Sponsume


Sponsume was an online multicurrency crowd funding platform founded by French entrepreneur Gregory Vincent in 2010. Its headquarters are in London, United Kingdom. It stopped crowd funding services in 2014.

History

As a doctoral student at Oxford University, Vincent developed a keen interest in the works of Muhammad Yunus, a pioneer of microfinance. Vincent saw in peer-to-peer microfinance a brilliant alternative to traditional methods for funding innovative ideas. The 2009 financial crisis and subsequent cuts to subsidies that hit the UK arts scene highlighted the need for an alternative, community-led way of raising funds for artists and innovators, prompting Vincent to launch Sponsume.

Model

The site uses the power of social networks and the wisdom of crowds to help fund a variety of projects ranging from films and documentaries, to music, theatre, photography, fashion, technology, scientific research, green and social enterprise. As of 2012, Sponsume has helped crowd fund over 1000 campaigns.
Project owners choose a timeframe deadline and a target funding goal. They create non-monetary rewards generally linked to their project. The site levies a 4% fee for successful campaigns and collects 9% for campaigns that failed to reach their target amount.

Notable projects funded on Sponsume