A recent report by data analysts Crowdnetic regarding activity since the SEC enacted general solicitation last fall showed some interesting developments: far and away, real estate investing and development has benefitted most from the rule change, receiving the highest amount of capital commitments.
Currently there is a real estate crowd funding gold rush, with more than a dozen platforms coming online, some of which have received significant funding. One former principal, major shareholder from name brand crowd funding platform Indiegogo, is so excited about this industry’s potential that he recently left that company to join a relatively unknown crowd funding upstart.
Adam Chapnick, former principal and employee number one with leading crowd funding platform Indiegogo, recently announced that he is leaving the industry giant to join real estate crowd funding company AssetAvenue. The company’s first completed deal raised $485,000 from investors in less than 48 hours to acquire a commercial real estate loan backed by office space in New York City’s prestigious Trump Palace. Chapnick believes real estate crowd funding is on the precipice of becoming a major disrupting force in real estate investing, and chose to join AssetAvenue’s team of highly experienced real estate and technology professionals, betting big on a newcomer in one of the fastest-growing segments of the crowd funding market.
Chapnick joined Indiegogo as its first employee in 2009 and quickly helped the company grow into new markets and become one of the most successful crowd funding platforms in the world. The company, which recently announced it raised a $40 million Series B round in January led by prominent investors Kleiner Perkins and Institutional Venture Partners, has hosted more than 200,000 campaigns to date in over 175 countries, four languages and five currencies.
Chapnick will be AssetAvenue’s chief strategy officer, bringing his expansive network and crowd funding expertise to revolutionize the real estate investment experience for real estate sponsors, lenders and retail and institutional investors.
“Crowd funding as a whole has been an incredibly revolutionary force in so many business verticals. It was thrilling to help drive this growth as the original player in the space,” comments Chapnick. “Looking forward, those of us who are steeped in crowd funding have seen real estate as the next explosive opportunity, given the sheer market size, coupled with all of its financial benefits to investors.”
Headquartered in Los Angeles, AssetAvenue is led by a management team leveraging a combined $10 billion in commercial real estate acquisitions experience. The company was founded in December 2013 by CEO David Manshoory, a seasoned real estate professional and successful entrepreneur with a track record of building rapid-growth companies.
