Wefunder is a crowdfunding service which connects startups with investors online.^[1][2] Wefunder uses a provision in the 2012 JOBS Act which allows unaccredited investors to provide equity for entrepreneurial undertakings.^[3][4][5]

Wefunder was founded by serial entrepreneurs Nick Tommarello, Mike Norman, and Greg Belote in 2012.^[6] The startup incubator Y Combinator backed Wefunder during its development and launch.^[7] The company raised more than $500,000 in 2012, receiving startup capital from nearly 60 investors, including angel investors Nihal Mehta, Dharmesh Shah, and Bill Warner.^[8] As of 2019, the company has raised over $9.8 million from over 100 investors via the Wefunder platform.^[9] In 2019, Mike Norman began an indefinite sabbatical from his position as President.^[9]

Tommarello, Norman, and Belote extensively lobbied with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in the United States Congress for the passing of the JOBS Act ^[10][11] so much that they were in Washington, D.C. to watch President Barack Obama sign the bill on April 5, 2012.^[8] The JOBS Act, which allows startups to advertise and generally solicit for investments, is set to be fully implemented by mid-2014.^[12][13]

Wefunder is predicated upon the idea that anyone, regardless of wealth, should be able to invest in a company.^[14] As of now, only accredited investors are legally able to fund startups, and these investors must put up at least $1,000 to have an equity share.^[14][15] Once the full deregulations promised by the JOBS Act are unrolled, the company plans to lower the barrier of investor entry to $100.^[16][17] Tommarello said Wefunder's goal is to “fill the funding gap between angel investors and that first major round of capital.”^[16]