On February 28, 2017, the SEC released a white paper analyzing crowdfunded offerings during the first six months following the effective date of Regulation Crowdfunding (May 16, 2016). The white paper noted that crowdfunding has thus far been attracting issuers that have not extensively utilized Regulation D.  Despite a relatively small sample size and a short observation period, the white paper makes, among others, the following observations:

  • There were 163 separate offerings by 156 issuers, seeking a total of approximately $18 million, excluding withdrawn offerings. The median offering amount was $53,000 and the average offering amount was approximately $110,000. However, almost all of the offerings accepted oversubscriptions up to a higher amount (typically close to $1 million) for a total amount of approximately $101 million.
  • As of January 15, 2017, approximately $10 million in proceeds was raised in 33 offerings by issuers filing a Form C-U. The median amount raised in these offerings was $171,000 and the average amount raised was approximately $303,000.
  • For offerings initiated in 2016, 24 were withdrawn by issuers or associated with an intermediary whose FINRA membership was terminated and funding portal registration withdrawn. These offerings sought a total of approximately $2.3 million (approximately $19.5 million if oversubscriptions are included).
  • Most of the offerings solicited in all states.
  • The most popular type of security was equity, followed by "simple agreements for future equity" and debt.
  • The most popular state of incorporation for issuers was Delaware and the most popular principal place of business for issuers was California.
  • The median issuer had under $50,000 in assets, under $5,000 in cash, $10,000 in debt, no revenues, and three employees. Approximately 40% of the issuers reported positive revenue and approximately 9% of the issuers reported a net profit in the most recent fiscal year. Among the issuers that reported non-zero assets in the prior fiscal year, the median growth rate was approximately 15%.
  • 21 intermediaries, including 13 funding portals and 8 broker-dealers, were involved in the offerings. As of December 31, 2016, 21 funding portals have registered with the SEC and FINRA and one funding portal had its FINRA membership terminated and withdrew its SEC registration. The median intermediary percentage fee was 5%, and intermediaries took a financial interest in the issuer in approximately 16% of the offerings.

A copy of the white paper is available at: https://www.sec.gov/dera/staff-papers/white-papers/RegCF_WhitePaper.pdf

Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

© Morrison & Foerster LLP. All rights reserved