Crowdfunding Prospects in New Emerging Markets: The Cases of India and Bangladesh

Abstract

Crowdfunding is a viable approach to financing start-ups and supporting social causes in advanced economies. The World Bank estimates a vast potential for crowdfunding also in emerging markets. The South Asia region consists of predominantly collectivist societies where helping others through donations is an integral part of prevailing religious obligations and societal norms. Thus, these countries share certain cultural and religious traits that are highly consistent with the principles of crowdfunding. In the current chapter, we explore the history, ongoing activity, and future prospects of crowdfunding in new emerging markets, specifically, India and Bangladesh. We observe that India is largely dominating the crowdfunding activity in the region, which is otherwise limited.