Yesterday, I received a newsletter from the equity crowdfunding portal owner and operator, TruCrowd, Inc. (TCI), updating its users to a recent announcement made by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC has decided to ease certain requirements, providing temporary and conditional relief to make raising money using Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg. CF), with minimum documentation, much smoother; increasing the amount to $250k from $107k. By expediting this process and making it more affordable by increasing the raise amount with less paperwork, the SEC’s action seems to assist small businesses satisfy capital demands amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Also, the action eliminates the 21-day mandatory wait time until any funds can be disbursed.
Well, if hindsight is 20/20 – based on the SEC’s announcement, then I am certainly glad we had the foresight to support our communications subsidiary, TruCrowd Services, LLC (“TCS”), in its launch of the micro-funding program, ‘Keep The Light On.’
The SEC’s temporary relief is a significant contribution to the war effort against the coronavirus and the havoc that it has wreaked on our economy. It also lends credence to the position that our communications subsidiary, TCS took, when its CEO determined that launching a micro funding campaign would be impactful to the small business community struggling due to coronavirus. Boy, was she right!
Launched as a micro-funding strategy for Reg. CF, #KeepTheLightOn originally focused on facilitating between $10,000 and $107,000 to small businesses that have been fully or partially shut down amid the health crisis. We were looking to simply do our part in providing small businesses and social weavers with another avenue to secure short-term capital.
For qualified businesses, all upfront fees have been waived and/or deferred and future invoicing is billed at a discounted rate. Furthermore, any associated third-party professional fees could be funded by us (DigitalAMN), if the small business was unable to afford such fees.
Our micro-funding strategy proved to be fortuitous against the backdrop of the SEC’s announcement, since what we are already offering small businesses has been significantly enhanced. Now ‘Keep The Light On’ offers the ability to quickly raise up to $250,000 through loan-based or equity-based crowdfunding. With the joint effort between TruCrowd, Inc and TruCrowd Services, LLC, – lead by TCS’ CEO, Claudia Ecobici, TCI provides qualified businesses with the platform and support to launch a micro funding campaign and TCS engages the business’ audience with a comprehensive marketing strategy to assist with a successful raise.
While the SEC’s temporary relief is only slated to be available up until Aug. 31, 2020, through our subsidiary, DigitalAMN will continue to support efforts to combat the economic crisis brought on by Covid-19. We were also bolstered today when the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce launched a new coronavirus loan program – partially leveraging a crowdfunding platform. Considering that 67% of each dollar spent at a small business stays in the community, I firmly believe this chamber of commerce will not be the last to lean on crowdfunding to financially revitalize a local economy. We stand ready to continue assisting both TCS and TCI in building alliances with organizations across the country in an effort to ‘Keep The Light On.’
If you have a small business, please visit #KeepTheLightOn to see if your business qualifies for the campaign. You can also nominate a local business you know that was affected by the coronavirus crisis as well as any social weavers needing financial assistance in providing products and solutions to those in need.
Together, we will all get through this!