Judd Hollas of EquityNet Sees More Growth Ahead for Crowdfunding
Judd Hollas of EquityNet, an early Innovate Arkansas client firm, sees more growth ahead for the crowdfunding industry and the northwest Arkansas region.
EquityNet is a business crowdfunding platform based in Fayetteville. It was launched by Hollas in 2005, and he's seen first-hand the growth of the tech startup scenes in northwest and central Arkansas.
In a Q&A with former INOV8 contributor Todd Jones of Talk Business & Politics, Hollas talks the current state of crowdfunding and the players (including IA) that helped develop the current venture ecosystem in the state.
Arkansas Business' Jan Cottingham visited with Hollas in May, with the groundbreaking firm on the verge of breaking $300 million raised for its almost 400 clients. (In June, EquityNet announced it had surpassed that figure.)
Here's a sample from Todd's recent Q&A in TB&P:
TB&P: What are you seeing in Arkansas and how has it changed over the past 10 years?
Hollas: While EquityNet is a company that serves North America as a whole, we do have a large amount of activity from Arkansas-based companies. We’ve seen a tremendous amount of growth within the state since we started 10 years ago. During that time, Arkansas really has become a hotbed of entrepreneurial activity.
The Arkansas Science and Technology Authority and the Arkansas Development Finance Authority’s Arkansas Venture Capital Investment Trust funds, as well as organizations like Innovate Arkansas, Startup Arkansas, and Startup Junkie – to name a few – have all been essential to that growth. Arkansans have an innate entrepreneurial spirit and now have a well-developed ecosystem to nurture that. It’s one of the reasons the Northwest Arkansas region, for example, is recognized as a top area for business and careers by Forbes and a “best small city for startups” by Businessweek.
Good stuff. Full piece here.