A pioneering website which enables start-up companies to seek investment from the general public has been launched by a company based at SETsquared's Exeter Innovation Centre.
Crowdcube is the World's first "crowdfunding" website which connects entrepreneurs with a "crowd" of potential investors who can invest small amounts of money – from as little as £10 – in exchange for shares in the business.
Entrepreneurs can showcase their business and investment potential to thousands of micro-investors by uploading a 'dragons' den' style video pitch, images and supporting documents
"The task of securing business investment is notoriously difficult. Banks adopt a no-risk approach to lending while business angels and venture capital funding are difficult to access," said Darren Westlake, co-founder and managing director of Crowdcube.
"We are democratising an age-old model for raising business finance by empowering the 'crowd' to pool small amounts of investment money and give Britain's start-ups a much needed boost. Crowdcube is the next generation of business investment.
"Since launching in February, Crowdcube have attracted national and local media attention and have featured on leading investment websites. They are currently listing a range of businesses seeking investment from £30,000 - £150,000.
There is no cost for entrepreneurs to sign up but Crowdcube receives a five per cent success fee from entrepreneurs who succeed in attracting their desired amount of investment. If the target funds are not met, investors get their money back and no fee is charged.
More information is available at: www.crowdcube.com
Receive the Funding Newswire each Tuesday, our Policy Bulletin each Thursday, and news about bridging Europe’s east-west innovation gap twice a month in The Widening. 
A unique international forum for public research organisations and companies to connect their external engagement with strategic interests around their R&D system.