The Securities and Exchange Commission is currently drafting rules to allow start-ups to sell stakes in their companies to the general public, potentially raising large sums from crowds of small investors.
Until now, selling equity stakes has been limited to so-called accredited investors, people who presumably have the wherewithal and sophistication to know what they are getting into.
In an industry that seems to be growing and changing by the hour—thanks, in part, to the 2012 JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act—a new associations is moving quickly to help crowdfunding professionals, industry partners, investors, and the general public make sense of it all.
The Crowdfunding Professional Association announced that it is rolling out a Global Crowdfunding Education Network that will provide online resources including breaking news alerts, legislative updates, and crowdfunding classes to professionals in the industry and others interested in learning more about it.
Crowdfunding is not just about creating jobs, it is about creating jobs for the right people. In April of 2012, President Obama signed the JOBS Act into law, authorizing crowdfunding of equity and debt for the sake of creating jobs. The more time I spend studying crowdfunding and working with the leaders in the crowdfund community, the clearer it becomes that not only will crowdfunding create jobs, it will create jobs in the right places.
Recently, I sat down in a hidden valley near Park City, Utah with Candace Klein, CEO of Somolend and founder of the nonprofit Bad Girl Ventures, who explained that overwhelmingly, the people were polled about crowdfunding indicating a desire to raise capital are women, African Americans and Hispanic Americans. In other words, crowdfunded capital will flow to entrepreneurs in the communities that have been most disadvantaged in America.
The message from the industry was clear; We’ve examined the problem domain and we’re ready to go, but we need this important piece of legislation to go into effect.
A group of about a dozen industry representatives met with representatives from Capitol Hill, the White House, the Treasury, small business advocacy groups and others to convey their readiness for crowdfunding’s implementation.
CfPA PR committee chair Joy Schoffler was also pleased by the meetings. “The SEC was very positive at the meetings yesterday. They are very aware that they need to make (crowdfunding) work for entrepreneurs without being cost prohibitive.”
Crowdfunding advocates raised the volume today on their call to push the Securities and Exchange Commission to finalize rules needed for business owners to raise equity through crowdfunding.
“This is a story about capital,” said Sherwood Neiss, principal of consulting and advisory firm Crowdfund Capital Advisors and a chair of the not-for-profit crowdfunding organization Crowdfunding Professional Association. He was one of about a dozen crowdfunding supporters making their pitch at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., today.
The SEC has already missed several deadlines to write rules to structure the implementation of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, known as the JOBS Act.
Crowdfunding has the potential to provide new funding options for small businesses and stimulate job growth, and yet the S.E.C. has stalled on crowdfunding Rulings.
Other countries are off and running with equity crowdfunding, such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Why is the U.S. still stuck in first gear and lagging behind the pack? Aren’t we innovators and leaders in entrepreneurship?
What’s going on with the S.E.C. crowdfunding Rulings, as spelled out in the JOBS Act? Why are they stalled? Will the S.E.C. abort crowdfunding before it gets a fighting chance?
After today’s press conference at the National Press Club one thing is clear. Crowdfunding industry stakeholders want movement toward implementation of the JOBS Act and they want it soon.
SoMoLend CEO Candace Klein spoke to a concern that tumult in the SEC’s leadership could delay crowdfunding’s implementation past Q4 2013. Vincent Molinari of GATE Technologies urged the SEC to allow a vote on Title II and to begin the public comment period on Title III. In his words, “It’s time we move to action.”
The press conference included Kim Wales, Woodie Neiss, Sara Hanks, Douglas Ellenoff and other industry thought leaders, all of whom shared how they planned to help the crowdfunding industry move forward. A wide array of the industry was represented with participants from the equity and debt sides as well as due diligence companies and VCs.
Leaders from the crowdfunding industry in the U.S. are in Washington D.C. today to apply some gentle pressure on regulators who are now several weeks behind on issuing rules under which the nascent securities market will operate.
The group will meet with lawmakers, SEC regulators, and White House officials following Tuesday’s crowdfunding press conference, which took place in Washington D.C. from 10 to 11 AM EST. The crowdfunding experts — platform operators, trade association representatives, securities lawyers and seasoned investors — seek to speed enactment of the JOBS Act, which created a framework for crowdfunded securities in the United States when it was signed into law early last year.
“We are here today to showcase for Washington how we are ready to embark on Web 3.0, where social media meets community financing,” said Sherwood Neiss, co-founder of Crowdfund Capital Advisors, a consulting and advisory firm. “We hope the demonstration of [the Crowdfunding Professional Association] will give the SEC the confidence it needs to release the proposed rules so America’s job creators can get the capital they need to innovate and grow.”
Crowdfunding advocates, small businesses and venture capitalists held an all-day vigil in Washington on Tuesday with visits to Capitol Hill, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the White House to push for “immediate action” on rules that would make equity- and debt-based crowdfunding a reality in the U.S.
During a media briefing held at the National Press Club in Washington, Karen Kerrigan, president and CEO of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, who hosted the gathering, said “the capital needs of entrepreneurs remain just as critical as when the JOBS Act was signed last April.” Now, she said, “the SEC must take the next step and finalize its rulemakings so the JOBS Act can fulfill its promise of helping to fund promising businesses, and bring the economy back to robust levels of growth and job creation.”
The crowdfunding community is going to Washington, D.C., tomorrow to bang on some doors. Its goal is to generate political impetus to persuade the Securities and Exchange Commission to write and finalize the rules necessary to implement the JOBS Act.
Tuesday, a range of crowdfunding backers, from investors to entrepreneurs who have launched crowdfunding sites to small-business advocates and venture-capital leaders, will descend on Washington and move around caravan-style to meet with representatives at the National Press Club, on Capitol Hill, the White House and the SEC.
Scott McIntyre is currently in his 8th term as Chairman of the CfPA’s Board of Directors and has served in leadership since formation in 2012, including four terms as President & Chair.
Professionally, Scott is an active proponent of regenerative agriculture underpinning his vision for a robust domestic Industrial Hemp landscape. He is a partner at Renaissance Park Corporation, a JV-driven R&D firm based in Sausalito, California, and founded Ohio-based co-op Hemp Made Products (HMP) to help farmers and their communities prosper from the re-shoring of this important industry as shareholders, not just stakeholders.
Further in his volunteer work, Scott founded 501(c)3 non-profit WEconomy-US, Inc. in part to implement the breakthrough economic development platform, Sustainable Communities Framework (SCF). Scott serves as a senior advisor to both the Sustainable Communities Corporation, a 503(c)4 fiscal policy NGO responsible for the SCF, and at Community Vision Associates, helping preserve legacy neighborhoods sustainably and equitably with novel real estate strategies.
Scott is a lifelong entrepreneur and venture catalyst. He founded strategy/media/capital firm Phabriq Development in 1997, and COventures in 2017, providing key technology and practical guidance for aspiring entrepreneurs and innovation communities. Scott recently completed interim CEO roles at Root Origins™ and at a unit of Groupo Venture Capital, a Chilean investment bank.
Scott is a recognized pioneer in Education Technology since his role as a founding executive of REAL Education in 1994, the startup that built the first online education platform, launching worldwide as eCollege at IPO in 1999. eCollege is now a cornerstone of Education market leader Pearson, having acquired eCollege for $477 million in 2007. As a Director at The University of Toledo, Scott was responsible for designing and building the school’s first Office of Student Entrepreneurship and Engagement. Scott previously managed the State of Ohio’s Edison Technology Business Incubator and continues to mentor College of Engineering student entrepreneurs.
Scott is active in impact investor communities both local and abroad, notably as an advisor to the 360 One Firm. Scott was invited by President Obama to The White House in recognition as a Champion of Change related to CfPA’s landmark work. He was also selected by the U.S. State Department to address the Finance Ministers of the European Union on the subject of Alternative Finance at a 2018 meeting in Vienna. Scott has consulted governments and addressed crowds in excess of 20,000 in China, Russia, India, Australia, and Europe, and he maintains an active network of leading foreign alternative finance bodies with colleagues in over 20 countries.
Details of Mr. McIntyre’s work history, achievements and recommendations can be viewed on his LinkedIn profile.
Brian Christie is CEO of Brainsy, Inc. – an innovative SaaS company offering a white label social media engagement platform that can reward participants for their engagement and that can be owned by the community. Brian’s vision for Brainsy is that it will spawn thousands of social media micro-networks – each using their own incentive system and currency (optional) to reward their community of contributors.
Brian is also an Advisor at Crowdfund Holdings Innovators (CHI), a company that incubates innovative crowdfunding concepts and advises issuers on raising money through regulated investment crowdfunding. Brian has advised or invested in various start-ups and served in a board or executive role at companies such as LTVtrade, Promontory Interfinancial Network, and quantumStream. Specialties include: fintech, digital marketing, strategic alliance formation, impact investing, international business development and cross border transactions. He’s a fan of any movement, innovation, technology, law, or regulation that creates opportunities, serves the public interest, and levels the economic playing field.
Brian received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Miami University and an MBA from Georgetown University
Sara Hanks, Founder and CEO of CrowdCheck, is an attorney with over 30 years of experience in the corporate and securities field. CrowdCheck provides due diligence, disclosure and compliance services for online capital formation. Its services help entrepreneurs and project sponsors through the disclosure and due diligence process, give investors the information they need to make an informed investment decision and avoid fraud and help intermediaries avoid liability.
Sara’s prior position was General Counsel of the bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel, the overseer of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Prior to that, Sara spent many years as a partner of Clifford Chance, one of the world’s largest law firms. While at Clifford Chance, she advised on capital markets transactions and corporate matters for companies throughout the world. Sara began her career with the London law firm Norton Rose. She later joined the Securities and Exchange Commission and as Chief of the Office of International Corporate Finance led the team drafting regulations that put into place a new generation of rules governing the capital-raising process.
Sara received her law degree from Oxford University and is a member of the New York and DC bars and a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales. She serves as co-Chair of the SEC’s Advisory Council on Small and Emerging Companies. She holds a Series 65 securities license as a registered investment advisor. Sara is an aunt, Army wife, skier, cyclist, gardener and animal lover.
Jenny Kassan has almost three decades of experience as an attorney and advisor for mission-driven enterprises. She has helped her clients raise millions of dollars from values-aligned investors and raised over $3 million for her own businesses.
She is the author of Raise Capital on Your Own Terms: How to Fund Your Business without Selling Your Soul (Berrett-Koehler, October 2017).
Jenny earned her J.D. from Yale Law School and a master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from the University of California at Berkeley.
She served on the Securities and Exchange Commission Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies. She submitted the petition to the SEC that led to the passage of the 2012 JOBS Act and was present at the White House signing ceremony.
Brian is the Founder of Crowdwise, LLC, and is an angel investor in 80+ private startups through equity crowdfunding.
He obtained a dual B.S. in Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2009 with a minor in Economics and French, and a dual M.S. in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California in 2012.
After working as an engineering lead and manager at a Fortune 500 company for 10 years, Brian left the defense and aerospace industry to embark as an entrepreneur and founded Crowdwise in 2019.
Crowdwise is an online startup investing community focused on helping both investors and entrepreneurs navigate equity crowdfunding by providing courses, tools and educational content.
Samson is a classically trained anthropologist, finance and public health expert who advises Fortune 100 companies, executives and startups in Dubai, Washington, DC and Dublin, Ireland.
Samson learned his craft as Emergency Manager at Fannie Mae 2008 – 2016 and has since gone on to be a leading advisor to banks and financial institutions in the Dubai / Middle East North Africa region.
Samson’s focus is helping firms understand the latest human trends in fintech, digital transformation, the Space Economy and Low Earth Orbit entrepreneurship so that they can make profitable decisions for their bottom lines.
Follow Samson on Twitter/Instagram @MilkyWayEconomy or reach out to him on LinkedIn to follow the latest insights in his academic and market research.
Patrick Tracey is Director of Business Development for Morrow Sodali. In this role, Pat brings expertise in a number of areas including Proxy Solicitation – Activism – Corporate Governance Advisory – IPO Prep – Demutualization (Insurance Companies, Community Banks and Credit Union) – Stock Surveillance for Public, Private and Mutual companies.
Pat has an impressive history in the securities industry. He has worked with community banks and insurance companies who have raised capital via mutual-to-stock conversions, mutual holding company formations and sponsored demutualizations, including the historic MetLife demutualization and the 1995 stock offering by the Boston Beer Company to retail customers.
Pat is on the advisory board of Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business program in investor relations and has guest lectured at Fordham, New York University, Baruch College and DePaul University on investor relations topics. Pat is a graduate of New York University.
Blaine McLaughlin is the Chief Product Officer of VIA Folio, an innovative IPO, private and alternative investment platform that makes it easy for online platforms, issuers, investors, brokers and advisors to engage with IPOs, private and alternative debt and equity offerings. Part of Folio Investments, Inc., VIA Folio supports issuance, custody, servicing and secondary transactions in public and private equity and debt investments, and other listed and unlisted securities. McLaughlin joined the company in 2007, and has led retail customer acquisition and management, partnerships, portfolio acquisition, introducing broker services, and other business development activities.
McLaughlin previously served as a Director of Marketing and Analysis at Capital One for credit card and direct banking divisions, and as an officer in the U.S. Navy. He has more than 15 years of experience in the financial services industry, holds a degree in economics from the University of California at San Diego, and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Jordan Fishfeld is the former CEO and co-founder of PeerRealty (sold), and current Chairman of the Board and co-founder of CFX Markets and OpenFinance Network, secondary market platforms for traditionally crowdfunded and digital assets, respectively. In this role, he focuses his time on strategic planning and general oversight in the new and growing digital marketplace. With over 8 years of compliance, legal, investing, and sales experience in regulated markets, Jordan understands the need for a single coherent voice in the crowdfunding and blockchain industries.
Prior to founding PeerRealty, Jordan worked as a finance attorney for Katten Muchin Rosenman, LLP, where he assisted on more than $1 billion worth of syndicated loan transactions.
Additionally, Jordan sits on the board of Upstart, a national non-profit tasked with bringing bold, new and innovative Jewish ideas to light through its accelerator and mentorship program.
Jordan received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Florida and his Masters of Business Administration and his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude.
Over 35 years of experience in Information Technology with the majority of time being spent in the Financial Services industry. Possesses detailed knowledge of all aspects of the online capital formation/crowdfunding, international brokerage, hedge fund and asset management businesses. Able to recruit and motivate strong teams capable of solving mission critical business problems.
Has been involved in the alternative asset space since prior to the passing of the Jobs Act as the founder of CrowdClear a company formed to provide back office clearing and settlement services to firms raising capital using Regulation D. Currently works as the Director of Business Development for Koreconx, the premier supplier of technology and services helping firms manage all aspects of the investment lifecycle.
Devin is a journalist, author and educator. He calls himself a champion of social good. As a new-media journalist and founder of the Your Mark on the World Center, Devin has established himself as a champion of social good. As a Forbes contributor, with over 400 bylines and over
one million unique readers, he has become a recognized name in the social impact arena. His Your Mark on the World show, featuring over 900 celebrities, CEOs, billionaires, entrepreneurs and others who are out to change the world, gives him a recognizable face as well.
Previously, Devin served as the CFO of the third largest company on the 2009 Inc. 500 list. He also founded and led an NASD-registered investment bank. After completing a degree in finance at the University of Utah, he earned an MBA from Cornell University.
Having lived on three continents and visited over 30 countries on six continents and with guests from around the world on his show, Devin brings a global perspective to international audiences–from the UN to Nepal–empowering them to do more good and make their mark on the world. These lessons also enable them to change their personal lives and to drive positive change within their organizations. His books provide roadmaps to audiences on how to use money for good. His books have been read over 1 million times!
Today, Devin channels the idealism of his youth, volunteering whenever and wherever he can, with the loving support of his wife, Gail. Their son, Dayton, works in San Francisco.
Vincent Molinari is the CEO of Templum Markets, (FINRA Registered Broker Dealer and ATS) and Co-Founder of it’s parent company, Templum, Inc. He is also a Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Blockchain Commission for Sustainable Development and is a Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Blockchain for Impact.
Vincent Molinari has nearly 3 decades of experience as a licensed person in the securities industry where he began his career at Lehman Brothers and later at Janney Montgomery Scott. He is a recognized thought leader on the modernization of securities law and the intersection of breakthrough innovation and technology solutions.
Vincent is an active Global Speaker on Market Infrastructure, Capital Formation, Blockchain, Digital Assets, Impact Investing, and the JOBS Act. He is the host of the Digital Assets Report filmed at the NYSE and has been invited to testify before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Capital Markets, and Government Sponsored Enterprises. Mr. Molinari has also testified before The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies regarding secondary market liquidity.
He has participated in authoring 16 Comment Letters and Petitions for Rule Change to the SEC and FINRA. In addition, he consults with members of Congress and Senate on these issues.
David N. Feldman concentrates his practice on corporate and securities law and mergers and acquisitions, as well as general representation of public and private companies, entrepreneurs, investors, and private equity and venture capital firms. Mr. Feldman also advises emerging growth companies with regard to alternatives to traditional financing through initial public offerings. He is also considered an authority on public offerings through the recently implemented SEC Regulation A+. Mr. Feldman also represents investors, social media sites, public and private issuers and applicants for grow and dispensary licenses in the emerging cannabis industry.
Mr. Feldman has authored four books on finance and entrepreneurship, and contributed to three other books. His latest book, Regulation A+ and Other Alternatives to a Traditional IPO (John Wiley & Sons), was published in March 2018.
Alon is the Managing Partner of Stacked Capital, an early-stage industry agnostic venture capital fund. Previously Alon was the co-founder, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Technical Officer of crowdfunding platform RocketHub, acquired in 2015. Alon is a founding member of the Forbes Technology Council, and a Strategic Advisor to Zombie Soup (Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, and games); he has twice testified in front of U.S. Congress on equity crowdfunding, co-authored three acclaimed whitepapers on the JOBS Act, and was selected to lead FINRA’s Capital Markets Series on crowdfunding. Alon oversaw RocketHub’s partnerships with the White House, U.S. Department of State, Fulbright Foundation, Cisco, Microsoft, Chrysler, and others. Alon has led large speaking engagements for organizations including American Express, TEDx, Campaign Summit, Re.Comm, and Make Innovation. Alon earned his M.Sc from Columbia University and was a fellow at the Earth Institute’s Advanced Consortium of Cooperation, Conflict, and Complexity; he specialized in genocide prevention and social network theory.
Jason Paltrowitz is Executive Vice President and Global Head of Business Development at OTC Markets Group, where he is responsible for all international and domestic corporate services new business and relationship management. Prior to joining OTC Markets in October 2013, Mr. Paltrowitz was Managing Director and Segment Head at JP Morgan Chase and was responsible for the custody, clearing and collateral management business in the Corporate and Investment Bank division. Mr. Paltrowitz started his career at BNY Mellon serving in multiple senior management positions, most notably as Head of M&A for the Financial Markets and Treasury Services Sector and 11 years in the Depositary Receipt Division as the Head of the Global Capital Markets Group. Mr. Paltrowitz also served as a member of the Board of Directors at OTC Markets Group from 2008 – 2011.
Mr. Paltrowitz holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Boston University and received his MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business.
Thell Woods, a former interim president of the CfPA, founded and currently serves as chairman of Crowdfunding Services LLC. The company helps establish “Community Centric Crowdfunding” programs offering both non-profit and securities offerings. Thell serves specifically defined communities throughout Michigan developing the www.C3funding.com website as the base for these programs.
A Realtor since 1958, Woods has been President and Realtor of the year of the Gratiot/Isabella Association of Realtors and a Director of the Greater Kalamazoo Association of Realtors. He served as a Vice President of the Michigan Association of Realtors and served 8 years as a National Director of the National Association of Realtors. In 2000, he was honored by the Michigan Association of Realtors as the recipient of the Realtor Active in Politics Award.
In addition to his real estate activities, he has served as the Securities Broker for his Syndications Corporation Broker Dealer which then had over 100 Realtors as licensed direct participation program securities representatives. During this time he also developed and sold over 60 Reg. D type private Real Estate offerings.
Among his other businesses, he developed Internet Connection Services an early Kalamazoo Area internet service provider and established Qualified Intermediary Services to facilitate section 1031 tax deferred exchanges and has earned the CES Certified exchange Specialist designation from the Federation of Exchange Accommodators.
Darren Marble is the CEO of CrowdfundX, a pioneering crowdfunding agency serving corporations and entrepreneurs across a wide mix of industries and geographies. The company helps clients to effectively architect and execute strategic equity and rewards-based crowdfunding campaigns that build brand equity and drive growth.
Notably, under Darren’s leadership, CrowdfundX designed, produced and marketed the Reg A+ equity crowdfunding campaign for Elio Motors, which raised just under $17 million from 6,200+ investors. Elio subsequently listed on the OTC Markets OTCQX under the symbol “ELIO,” making it the first company in the United States to have completed a Reg A+ equity crowdfunding offer and list shares on a public exchange. At present, CrowdfundX is currently managing more than a dozen Reg A+ equity crowdfunding campaigns.
Darren is a featured LinkedIn contributor and an active public speaker, having recently spoken as a guest lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, USC Marshall School of Business, UC Irvine, the CSUN Entertainment Alumni Network and the ESGCI Business School in Paris, France. His insights have been featured in Forbes, the Los Angeles Business Journal, Bankless Times and others.
Dr. Richard Swart is recognized as the global thought leader in the crowdfunding industry. Richard is a founding board member of the Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA), the Crowdfunding Intermediary Regulatory Advocates (CIFRA), and an early leader in the field. Richard co-organized the first major national conference on crowdfunding and coordinated several educational events on the JOBS Act throughout the United States for the White House.
As a research scholar in the Institute for Business & Social Innovation in the Haas School of Business, he is the University’s resident expert on crowdfunding and evolving models of alternative finance. He also organized the Annual Academic Symposium on Crowdfunding Research. He currently advises the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and works with several other prominent foundations, think tanks, funds and corporations. He is co-author of the forthcoming book Crowdfunding: The Corporate Era, being published in June 2015.
Richard has emerged as the global expert in developments in crowdfunding. He was the lead author on a research project for the World Bank exploring crowdfunding and funding models for innovative technology. He has lectured in Europe, the UK, Africa, the Middle East and throughout the United States. In recognition of his research in the United Kingdom, he was recently made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Dr. Swart was the lead author or researcher on the World Bank’s report on Crowdfunding and it’s Potential Impact for the Developing World. He partnered with the University of Cambridge to complete the first Country level-study of alternative finance: The Rise of Future Finance: The UK Alternative Finance Benchmarking Report. With Crowdfund Capital Advisors he authored the report: How Does Crowdfunding Impact Job Creation, Revenue and Professional Investor Interest? – the first report that empirically demonstrated crowdfunding’s effects on job creation and future investments.
After leaving Utah State University’s Huntsman School of Business where he taught Information Systems, he has worked with a number of startups and has become a key organizer in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. He is a former COO of an Internet startup that had a successful exit in 2010. Richard is a board member and strategic advisor to firms in the crowdfunding and alternative investing space.
Xiaocheh Zhang currently serves on the CfPA Board of Directors. He is also a co-founder of the Crowdfunding China Society (CFCS). As a crowdfunding thought leader, he has advised many organizations in applying alternative finance and result-based approach in transforming their business models. He has provided services to World Bank, United Nations, TUEV SUED, Virginia Tech, Peking University and some other organizations in the past 15 years. Xiaochen has rich experience in both public and private sector in America, Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe to incubate and scale up innovative programs and projects at all levels. He is also a recognized speaker in climate finance, green innovation and crowdfunding. Here are a few examples:
Rodney Sampson is an innovator, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, published author, and consecrated bishop. As an innovator and serial entrepreneur, Sampson co-founded Multicast Media Networks (Streamingfaith.com) in 2000 (acquired in 2010), a live and on-demand streaming platform that laid the foundation for companies like YouTube and Ustream. Not stopping there, Sampson co-founded Intellectual Currency (an integrated marketing, intellectual property, diversity & inclusion and business development advisory firm) in 2002, Intellect Inspire (a digital publishing imprint of Audible) in 2006, and Legacy Opportunity Fund in 2007 with investments in technology, consumer products, energy, cyber-security, publishing and the entrepreneurial ecosystem. He also serves on the advisory boards of Digit, a disruptive financial technology company, Mark Burnett Productions, Springboard Fund and multiple startup and early stage companies throughout the world.
Sampson is passionate about reducing our nation’s poverty and wealth gap by advancing the cause of S.T.E.M, innovation, entrepreneurship and capital formation as a way of life for all communities. To advance this definitive cause, Sampson created Opportunity Ecosystem (OE). Opportunity Ecosystem includes Opportunity Hub, a multi-campus coworking space, coding college, entrepreneurship school, pre-accelerator and incubator. Opportunity Hub is also home to Opportunity Ventures, a new seed and early stage investment fund. In January 2013, Sampson launched Kingonomics, the nation’s leading platform for minorities and under-served communities to learn, navigate and master the investment ecosystem. Kingonomics conferences, events and trainings attract over 1,500 entrepreneurs, 500 teenagers and 100 accredited investors and mentors annually.
As a member of the Board of Directors of the Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA), Sampson is an active advocate and respected authority on Federal equity crowdfunding via the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS) Act and intrastate equity crowdfunding via Georgia’s “Invest Georgia Exemption”. Always meditating, thinking, networking and connecting to disrupt economic culture, Sampson is innovating what he has branded as an “ecosystem based capital formation platform” – designed to interconnect the capital markets of minority owned financial institutions, business associations, churches, neighborhood & community organizations, historical black colleges and universities (HBCU’s) and the constituents they mutually and respectively serve. The platform will allow underserved and under-represented communities to learn, engage and invest in the private capital markets by providing access to relevant investment opportunities traditionally reserved for accredited and institutional investors. The long-term outcome will result in sustainable new job creation, wealth creation and a better society for all.
Throughout this journey, Sampson has maintained the creativity of his youth and early entrepreneurial career as an experienced advisor, integrated marketer, business developer and connector. Having worked very closely on Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ, Disney’s The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe & The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till, Sampson was tapped in 2013 by Mark Burnett to create the diversity and inclusion initiatives at One Three Media, a joint venture between Mark Burnett Productions and Hearst. Mark Burnett is the Executive Producer of The Voice, Survivor, Celebrity Apprentice, ABC’s Shark Tank, The Bible Series, Son of God Movie & A.D. In Seasons 5 & 6 of the hit ABC show Sharktank, more than 15 minority-owned startups were afforded the opportunity to pitch their companies for angel investment on the show. Even in his advisory practice, Sampson is still working tirelessly to close the wealth gap while simultaneously shifting culture’s perceptions of minority entrepreneurs and investors.
Brian Korn was elected to the Board of Directors (Legal P.O.V.) of the Crowdfunding Professional Association in January 2014. Brian is a corporate and securities attorney at the law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and has had multiple appearances on Fox Business Television, Bloomberg, CCTV America and National Public Radio as an expert on the JOBS Act, including its impact on crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending, IPOs and market trading dynamics. He has been published or quoted in Forbes, CNBC, MSNBC, New York Law Journal, Law360, Philadelphia Inquirer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Financier Worldwide and The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation.
Brian is the author of several articles on capital raising and investor liquidity, and has several clients in the peer-to-peer lending space. Brian is the author of “The Trouble with Crowdfunding” published in Forbes, as well as the Forbes article announcing the SEC’s crowdfunding rules proposal. Prior to joining Pepper, Brian was Head of Equity Capital Markets and Syndicate Compliance at Barclays and was Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel for Citigroup Global Markets Inc. Brian is an honors graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and the Northwestern University School of Law.
Thomas Lawson is vice president of private issuer services for VIA Folio, Folio’s private capital network. In his role at VIA Folio, he provides legal and regulatory guidance to business development and operations. As part of this work, he supports VIA Folio’s online transactions in unlisted securities. He joined Folio in 2015.
Prior to joining Folio, Tom was a chief counsel for the enforcement department of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and assistant director of enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In total, he brings more than 25 years of experience in securities law and financial industry regulation.
Tom earned a bachelor’s degree in Classics from Union College and a law degree from Hofstra University’s School of Law.
AdaPia D’Errico is the Chief Marketing Officer at Patch of Land, where she heads up marketing, which includes strategy, brand, communications, partnerships and client services. Prior to joining Patch of Land, AdaPia ran a consulting company that developed growth strategies for major brands at Disney and Mattel, as well as technology and new media startups. AdaPia began her career at CIBC and subsequently spent 8 years in banking and investment management with a focus on customer relationship management, investor relations, and corporate communications. AdaPia is a published writer, blogger for The Huffington Post, and is a public presenter on topics including growth strategies, entrepreneurship, crowdfunding and brand development. AdaPia holds a B.B.A from the University of British Columbia and a B.A in International Business Economics from Hogeschool Zeeland, The Netherlands.
Dara Albright is a recognized authority, thought provoker and frequent speaker on topics relating to market structure, private secondary transactions, next-gen IPOs, P2P, FinTech and crowdfinance. Albright has held a distinguished 23 year career in IPO execution, investment banking, corporate communications, financial marketing as well as institutional and retail sales.
She is a visionary who continues to introduce rising asset classes and crowd-structured financial products to the Wall Street community. Albright was one of the earliest voices covering the JOBS Act and advocating for greater democracy in the equity and credit markets. She produced the very first crowdfunding conference in January 2012 which was headlined by key JOBS Act architects: Congressman Patrick McHenry and Dave Weild. That event helped birth the crowdfinance movement and led to the establishment of the industry’s trade and leadership organizations – which she co-founded. In 2013, she co-founded LendIt, the largest and most recognized global p2p & online lending conference organization. In 2015, she co-founded FinFair, the first conference platform to feature the leadership, products and technologies driving the crowd-centric retail alternatives market. Some of the most prominent figures in the financial industry as well as the legislature continue to participate in Albright’s events. Her leading-edge articles that have helped shape the direction of the crowdfinance industry can be found on Equities.com, Crowdfund Insider, Seeking Alpha, Investing.com, FINalternatives and Business Insider. She has been featured in the NY Times, Forbes, ABA Banking Journal, Thestreet.com, Private Wealth Magazine as well as in a number of leading industry trade publications. Albright continues to help issuers, investors as well as financial service providers across the globe capitalize during this unprecedented period of financial industry disruption and regulatory reform. Prior firms she worked for include: Unterberg Towbin, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Divine Capital and Citigate Dewe Rogerson. She is a graduate of the George Washington University and holds securities industry Series 7, 24, 31 and 63 licenses.