TGIF, Agents of Impact!
Madness and wisdom. Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, broke into the public consciousness last week when a digital version of the artist Beeple’s Everydays – The First 5,000 Days fetched $69.3 million in a Christie’s auction. The frenzy around blockchain-enabled tokens for just about anything calls for the requisite reference to Charles Mackay’s 1841 classic , Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds . Other current exhibits might include the wild rides of stocks like GameStop, along with the spate of special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs. “Blank-check” companies listed on the stock exchanges have raised $166 billion so far in 2021, more than all of last year.
Now comes regulation crowdfunding, which immediately roared with activity under new rules that allow startups to raise up to $5 million (see No. 1, below) . Backstage Capital’s Arlan Hamilton was hardly in a quiet period as she tweeted the venture firm’s progress toward the new maximum. Some investors grumbled that the valuation of Backstage’s holding company looks very different than it did last month, when the raise was capped at $1.07 million. Then again, perhaps the crowd sometimes knows what it’s doing. When “trailblazing fund managers have the resources they need, the whole startup ecosystem benefits,” Hamilton told ImpactAlpha’s Amy Cortese . “Backstage has a fighting chance at being successful over the next decade and we’re thrilled we can share some of that upside with the crowd.” – David Bank
Impact Briefing. On the latest episode, host Brian Walsh talks with Amy Cortese about regulation crowdfunding’s big week, and we hear from Republic’s Ken Nguyen and Wefunder’s Jonny Price . Plus the headlines. Tune in , share, and follow us on Apple , Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Clubhouse conversation. We’ll be on the drop-in audio app to talk about the week’s stories and whatever’s on your mind, hosted by ImpactAlpha’s Lyneka Little . Find us on your iPhone (only, unfortunately) today at 9am PT / 12pm ET / 4pm London. Drop by . The Week’s Big 7
1. Crowdfunding scales up. Companies like Gumroad and Backstage Capital were ready to go this week as soon as new rules raised the cap to $5 million for “regulation crowdfunding” campaigns. Gumroad, an online marketplace for artists and creators, sold out in less than a day. By week’s end Backstage, a VC firm focused […]