New Service Helps Entrepreneurs Raise Money Through Social Networks of Friends and Family
ATLANTA, Georgia – July 30, 2008 – 40billion.com (http://www.40billion.com) officially launched today as the first friends-and-family funding network for small-business entrepreneurs. The service enables entrepreneurs to raise capital through friends, family and others interested in helping the entrepreneur to succeed.
Unlike traditional bank loans and other person-to-person lending services, 40billion.com does not require a credit report or minimum credit score and does not allow loan interest rates as high as 36%, which many small-business entrepreneurs cannot afford. Instead, the entrepreneur can raise money from people they know in exchange for discounts that they offer to those investors who become customers.
“40billion.com is a great way for me to finance my startup,” said Dave Mack Jr., who is developing an online social network for theatre artists to connect and find work. “It helps me raise money affordably from many people I already know, and without worrying about ruining my relationships with them.”
Many businesses get started with financing from the entrepreneur’s friends and family, but it is often difficult to manage these relationships. 40billion.com allows many investors to give small amounts of money and spread the risk. Furthermore, the service provides communication tools to increase transparency between the entrepreneur and her investors.
To obtain funding, an entrepreneur simply uses 40billion.com to start a “Raise” (a fundraising profile) and invites friends, family and others in her social network to invest and contribute towards the funding target. 40billion.com makes it easier for entrepreneurs to share their business ideas with friends and relatives, who may want to invest and help out. Furthermore, 40billion.com handles all the transactions, so it is easier for an entrepreneur to manage having many investors. Raises are private, so potential investors must be invited by entrepreneurs or other investors.
“We are addressing a $40 billion gap in funding for small businesses, and our goal is to help all those hardworking entrepreneurs that have good ideas but don’t have the money or resources to get started,” said Cornelius Colin McNab, Founder of 40billion.com. “The economic downturn has led to a credit crunch, where banks and venture capitalists are tightening up, and entrepreneurs need alternative ways to gain access to affordable capital.”
McNab, who is an inventor with three patents and holds an MBA from MIT and a degree from Yale, is confident that his company can bridge the funding gap by allowing ordinary people to become investors. “That’s how we got started. Investors contribute as little as $50 or $100 each, but these small investments really add up. If forty friends and relatives contribute $100 each, that’s $4,000 that the entrepreneur can use to incorporate a business, build a website, print business cards, lease space for three months, file a provisional patent, and create a prototype or sample inventory.”
Currently released as a beta version, 40billion.com soon will offer more funding options (including loans), social networking features, and a unique rating system to enhance the quality of entrepreneurs and build investor confidence.
Advantages of 40billion.com
- No credit report or sales history required
- Multiple funding options
- Private, invitation-only profiles
- Exclusive entrepreneur features, e.g., live presentations online
- Search-engine to find business resources
- Profiles with embedded videos and PowerPoint presentations
- Investors receive social returns, financial returns, and discounts
About 40billion.com
40billion.com helps entrepreneurs raise money for businesses through friends and family rather than through traditional financial institutions. Using the Internet-based service, entrepreneurs connect with their social network – friends, family, friends of family, colleagues, and others – to raise capital. 40billion.com’s scalable platform facilitates the funding requests and transactions to make it easier for an entrepreneur to manage many investors. 40billion.com is patent pending. For more information, visit http://www.40billion.com
blog.40billion.com 