Driving positive social and environmental impacts through equity crowdfunding: evidence from social enterprises

Over the past two decades, social enterprises have increasingly attracted scholarly attention. Social entrepreneurship leverages business practices to tackle social and environmental issues and is characterized by integrating commercial enterprise models with nonprofit missions. Key factors such as financial sustainability and organizational resilience are crucial for advancing social objectives. Despite the absence of a universally accepted definition, social entrepreneurship involves elements like social innovation (SI), market orientation and social value generation. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of equity crowdfunding as a financing opportunity for social enterprises (SEs).

This study uses a multiple case study analysis.

This study reveals the potential of equity crowdfunding as a mechanism to foster social innovation and generate positive societal impact. The findings suggest that equity crowdfunding can play a meaningful role in addressing the funding gap faced by social enterprises, thereby supporting the achievement of their social missions.

This research provides insights into the role of equity crowdfunding in social entrepreneurship, a relatively underexplored area. This study underscores the importance of financial tools in facilitating SI and advancing the missions of SEs.