Nesta Launches Crowdfunding Directory

Crowdfunding is undoubtedly in the midst of a wave of publicity at the moment, be it through commercial sites such as Kickstarter, or the increasing number of sites aiming to fund civic projects.

Such is the huge growth in the area, the UK innovation charity Nesta have been prompted to build a directory site for crowdfunding ventures.  The site, called CrowdingIn, lists 31 crowdfunding platforms that are operational and looking for investors or donors in a range of projects.

It should be noted that the site is only listing those that operate in the UK, so there will undoubtedly be many more that operate outside of the country.  There’s no mention of the US site Neighbor.ly for instance.

The site lists platforms alphabetically, and provides information about the kind of projects they list, the way the projects are funded, and the cut each platform takes of any funded projects.

It will be interesting to see whether the site prompts an international version in order to list all of the sites wherever they may be in the world.  With 31 identified in the UK alone however, it raises inevitable questions around market saturation and whether consolidation is required to make the industry more effective.

Another point to note is that there is already a UK Crowdfunding Association.  They are a self-regulating trade body for the sector.  Of the platforms listed on CrowdingIn, around half are members of the UK Crowdfunding Association, so that may provide a useful way of cross-referencing the stability of each site.

Read the article : http://technorati.com/social-media/article/nesta-launches-crowdfunding-directory/