Crowdfunding Featured at the Innovosource Webinar

PRLog (Press Release) - Jan. 16, 2013 - All’s well on the university front as Innovosource kicks off its partnership with David Drake (http://thesoholoft.com/crowdfundingteam/) of The Soho Loft with a webinar on January 16 at 12pm Eastern Time. Set off your alarm clocks and don’t miss this exciting event. This Innovosource webinar (http://www.gapfunding.org/leadersseries/crowdfunding/) will allow the university community to get to know more about crowdfunding and how this innovative funding approach has been successfully  implemented worldwide. This event is ideal for current or would-be university or lab gap fund managers, early stage investors, public or private organizations, policy-makers and other professional organizations.

Crowdfunding is a budding investment source which may be better placed to support the financial requirements of several forms of research such as translational research, early-stage start-ups and proof of concept projects more than venture capital, angel investments and other conventional capital sources do. This investment method taps into the crowd for smaller, more manageable investments as opposed to sizeable investments from a few. If carried out properly, crowdfunding could endow fresh opportunities for funding promising university technologies and start-ups.

“The world has seen that you can crowdfund a web service and an art studio, but can you crowdfund biotech?” Jacob Johnson, founder of Innovosource muses. There are many questions surrounding crowdfunding’s opportunities with regard to some emerging technologies. David Drake of The Soho Loft (http://www.thesoholoft.com/mkdd) will answer these questions as well as the other niggling questions around crowdfunding including federal policy and difficult to understand ownership rights and ROI.  

The Innovosource webinar will begin with knowledgeable and clear insights from David Drake, a global expert on crowdfunding policy and the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act.

Mr. Drake’s work with policymakers (http://thesoholoft.com/2012/07/14/sacc-expert-drake-in-hi...) and members of Congress and the JOBS Act in the US has stretched overseas. Mr. Drake has recently trotted round the globe to talk about this emerging funding method for early stage capital. “I have recently traveled to France, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Russia and Moldova to discuss crowdfunding. I am excited to work with Innovosource to share information on crowdfunding as well as my observations with the university partners and stakeholders in this webinar. There is a lot to discuss and figure out and I support Innovosource for initiating the discussion,” says Drake.

“We are here to support the realization of breakthrough technologies and start-ups from the university environment. If crowdfunding has a place in this equation, we want to play our part”, says Jacob Johnson.

The webinar will also cover identifying and looking into developing applications that can work with crowdfunding in optimizing the university innovation environment and existing commercialization mechanisms.

Aside from David Drake of The Soho Loft, other industry leaders who will speak during this event are: Richard Glaser, director of innovocracy.org, a university-focused crowdfunding program, Natasha Chopp of Superior Ideas, Michigan Tech University’s internally-manged crowdfunding platform and Jacob Johnson himself, founder of Innovosource.

The Soho Loft will set in motion relevant articles on crowdfunding in the gapfunding.org website and weekly news digest.

Registration for event covers:

Access to event for whole office, stakeholders

Event presentation

CLP CE certified for continuing education credits

Optional post event/unable to attend live event access options

About The Soho Loft (www.thesoholoft.com)

The Soho Loft Capital Creation Events (”TSL”) is a corporate strategy and advisory services company specialising in financial innovation and economic sustainability. Through its global events and media platform it strives to advance diligent mainstream and alternative investing for start-up entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises. TSL seeks to provide relevant education and visionary leadership training in the areas of capital formation, crowdfunding, angel networking, non-conventional funding, eb5 green card programs, micro-finance, venture capital, private equity and hedge funds.

TSL is a subsidiary of LDJ Capital based in New York USA. Its founder and Chairman, David Drake, is a founding member of Crowdfund Intermediary Regulatory Advocates (CFIRA) and of Crowdfunding Professional Association (CFPA). He played a key role in the passing of the JOBS Act in the United States. His advocacy for financial innovation and crowdfunding has taken him to the global stage when he joined the U.S Commerce Department’s delegation to Brussels and Rome at the Transatlantic Economic Forum last July 2012 as a JOBS Act expert where he met with European ministers and national legislators.

Overall, TSL’s mission is to bring global awareness and develop infrastructure to facilitate innovative capital formation and access and help spur job creation. As such, The Soho Loft operates as the leading global corporate strategy adviser on financial and economic policy.

For Press Inquiries, contact Donna@LDJCapital.com.