FAQ
GENERAL QUESTIONS
How does funding work?
Why should I invest in a Pitch?
How long does the Entrepreneur have to raise the Target amount?
What happens if the Target amount is not raised?
Is there a maximum or minimum Target amount?
INVESTING
How do I invest?
Who can invest?
If I invest, when am I charged?
If funding fails, do investors pay anything?
How does investing actually work?
Do you publically publish my investment amount?
What information does the entrepreneur receive?
How do I know the entrepreneur has a genuine business idea?
Am I able to ask the Entrepreneur questions about their business?
I am not in the UK, can I still invest?
Do I get notified when a pitch successfully reaches its Target?
Can I withdraw/cancel my investment?
What happens if my credit card is declined?
Can I pay by cheque or cash?
Can I withdraw my Crowdcube balance?
REWARDS
What is a reward?
How do I create a reward?
How do I redeem my reward?
What if the entrepreneur needs more information (ie T-Shirt sizes etc) for the reward?
Who is responsible for ensuring rewards are delivered?
ENTREPRENEURS AND PITCHES
How do I get investment for my business?
Do I need to be a Public Limited Company (PLC) to raise money on Crowdcube?
Who can make a pitch?
Do pitches require an investment target and end date?
If the Pitch is successfully funded, how do entrepreneurs receive their money?
What fees do Crowdcube charge?
Is there a maximum investment amount for a pitch?
What information and documentation do I need to have to successfully apply and create a Pitch?
Can I create more than one pitch simultaneously?
Is there any type of business that cannot be pitched?
Can pitches be edited after launch?
Can pitches raise more money than the Target?
Can Entrepreneurs increase/decrease the Target amount?
Can Entrepreneurs increase/decrease the Equity offered?
Can an entrepreneur end a Pitch early?
Can I invest in my own Pitch?
I find investment from another source. Can I add it to my total?
What are Pitch Updates?
How will investors know that there is an update?
Do you have any tips on producing a pitch video?
Is there a Crowdcube widget for promoting pitches?
ABOUT CROWDCUBE
Is Crowdcube on Twitter and Facebook?
Do you have a Crowdcube blog?
How can I request new features and improvements on Crowdcube?
Each Entrepreneur creates an online Pitch explaining their business and what they aim to achieve with the investment. The Pitch will include 2 key numbers:
- The Target – the total amount of money they wish to raise and invest in the business
- The equity offered – the percentage share of the business they are offering in return for raising the target
Entrepreneurs then promote their Pitch to potential investors. Investors then invest money in the Pitch and over a period of time (90 days is the maximum time available to raise the investment required) investments accumulate until the Target is reached.
The minimum investment is just £10.
Why should I invest in a Pitch?
There are a number of reasons you may want to invest in a Pitch:
- To make a return on your investment
- To get a unique Reward for your investment (see Rewards below)
- To help a friend launch their business
- To support a business or industry you believe in
- To help small British businesses
- For the fun of it
How long does the Entrepreneur have to raise the Target amount?
Each Pitch has 90 days to raise the Target amount.
What happens once the Target amount is raised?
Once the Target is reached, the paperwork is completed and the money is transferred to the Entrepreneurs bank account. At the same time each investor receives a certificate confirming their ownership in the Entrepreneurs business. Investors will also get the Reward they are eligible for.
What happens if the Target amount is not reached?
If the Target amount is not raised within the time period then the Pitch will be closed and all investments will be returned to the Investors' accounts.
Is there a maximum or minimum Target amount?
The minimum Target amount is £10,000. There is no maximum amount.
INVESTING
Once you have found a Pitch that takes your fancy simply enter the amount of money you wish to invest in the box that says ‘Enter Amount’ and click on the ‘Invest now’ button. You will need to register and become a Member of Crowdcube before you can complete the investment.
If you have credit in your Crowdcube account then that amount will be deducted from your balance and that Pitch will be added to your portfolio.
If you do not have money in your Crowdcube account then you will need to complete a deposit request form and send us the money via a bank transfer. Make sure that you use your username as a reference on the bank transfer so that we can reconcile it to your account.
The minimum investment is only £10.
Anyone who is over 18 years old can invest through Crowdcube.
Your credit card will be charged whenever you add credit to your Crowdcube account balance.
If funding fails, do investors pay anything?
No. If the Entrepreneur does not reach their Target then all investments are returned to the Investors Crowdcube account balances.
How does investing actually work?
Put simply, you invest money into a business and get a share of that company and possibly extra goodies in the form of Rewards in return.
Do you publically publish my investment amount?
No. We display a list of Pitches that you have invested in on your public profile but we do not disclose how much money you have invested in each Pitch.
What information does the Entrepreneur receive?
The Entrepreneur will receive the minimum information necessary to deal with you as an Investor - your name, email address and the amount you have invested.
How do I know the Entrepreneur has a genuine business idea?
Whilst Crowdcube does perform an initial review of each Entrepreneur, Investors should call upon their own judgement, knowledge and research along with that of the Crowd (other Investors within Crowdcube) to decide whether the Entrepreneur is worthy of their investment.
Am I able to ask the Entrepreneur questions about their business?
Absolutely. We provide a discussion forum for each pitch where you can ask questions which the Entrepreneur will reply to. You can also use the forums to discuss the Pitch with other Crowdcube members and help each other to form opinions on the Pitch's prospects.
I am not in the UK, can I still invest?
Yes, However, persons located in territories other than the UK should consult their professional advisers to ensure any investment is compliant under local jurisdiction before they invest in any proposition on this website. Please see our investor terms and conditions for more information.
Crowdcube Ventures Ltd
A/C no - 69092460
S/C - 30-80-37
BIC - LOYDGB21724
IBAN - GB62 LOYD 3080 3769 0924 60
Please ensure that you fill out our Deposit Request Form prior to doing a bank transfer, this lets us know to expect funds from yourself and enables us to match them when they arrive into the bank account.
You will find the required form when you press "invest" on any pitch.
Do I get notified when a pitch successfully reaches its Target?
Yes, when a Pitch reaches its Target all Investors will receive an email to that effect.
Can I withdraw/cancel my investment?
In some circumstances an Investor may be allowed to withdraw their investment in a Pitch. Please send us an email if you wish to do this.
What happens if my credit card is declined?
You could alternatively make a bank transfer to us.
Can I pay by cheque or bank transfer?
We don't accept cheques but you can pay by bank transfer.
To pay by bank transfer simply enter the details of the transfer using the deposit option in the My Account section and when it arrives we'll credit it to your account.
Can I withdraw money from my Crowdcube balance?
Yes, you can withdraw any amount from your Crowdcube account balance at any time.
REWARDS
A reward is a gift of goods or service, usually related to your business, that you provide to an Investor as an incentive to invest in your Pitch.
For instance, you could give away one of your products or a discount on future purchases of your products or services.
Once you have applied for and been accepted as an Entrepreneur you will be able to create your own Pitch within the My Pitch section of My Account.
There is a sub-menu within the My Pitch section called Rewards . From here you can create, edit and delete rewards.
Once the Target has been met and the investment has been made in the Entrepreneurs company the Entrepreneur will be responsible for ensuring that every Investor receives their appropriate reward.
What if the entrepreneur needs more information (ie T-Shirt sizes etc) for the reward?
The Entrepreneur is responsible for contacting the Investors by email if any further information is required.
Who is responsible for ensuring rewards are delivered?
Entrepreneurs take full responsibility for ensuring all Investors receive their reward.
ENTREPRENEURS AND PITCHES
How do I get investment for my business?
You need to apply to start a Pitch. You can do this by clicking on the My Pitch section of My Account or just by clicking here.
Do I need to be a Public Limited Company (PLC) to raise money on Crowdcube?
No, you do not need to be a PLC however you do need to have a regular Limited company.
Anyone who is a UK resident, over 18 years old and has or can create a UK based Limited Company can become an Entrepreneur on Crowdcube.
Do pitches require an investment target and end date?
Entrepreneurs must set an investment Target which cannot be changed once their Pitch is published.
The deadline is automatically set at 90 days from the date that the Pitch is published.
If the Pitch is successfully funded, how do entrepreneurs receive their money?
Once the Target is met and the legal paperwork is completed, Crowdcube will transfer the money into the Entrepreneurs' business bank account.
What fees do Crowdcube charge?
It is currently free to register as an Entrepreneur and add a Pitch to Crowdcube. For a limited period we are waiving our £250 listing fee.
When an Entrepreneur successfully raises their Target amount Crowdcube will deduct a success fee of 5% of the target amount.
We also pass on legal fees of £1750 for completion of each company investment. Again, this is only charged if the target amount is raised.
This model of charging means we only charge Entrepreneurs if they are successful in raising their funding through Crowdcube.
Is there a maximum investment amount for a pitch?
There is no maximum amount that can be invested in a Pitch, however any member wishing to invest over £5000 must register as either a High Net Worth individual or a Sophisticated Investor.
What information and documentation do I need to have to successfully apply and create a Pitch?
A Pitch is your way of selling your idea and your business to potential investors. It's your showcase and you need to do everything you can to convince potential investors that your idea is the best thing since sliced bread.
So, the more relevant information and documentation you have to support your Pitch the easier it will be to gain support and investment.
The minimum you will need is a business plan and associated financial forecasts. Beyond that information such as Intellectual Property (patents, trademarks, etc.), designs, legal memorandums and even relevant pictures (of products for instance) will all help you build a convincing pitch.
Can I create more than one pitch simultaneously?
No, each Entrepreneur may only have one active Pitch at any time.
Is there any type of business that cannot be pitched?
Pretty much anything that is legal can be pitched on Crowdcube but each Pitch is reviewed by the Crowdcube team and Crowdcube reserve the right to refuse any Pitch application that we feel isn't appropriate.
Can pitches be edited after launch?
Yes pitches can be edited and updated at any time.
Can pitches raise more money than the Target?
No, as soon as the Target amount is reached the Pitch is closed to any new investments.
Can Entrepreneurs increase/decrease the Target amount?
No, once the Pitch is live on our web site the Target amount cannot be changed.
Can Entrepreneurs increase/decrease the Equity offered?
Once the Pitch is live the Entrepreneur may only increase the amount of equity offered, they cannot ever decrease it.
Can an entrepreneur end a Pitch early?
No, a Pitch ends only when the Target amount is met or the End Date is reached.
Yes, absolutely.
I find investment from another source. Can I add it to my total?
Yes, please notify the Crowdcube team and we can add it to your total.
A Pitch Update is a way for the Entrepreneur to provide regular updates on the progress of their pitch and business.
How will investors know that there is an update?
Investors will automatically be sent an email notifying them that the Pitch has an update.
Do you have any tips on producing a pitch video?
Yes you can see them here
Is there a Crowdcube widget for promoting pitches?
Yes, on every published pitch there is a widget that you can place on your site or blog which shows the pitch details in real time. Just click the "embed on site" link within the pitch page.
ABOUT CROWDCUBE
Is Crowdcube on Twitter and Facebook?
Yes and you can see us at
We sure do. Its at http://blog.crowdcube.com
How can I request new features and improvements on Crowdcube?
Please either email us at darren@crowdcube.com or use let us know in our forum here.
