TriFan 600’s Equity Crowdfunding Campaign Raises $4 Million to Fund New Six-Seater Heli-Corporate Jet

New business plane resembles a drone with three rotor blades that takes off like a helicopter, but looks like a corporate jet

By Robert Hoskins

Denver, Colorado – XTI Aircraft Company (XTI) is pioneering the first use of crowdfunding for commercial airplane development, and at the same time continuing its engineering work on the TriFan 600. In just two weeks, equity crowdfunders have reserved shares for more than $4 million to support the development of an airplane with the speed, range, and comfort of a business jet and the ability to take off and land like a helicopter.

TriFan 600 allows pilots a vertical takeoff and landing capabilities

“The response to our announcement of the equity crowdfunding plan and to this revolutionary aircraft itself has been overwhelming,” said XTI Vice Chairman Jeff Pino. “People are captivated and excited by the world of possibilities this aircraft presents. They recognize that this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and want to get involved early as stakeholders.”

“We are connecting aspiring investors with the progressive companies of tomorrow,” said StartEngine Chief Executive Officer Ron Miller. “Investor response to XTI Aircraft has been extraordinary. The company is clearly on course to change the future of flight.”

XTI is currently gauging potential shareholder interest under the terms of Regulation A, popularly referred to as Reg A+, of the JOBS Act, and will decide later this year whether to file an application for a financing to be qualified by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).  If qualified, XTI will then open the door to official share purchases on the StartEngine website to begin as soon as year-end. The equity crowdfunding “Reservation of Shares” and actual investment in XTI (upon SEC approval) is also available to foreign investors outside the U.S., subject to applicable laws of their country.

XTI is also raising funds through venture capital, private equity and accredited investors, while finalizing diligence on its technical solution and starting discussions with vendors that will lead to building a prototype. The general public’s opportunity to become shareholders is time-limited. Learn more about how to”Reserve Shares” with investment amounts ranging from $250 to over $200,000 at startengine.com/startup/xti,

In development for over two years, the six-seat TriFan 600 will be the world’s first commercially certified vertical takeoff airplane and will provide true door-to-door travel, with speed, range and comfort comparable to that of a business jet.

XTI is backed by highly accomplished aviation industry all-stars, including founder and chairman David Brody. “We couldn’t be more appreciative of, or committed to, our future shareholders,” Brody said. “We thank each one of you for joining us on this journey.”

 

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(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

Hoskins is one of the crowdfunding industry’s foremost crowdfunding advocates and has amassed a huge social media following that is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns. Due to the overwhelming demand from the general public for crowdfunding information, he empowers entrepreneurs with some of the internet’s most affordable ($20) online crowdfunding training classes, which provide insight to startups around the world on a 24 x 7 basis.

Hoskins adamantly believes that the crowdfunding industry will empower everyone in the United States to rediscover the possibility of living the American dream with a little hard work, a great business idea and the dedication to researching, planning and launching a well-thought-out crowdfunding campaign. He consults on a regular basis with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

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Crowdfundraiser Rolls Out New Regulation A+ Crowdfunding Sites to Support Equity Crowdfunding for Accredited and Non-Accredited Investors

The new rules for Regulation A+ of the JOBS Act allow for capital raising, with some stipulation, of up to $50,000,000 from both accredited and non-accredited investors for private companies

By Robert Hoskins

Seattle, Washington – Crowdfundraiser.com announced the official release of Regulation A+ crowdfunding kickoff pricing for new companies seeking capital. As of June 19, 2015, equity crowdfunding for both accredited and non-accredited investors is now legal.

Crowdfundraiser Readies Equity Crowdfunding Platform to Host Tier 2, Title IV, Reg A+ Mini-IPOs

The deals that will begin registration with the SEC in June and will take a few months to completely cycle through, but the law is now fully in place. The new rules for Regulation A+ of the JOBS Act allow for capital raising, with some stipulation, of up to $50,000,000 from both accredited and non-accredited investors for private companies.

“We are already seeing a great deal of interest from both investors looking to invest and companies seeking capital through the Reg A+ rules,” stated Jake Durrant, Crowdfundraiser’s Managing Director. “We are not expecting this interest to abate as the new tools at the disposal of small business represent one of the greatest opportunities for small business capital formation in a generation.”

Founded in 2014, Crowdfundraiser provides expert guidance for companies seeking to navigate the waters of equity crowdfunding. With a handful of in-house and experienced securities and transactional attorneys, the company has the resources to assist any company seeking access to capital through equity crowdfunding and Regulation A+.

The company includes experienced investment bankers as well as those familiar with microcap stocks, which should provide timely assistance for crowdfunded companies that need future liquidity for investors through the public markets.

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Symbid and Catena Partner Up to Offer Independent Risk Scoring With Loan-based Equity Crowdfunding

The Funding Network by Symbid, Online Funding Platform for Small Businesses, Adds Professional Third-Party Scoring

By Robert Hoskins

Rotterdam, The Netherlands – Symbid Corp. (OTCQB: SBID) announced a partnership with Catena, spin-off of leading European treasury and risk management firm, to provide INRISC, an automated credit risk scoring and pricing service for its upcoming loan crowdfunding product. The partnership means Symbid becomes one of the first online funding platforms to use an independent third party to score investment opportunities and set objective interest rates. Using standardized accounting data and fully automated processes, it represents efficient risk management for entrepreneurs and investors.

Symbid is the only platform in the Netherlands where investors become shareholders

“We’re delighted to announce this strategic partnership with Catena Investments while The Funding Network continues to grow and mature. As our monthly transaction volume exceeds $35 million it is right that we keep pushing for more professionalism,” said Korstiaan Zandvliet, co-founder and CEO of Symbid Corp. “With Catena on board, we’re confident that our upcoming loan crowdfunding product will be the most transparent on the market. Looking ahead, instant scoring and pricing will be a cornerstone of our offering to professional investors. This is a big step forward in our mission of simplifying the way small businesses are funded.”

Catena Investments, a Zanders spin-off specialising in the development of state-of-the-art financial technology solutions, will assess the credit risk of loan propositions with its INRISC service using data provided by Monitoring by Symbid. This data is, in turn, streamed via accountant reporting systems. This automated scoring and pricing process is expected to be an improvement on the market standard. Most online funding platforms continue to operate scoring models internally that allow companies have a say in the final interest rate of a loan.

“With INRISC we mean to provide the market off-the-shelf solutions that will ultimately enable the investment industry to benefit from more transparency on risk and pricing, specifically for alternative investments such as crowdfunding,” said Marco Behling of Catena Investments. “Working together with Symbid represents a unique opportunity for us to link to the day-to-day needs of the crowd with independent and state-of-the art scoring models and adequate pricing of requested credit facilities.”

The Funding Network by Symbid is a go-to platform for start-ups and small businesses in search of funding. Through advanced investing, monitoring and data tools Symbid is connecting traditional and alternative finance in a new, online model. With over $100 million provided to small businesses via The Funding Network in its first 3 months, this partnership validates Symbid as a leading European player in financial technology. Although this funding volume does not currently equate to a significant revenue stream there is potential for a monthly recurring revenue model to be added in the near future.

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iCrowd Hotels Opens Premier Real Estate Crowdfunding Site to Pair Hotel Developers with Hungry Real Estate Investors

 The new crowdfunding portal provides investors with direct access to top-performing hotel investments and streamlines the fundraising process for hotel owners and developers

By Robert Hoskins

Miami, Florida – iCrowd Hotels, Inc. announced the launch of its new proprietary online hotel crowdfunding platform. The innovative platform, which is focused on hotel properties across the globe, answers the mounting demand for direct access to tangible, top-performing hotel investments, as well as the need from owners and developers for a more streamlined and efficient fundraising process.

iCrowd Hotels Opens Premier Real Estate Crowdfunding Site to Pair Hotel Developers with Hungry Real Estate Investors

“Our crowdfunding platform has been in development for the past 18 months, with the goal of creating the premier hotel crowdfunding site. Since the adoption of Title II of the JOBS Act, and the passage of Regulation A+, there is an incredible untapped potential for private investors to diversify their portfolios and become pioneer crowd investors in the lucrative hospitality market,” said Ted Farnsworth, chairman and founder of iCrowdHotels, Inc.

“According to experts Massolution and Bloomberg, global crowdfunding is expected to reach $34.4 billion this year and real estate crowdfunding to top $250 billion by the end of 2020. We have opened the door to enable individuals to hold a valuable stake in premium hotel properties across the globe for as little as $10,000,” Farnsworth continued.

iCrowdHotels’ online platform will put the power directly in the hands of the investor by providing state-of-the-art technology that allows users to closely track the composition of their hotel portfolios, along with fundraising progress for properties in crowd investing status.  For owners and developers looking to raise capital, iCrowdHotels’ seamless tools allow for easy management and tracking of fundraising progress.

The company is now working on the release of its planned hotel pipeline comprised of more than $130 million in current deals in key markets including New York City, Miami, California and Europe. It will be working strategically with its partners to systematically choose the appropriate properties for the crowdfunding platform.

The company has also been tactically building its team of highly experienced industry veterans. Carl J. Schramm, an expert on new business strategy and innovation, has been advising the company during its early formation. Schramm, a professor at Syracuse University, served as president of the Kauffman Foundation until 2012, leading it to global preeminence in encouraging entrepreneurship and its link to economic development.

iCrowd Hotels, Inc. is a real estate developer and investor with a groundbreaking hospitality strategy focused on the millennial market. Situated in the forefront of the real estate crowdfunding movement, iCrowd Hotels is defining itself as the premier portal of its kind, seeking to create a marketplace in which hotel real estate developers and investors will come together to forge mutually beneficial relationships.

Taking sight of the positive outlook for the hospitality market, its foremost thrust is hotels but it is an equity-based crowdfunding portal that may offer different types of investment properties as well. Setting iCrowd Hotels apart is the fact that it affords the investor an in-depth knowledge of how the hotel industry functions.

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RCS Capital Reinstates 51 Selling Agreements to Distribute Alternative Investment Solutions

RCS Capital has 1,020 active selling agreements and works with over 250 firms to distribute alternative investment solutions

 By Robert Hoskins

New York, NY – RCS Capital Corporation (NYSE: RCAP) (“RCS Capital”) announced that certain broker-dealers have resumed sales of products distributed by Realty Capital Securities, LLC, the company’s wholesale distribution business, pursuant to 51 recently reinstated selling agreements.  RCS Capital has 1,020 active selling agreements and works with over 250 firms to distribute alternative investment solutions.

RCS Capital Alternative Investments

RCS Capital Corporation is a full-service investment firm expressly focused on the individual retail investor. With operating subsidiaries including retail advice services, wholesale distribution, investment banking, capital markets, investment research, investment management and crowdfunding, RCAP’s business is designed to capitalize, support, grow and maximize value for the investment programs it distributes and the independent advisors and clients it serves.

“We have consistently communicated to the market our belief that the suspensions of certain of our ongoing selling agreements were of a temporary nature.  The reinstatement of these agreements and this initial resumption of sales are confirmation of this belief,” commented Bill Dwyer, Chief Executive Officer of Realty Capital Securities, LLC. “RCS Capital enjoys strong relationships with our broker-dealer network, and strongly believes firms clearly understand the value of RCS Capital-distributed products and continue to work constructively with us, just as we are eager to provide them with access to the quality products they demand.”

RCS Capital also announced that RCS Capital’s management team remains confident in the long-term value of RCS Capital’s platform, as highlighted by the recent purchase of RCS Capital common stock by a number of senior executives.

RCS Capital’s senior executives have purchased a total of 79,165 shares of the company’s Class A common stock last week. Bill Dwyer recently purchased 42,000 shares and John H. Grady, RCS Capital’s Chief Strategy and Risk Officer, bought 3,815 shares. Also, as disclosed previously in Form-4 filings to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), Michael Weil, RCS Capital’s Chief Executive Officer, Brian Jones, RCS Capital’s Chief Financial Officer, and Brian Nygaard, RCS Capital’s Chief Operating Officer, purchased an aggregate of 33,350 shares of RCS Capital common stock last week.

“Management maintains an unwavering confidence in the long-term value of RCS Capital’s platform, its people, its customers and the terrific growth prospects of its business,” said Mr. Weil. “The recent purchase of RCS Capital shares by management underscores our firm belief that the company’s current market valuation does not properly reflect the fair value of the business’s robust fundamentals, earning power, growth prospects and significant competitive advantages.”

Additional information about RCAP can be found on its website at www.rcscapital.com. RCAP may disseminate information about itself, including the results of its operations and financial information, via social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Investors Offered $82 Million New Jersey Commercial Real Estate Property via Equity Crowdfunding Site

The target annual cash yield to investors is 10.5 percent and backed by value of  $92/sq. ft., which is covered by the current property value of $119/sq. ft.

By Robert Hoskins

Portland, Oregon – CrowdStreet listed a mezzanine financing for 30 Knightsbridge Road, a four-building class B+ office complex in Piscataway, N.J., sponsored by EverWest Real Estate Partners, a privately held Denver-based real estate investment and operating company. By listing on CrowdStreet, a crowdfunding marketplace connecting accredited investors with institutional-grade real estate investments, EverWest is targeting a raise of $1.7 million as part of its $6 million mezzanine financing.

CrowdStreet Real Estate Equity Crowdfunding Platform in Indianapolis, Indiana

The target annual cash yield to investors is 10.5 percent. The investment opportunity in 30 Knightsbridge offers attractive risk-adjusted returns, as the total debt position through the mezzanine loan of $92 per square foot is well covered by the current property value of $119 per square foot.

“CrowdStreet is excited to work with EverWest and provide access for investors to participate in the 30 Knightsbridge mezzanine loan,” said Tore Steen, CrowdStreet’s CEO. “With the property’s strong tenant base, proximity to major transportation routes and New York City, as well as advanced infrastructure and amenities, we believe that 30 Knightsbridge is a great example of the institutional-grade deals we are listing on the CrowdStreet marketplace.”

30 Knightsbridge, which is valued at $82 million, is comprised of 686,316 square feet of commercial office space. Currently 91 percent of the four-building property is leased to nine tenants, including AT&T Corp., QualCare Inc., AECOM Technology Corp., Cablevision and Paychex North America Inc. Keystone Property Group acquired the property in June 2014 as part of $230 million purchase of a 2.3 million square foot, 12 building office portfolio owned by Mack-Cali Realty Corporation.

“We chose to post 30 Knightsbridge on the CrowdStreet platform because they focus on and understand institutional-grade commercial real estate,” said Thomas Ling, director at EverWest Real Estate Partners. “The CrowdStreet business model provides a modern approach to online capital formation that complements our traditional fundraising process. The senior management team at EverWest has collectively invested over $30 billion across the United States and we are confident that 30 Knightsbridge presents an attractive opportunity for investors.”

CrowdStreet recently closed a large fundraising effort on behalf of Mainstreet, the nation’s largest and most innovative developer of short-stay rehabilitation and long-term care properties, in May, raising $1.6 million in just four weeks, one of the largest raises for a real estate crowdfunding transaction.

CrowdStreet provides accredited investors with unique access to commercial real estate investment opportunities through an intuitively designed portal that makes it easy to find opportunities, manage offers, track investment performance and build a commercial real estate portfolio — all at no cost to the investor. The CrowdStreet marketplace allows investors to search and select pre-screened commercial real estate opportunities by product type, geographic region or risk allocation.

CrowdStreet provides a crowdfunding marketplace that connects accredited investors with institutional-grade real estate investments. With its cloud-based fundraising and investor relationship management platform, CrowdStreet offers real estate operators, funds and private equity companies an online vehicle to raise capital and manage relationships with new and existing investors more efficiently and cost effectively. Based in Portland, Ore., CrowdStreet was founded in 2013 by a team with deep experience in commercial real estate, finance, consumer Internet and software development.

EverWest Real Estate Partners, LLC is a Denver, Colorado-based leading private real estate investment manager and operator who invests in core, value add, and opportunistic investments in office, industrial, multi-family, retail, and mezzanine debt investments. EverWest serves a variety of clients that include major institutional investment managers, pension plans, foundations, endowments, and high net worth individuals. EverWest provides a full-service investment management operating platform through its six regional offices with established acquisition, asset-takeover, asset management, property management, financing, operations, risk management, advisory, and reporting capabilities to its clients.

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Funderbuilt Leads the Growing Crowdfunding Industry by Capping Platform Commission Fees at a Maximum Fee of $250

The portal provides campaign managers with several unique tools including FunderFactor, Funderbuilt Toolbox and a Crowdfunding Campaign To-Do List

By Robert Hoskins

Southfield, Michigan – Funderbuilt officially launched on July 4th to service all types of fundraising needs and models, including donations to charitable causes, reward-based contributions to creative and business endeavors, and equity-based investments in new businesses and products. Providing “simply successful crowdfunding,” Funderbuilt makes it easy for project owners to connect with donors, contributors and investors who will help them fund their dreams.

Funderbuilt offers a Donation, Rewards & Equity Crowdfunding Platform for All Types of Fundraising Campaigns

Funderbuilt is perfectly suited to ALL KINDS of fundraising projects, so there’s no need to choose between multiple platforms. Projects are grouped into 3 categories – Causes, Ideas and Ventures — and just about any project falls into one of these 3 buckets.

While most crowdfunding platforms take a percentage of a project owner’s raised funds with no upper limit, Funderbuilt’s fee is never more than $250, so project owners keep more of the money they raise (Funderbuilt keeps 5% of the funding goal or $250, whichever is less). With lower fees, flexible funding models and easy to manage tools for success, Funderbuilt is designed to help projects succeed and gives project owners the best possible chance of reaching their funding goals.

The portal also provides what’s called a FunderFactor, a quick and easy way to gauge a project’s progress and the efforts of the project owner. Once a project is launched, the portal recommends that users utilize the Funderbuilt Toolbox and To-Do list to continue building support for their project.

“Our goal is to attract the best projects and the best funding sources and put those two groups together – that’s where the magic happens,” said David Moncur, Chief Marketing Officer, Funderbuilt. “Our flat fee pricing model is revolutionary to the industry and we go all out to help project owners be successful with their projects. Our platform has systematized the entire process so it’s easy to upload a project, then learn exactly what you need to do on each day of your crowdfunding campaign to maximize the likelihood of success.”

With the launch of Funderbuilt, Cincinnati, OH-based Fifth Third Bank has announced that it will refer business opportunities to the crowdfunding portal that may not fit the bank’s traditional lending requirements, but have a solid business plan, management, etc.

“The exciting thing about crowdfunding is that it provides much easier access to capital for smaller entrepreneurs, and I believe that it may well revolutionize the formation of new businesses, providing badly needed positive momentum for our economy,” said Mark Morrison, Vice President, Team Lead Commercial Middle Market, Fifth Third Bank. “As a banker, one of the most important factors for lending is cash flow and crowdfunding could help fund the gap until an entrepreneurial business establishes the cash flow necessary to qualify them for a loan. We look forward to working with Funderbuilt as a referral source for start ups and small businesses who don’t meet lending requirements.”

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hyperfund Launches Business Crowdfunding Site that Makes It Easy for Investors to Find, Research and Invest in Private Business Equity Deals

hyperfund offers crowdfunding site where businesses at any stage of the growth cycle can find and reach potential investors using crowdfunding advertising, email marketing, PR and social media campaigns

By Robert Hoskins

Anacortes, Wash. – hyperfund is a new business crowdfunding marketplace where investors can easily find, research and invest in private businesses. It is a crowdfunding site where entrepreneurs can easily and efficiently reach a large number of potential investors and is one of the first crowdfunding platform providing all three primary strategies for businesses raising capital on the internet with rewards, security, and debt crowdfunding options.

hyperfund enables entrepreneurs, startups as well as growing businesses to take advantage of the explosive growth of crowdfunding campaigns and leverage the power of the SEC’s new General Solicitation Rules that allow private companies to market their equity investment opportunities to millions of accredited investors via advertising, marketing, PR and social media programs.

Hyperfund Local National Crowdfunding for both Rewards and Equity Based Crowdfudning Campaign

The investing ecosystem continues to evolve as traditional sources of funding, angel investors and venture capitalists, focus more on revenue-producing businesses. At the same time, new technologies enable new ways for growing companies to connect with potential investors. Crowdfunding is becoming a primary solution for pre-revenue businesses to raise capital and most crowdfunding platforms, to date, have only offered investors a single option.

hyperfund offers three different crowdfunding options:

• Rewards, such as preferential product acquisition opportunities,
• Security, to participate more directly in a company’s financial growth, and
• Debt, to be repaid over time.

“Now startups and growing businesses can raise capital on the Internet with a reward-based seed funding round to validate their business model, followed by an equity or debt round on the same platform,” said hyperfund’s CEO Denis duNann. He emphasized, “On hyperfund’s marketplace, investors can now back business-focused rewards rounds, track the businesses performance and potentially invest in a later securities round.”

Luan Cox, CEO at partner company Crowdnetic, stated, “We are impressed with hyperfund’s unique and complete approach to business crowdfunding. The breadth of their offerings addresses the needs of small businesses throughout the growth cycle.” She added, “We are pleased to include their Private Issuers Publicly Raising (PIPR) listings in our marketwatch.com feed, the nation’s first real-time aggregated listing of offerings and pricing information on private issuers raising capital.”

There are no transaction or subscriber fees for investors to research private offerings on hyperfund. There are no upfront fees for entrepreneurs to easily and efficiently reach millions of potential investors.

hyperfund is launching with two recent winners of the Florida Atlantic University’s Business Plan Competition:

• BiologicsDirect™, the first and only online virtual marketplace that connects blood centers, which are the suppliers of blood products, with hospital and blood center users, positively impacting critical blood-product supply chain management.
• Owl Educators, with its breakthrough online service, connects tutors and students, making their educational relationship more effective and efficient.

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