In this chapter, we consider the role of personality traits in shaping the behavior of financial actors. We consider the promise of using personality to predict financial behavior. Personality is perhaps the ultimate “exogenous” predictive variable—stable throughout the lifetime of...

Equity crowdfunding platforms are at the center of the digital transformation of early-stage venture funding. These digital platforms were originally heralded as a democratizing force in early stage finance, due to their role in facilitating the exchange between entrepreneurs and a multitude of...

We use equity crowdfunding data to ask how fundraising amounts can be explained by what entrepreneurs ask for, versus what investors want to invest. The analysis exploits unique features of crowdfunding where entrepreneurs not only set investment goals, but also chose when to close their...