis of the gender gap(s) in venture funding: Funder- and entrepreneur-driven perspectives," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 13(C).
    17. Ferreira, Valeria & Papaoikonomou, Eleni & Terceño, Antonio, 2022. "Unpeel the layers of trust! A comparative analysis of crowdfunding platforms and what they do to generate trust," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 65(1), pages 7-19.
    18. Lukkarinen, Anna & Schwienbacher, Armin, 2023. "Secondary market listings in equity crowdfunding: The missing link?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(1).
    19. Cristina Martínez-Gómez & Francisca Jiménez-Jiménez & M. Virtudes Alba-Fernández, 2020. "Determinants of Overfunding in Equity Crowdfunding: An Empirical Study in the UK and Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-29, December.
    20. Elitzur, Ramy & Solodoha, Eliran, 2021. "Does gender matter? Evidence from crowdfunding," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 16(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Crowdcube; Entrepreneurial finance; Education; Gender differences;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship

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