Crowdcube raises £39m in self-funding on its own platform
The UK’s biggest crowdfunding platform, Crowdcube, has received investor pledges worth £39m in ten days after putting a call out for financing via its own platform, beating its original aim of raising £5m. Crowdcube has not yet stated whether it will now increase the investment target to take advantage of all the extra investment on offer.

Investors keen to put money into the UK's biggest crowdfunding platform Crowdcube have pledged £39 million ($51.8 million) of financing — smashing the platform's initial target of £5 million.

Crowdcube announced at the start of the month that it was hoping to raise £5 million in a crowdfunding campaign on its own platform later this month. The company set up a pre-registration page at the time, where would-be backers could pledge how much they would like to invest.

Crowdcube cofounder Luke Lang confirmed to Business Insider over email that pre-registrations have now passed £39 million, 10 days after the page went live. He told BI: "We've have been overwhelmed with the response with thousands registering their interest. It is a humbling show of support from our investor community."

Lang wouldn't say whether Crowdcube plans to raise its investment target to accommodate some or all of the extra investment that people are willing to give.

The pre-registrations appear to validate the comments made by Crowdcube CEO Darren Westlake when he announced the crowdfunding campaign, saying: "The UK’s growing investment crowdfunding market, which was estimated to be worth £245 million in 2015, is vibrant post-Brexit."

This week fintech startup Revolut announced it had attracted over £12 million in pre-registered pledges for its crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube, after targeting a raise of just £1 million.

Crowdcube, founded in 2011, lets ordinary people buy chunks of fast-growing, private startups from as little as £10. The platform has over 290,000 registered investors and over 400 companies have used its platform to raise over £170 million.

Notable brands that have raised money on the platform include the Eden Project and River Cottage. Investors have so far had two exits — where they get any profit or loss when a business is sold. They were from Camden Town Brewery and E-Car Club.

Lang would not comment on how many people have pledged the funds for investment in Crowdcube's round, nor confirm the company's valuation in this round. He also wouldn't say whether existing venture capitalist investors such as Balderton Capital are taking part in the round.

A date has not yet been set for Crowdcube's funding campaign to go live.