Equity Crowdfunding in Poland Sees an 80% Drop in the Number of Investors in 2022

$6.02 million (PLN 25 million) in 47 securities issues were raised by companies through crowdfunding in 2022. Only a third of them raised the entire expected funds.

These are the results brought by the latest edition of the “Equity Crowdfunding 3.0” report, prepared by the Association of Financial Enterprises in Poland (ZPF) in cooperation with the Wroclaw University of Economics.

The report was based on data obtained from managers of equity crowdfunding platforms in Poland.

“The year 2022 was a difficult one for the entire social crowdfunding sector. A number of negative factors contributed to this, among which were concerns about the economic condition, the war in Ukraine, or, finally, record-high inflation and interest rates,” pointed out Dr. Artur Trzebinski, economic advisor to ZPF and author of the report.

At the same time, our observations show that the managers of crowdfunding platforms have used the last quarter to create new operating strategies, and the companies themselves – which are still holding back on issues – have given themselves more time to develop development plans related, for example, to later debuts on the NewConnect market, adds Marcin Czugan, president of ZPF.

Read more about the equity crowdfunding sector in Poland and find the most important business news of the day with the Born2Invest mobile app.

Two-thirds of the companies have not raised all of the expected capital. The reasons?

Attention in the report is drawn to the approximately 80 percent drop in the number of active investors in the equity crowdfunding market. As recently as 2021, some 19,000 investors took part in new issues conducted in this mode, while in 2022 their number dropped to 3,500.

Dr. Artur Trzebinski points out that, in the face of uncertainty related to the economic situation, investors sought profits in the bond market, as well as in safe bank deposits, among others.

The decline in the number of investors interested in financing companies through crowdfunding platforms has translated into the results of the issues carried out. Only one-third of them ended with companies raising funds in the amount originally expected. By comparison, the average effectiveness of an issue (understood as raising 100 percent of the expected funds) in 2021 exceeded 60 percent.

The ZPF report shows that 60 percent of the companies in the issues conducted in 2022 did not exceed the average capital raised of $140,872 (PLN 585,000). The record value of funds raised from investors in one issue was $6.02 million (PLN 2.5 million). On the other side of the list was a company that raised only $361 (PLN 1.500).

Equity crowdfunding. Companies need more time to raise capital

The year 2020 was a record year in terms of interest in equity crowdfunding – at that time more than 33 thousand investors invested in at least one company through this route.

However, in the following years, as the number of investors declined, the average duration of companies’ campaigns on crowdfunding platforms lengthened. In 2022, it amounted to 77 days.

To encourage investors to take part in the issue, companies are increasingly specifying a policy of dividend payments, Dr. Artur Trzebinski noted. – Eleven companies running campaigns in 2022 declared the possibility of paying out a share of profits earned in 2024, while two companies indicated such an eventuality already from profits earned in 2023.

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(Featured image by candelabra via Pixabay)

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