【背景】众融（crowdfunding），即使在美国，也是一项重大的金融创新。标志性的事件是，美国总统奥巴马在2012年3月签署了JOBS法案，目的是以社会化融资来促进中小企业创业，从而推动整体的经济复苏、及改善就业环境。众融大体上可分为：捐赠众融-donation；实物奖励-award；债权众融-lending; 和股权众融-equity等几种模式。众融在2012～2013年间，在美国、英国、和不少欧洲国家，都得到了飞速的发展。
Equity crowdfunding (ECF) will change considerably by the end of 2014.
股权众融在2014年将极大地改变。
The introduction of Title II of the JOBS Act on September 23, 2013 gave entrepreneurs the ability to publicly advertise their need for funding.
Title III is expected to become law in the spring of 2014 and will provide entrepreneurs with a much greater investor pool, as unaccredited investors will then be able to participate in ECF.
现在，JOBS法案的Title III修订版，将为企业家们提供更大的投资人基数，因为非认证的投资人也能够参与到股权众融当中。
Once the JOBS Act is passed in its entirety, ECF will become the predominate method entrepreneurs use to raise capital for their endeavors.
一旦JOBS法案完全通过，股权众融将成为企业家们为自己的梦想而融资的主导性方式。
With these major shifts in the financial markets, some important occurrences are predicted to emerge throughout the year, with the top five being listed below.
2014 Predictions in Crowdfunding
2014年众融的预测
1) Up to $1 billion in equity transactions will occur worldwide in 2014 based on industry trends from the past two years.
从以往两年的产业趋势来看，2014年将出现单笔10亿美元的股权众融交易。
The 2013 crowdfunding report by Massolution stated that around $5.1 billion in transactions occurred globally in 2013.
有全球的众融研究报告表明，2013年全球的众融交易金额约为51亿美元。
That’s around a 100 percent increase from 2012 when $2.6 billion was raised. The report also stated that $204 million was from ECF.
比较2012年的26亿美元增长了100%。报告称，2.04亿美元来自股权众融。
Assuming that the global crowdfunding market will again experience a 100 percent growth rate next year, and regulations will allow for more people to participate in ECF, ECF could produce between $500 million to $1 billion transactions in 2014. This is especially true as more investors realize the potential ROI in ECF.
假设2014年全球众融市场再次经历100％的增长，法规又允许更多的人能够参与股权众融的投资，股权众融将产生5～10亿美元的交易额。更多的投资人将意识到股权众融潜在的投资回报。
2) Equity crowdfunding will become a global phenomenon as countries begin to utilize it to maintain their economic competitiveness.
股权众融将成为一个全球性的现象；各国开始利用众融模式保持他们的经济竞争力。
In some countries such as Finland, the United Kingdom, and Italy, ECF is already legal. The United States is also well on its way to legalizing ECF by adopting Title III of the JOBS Act.
在英国、意大利等国家，股权众融已经合法。美国更是以采用JOBS法案的Title III而取得很大的发展。
This law will allow almost any investor to participate in ECF sometime next year. Global participation in ECF will eventually occur as more countries develop laws to deal with the legal matters revolving around ECF.
这项法案将允许任何（普通）投资人参与股权众融。
A new report produced by Richard Schwartz for the World Bank estimates that the annual total market potential of the entire crowdfunding industry would average around $300 billion by 2025. China’s potential could reach $47.6 billion, while Europe and central Asia could reach $13.8 billion.
一份由Richard Schwartz为世界银行所作的报告称，整个众融行业的年度市场规模，在2025年将达到3000亿美元。中国的潜在市场将达到467亿美元；欧洲和中亚将达到138亿美元。
3) Title III of the JOBS Act will be implemented by the SEC by mid-year in the US, but will be slowly embraced by the industry due to its complexities for platforms and users.
JOBS法案由SEC（美国证券委员会）在2013年中期通过实施；但行业对众融的接受需要时间，因为众融平台的复杂性和和用户使用习惯的建立都不会太快。
The SEC proposed rules for Title III of the JOBS act on October 23rd. Once approved, it will allow non-accredited investors to participate in equity crowdfunding. Title III will introduce a new crowd to ECF; however, due to regulations and limits on how much an entrepreneur can raise, it will not be used as much as Title II in 2014.
For example, it is likely that entrepreneurs who use Title III will only be able to raise $1 million in funding, and crowdfunding platforms will be required to register with the SEC. Title III will eventually be noted as a major milestone for the crowdfunding industry, just not in 2014.
4) In North America, more than half of companies using equity crowdfunding platforms will use the new Title II rule to advertise their need for funding.
在北美，超过50％使用股权众融平台的企业将遵循TITLE II法案，推广他们的融资需求。
Title II of the JOBS Act was introduced earlier this year on September 23, 2013. It lifted the 80-year-old ban on general solicitation, allowing business owners to publicly advertise their need for funding.
According to EquityNet’s data, about half of the new companies listed on the site are utilizing Title II to reach a broader audience of investors. More entrepreneurs will likely begin to adopt this rule in 2014.
5) Many ECF platforms will no longer be in operation by the end of 2014.
众多股权众融的平台，在2014年底之前，将停止运营。
The market share will eventually gravitate to the leading platforms with the largest populations and most advanced crowdfunding tools. This means that as 2014 progresses, the industry will experience a shakeout. Some sites may have difficulty complying with new regulations.
市场份额将被吸引到领先的平台上，伴随着最大的人流和最先进的众融工具。2014年的市场将出现震荡，某些网站将无法适应新的监管规则。
Other sites may decide may wait for regulations to become finalized. Either way, situations like these are challenging for any company operating in the crowdfunding industry. In fact, sites like fimbex and crowddiligence are already no longer in operation. More will follow by the end of 2014.
Judd Hollas， is a pioneer in the field of crowdfunding with multiple patents granted for web-based capital marketplace systems. He is the founder and chief inventor of EquityNet and continues to lead the Company’s efforts to create and introduce innovative new products and services.
英文作者：Judd Hollas是众融领域的先锋人物，他拥有多项基于网页的资本市场系统EquityNet的创始人和首席投资人，他将继续领导公司创新更多新产品和新服务。
