CrowdfundingHub

What CrowdfundingHub does

CrowdfundingHub is a European expertise centre on alternative finance and community finance, operating as a research and consultancy network headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Founded in 2014 by Ronald Kleverlaan, the firm provides strategy consulting, fundraising support, bespoke research, education, and recruiting services to small and medium-sized enterprises, financial advisors, alternative finance platforms, regulators, and municipalities across Europe. The organization is structured around a core team in Amsterdam supported by a distributed network of local experts throughout Europe, and it explicitly positions itself as a knowledge and research organization rather than a technology platform.

The business generates revenue through three professional-services streams: commissioned research and consultancy, participation in EU-funded research consortia (Horizon 2020 projects including CROWDTHERMAL for geothermal financing and HUB-IN for heritage regeneration), and educational programs such as the AltFinator MOOC on alternative finance developed with Politecnico Milano and the University of Manchester. Distribution is direct and relationship-driven — selling through EU project consortiums, B2B consulting engagements, and thought-leadership content via the annual 'Current State of Crowdfunding in Europe' research reports and the AltFinator Policy Network, which connects more than 700 industry experts and regulators.

The firm's strategic positioning is anchored by the European Centre for Alternative Finance (ECAF), a 2019 joint initiative with Utrecht University School of Economics and the Sustainable Finance Lab, and by direct engagement in shaping the European Crowdfunding Service Provider Regime. Co-founder Karsten Wenzlaff and other principals hold concurrent roles at the University of Cambridge, the University of Hamburg, and the German Crowdfunding Association, which reinforces credibility but also concentrates institutional relationships in a small set of individuals. No funding rounds, acquisitions, or external investors are disclosed; the firm appears to be founder-owned and self-sustaining through grants, project fees, and consulting engagements.

Name

CrowdfundingHub

Legal name

CrowdfundingHub

Website

https://crowdfundinghub.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CrowdfundingHub is an Amsterdam-based research and consultancy network serving as the European expertise centre on alternative finance and community finance, providing strategy consulting, research, education, and EU-funded project expertise to SMEs, platforms, regulators, and municipalities across Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Alternative Finance Research and Consultancy

NAICS

Other Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (522390)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Fundraising & Crowdfunding Platforms (Recurring/Project-Based) (MPACAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Finance & Investment Conferences (MPAGAGAG)

Keywords

• Alternative finance research
• Crowdfunding consultancy
• SME financing advisory
• Financial regulation services
• Community finance education

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Research and Consultancy Services: CrowdfundingHub provides research and consultancy services to map the European landscape on alternative finance including trends, volumes, and regulations. They collect up-to-date information and insights of the industry.
2. EU Research Projects: The organization participates in EU Horizon 2020 funded projects such as CROWDTHERMAL and HUB-IN, providing alternative financing expertise and research capabilities.
3. Educational Programs: They develop and deliver educational materials including MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) on alternative finance through partnerships with academic institutions.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CrowdfundingHub fundamentally operates as a European research and consultancy network focused on alternative finance and crowdfunding, delivering strategy consulting, fundraising support, market research publications, and educational programs through a distributed network of European experts anchored in Amsterdam. The organization maps the European landscape on alternative finance trends, volumes, and regulations and participates in EU-funded projects such as CROWDTHERMAL and HUB-IN.

Product overview

CrowdfundingHub operates as the European expertise centre on Alternative Finance and Community Finance, offering research and consultancy services through a distributed network of experts. The core offering consists of research publications including the annual 'Current State of Alternative Finance' reports covering European countries and comprehensive industry reports like 'Shifting Paradigms'. The portfolio includes educational products such as the AltFinator MOOC developed with Politecnico Milano and University of Manchester. CrowdfundingHub also leads several EU-funded projects including the CROWDTHERMAL geothermal financing initiative, HUB-IN heritage regeneration project, and the AltFinator capacity-building program. As a joint initiative partner of the European Centre for Alternative Finance (ECAF) at Utrecht University, the company provides academic research collaboration alongside consultancy services for strategy, fundraising, and SME financing foundations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ECAF (European Centre for Alternative Finance): A joint initiative of Utrecht University School of Economics, CrowdfundingHub, and Sustainable Finance Lab. Academic research centre focused on alternative finance.
• AltFinator
• CROWDTHERMAL
• HUB-IN

Products and services

• CrowdfundingHub Research & Consultancy Services Core offering of CrowdfundingHub providing strategy consulting, fundraising support, research, education, and recruiting services through a network of European alternative-finance experts.
• Current State of Alternative Finance Reports Annual research publications mapping the European landscape on alternative finance including trends, volumes, and regulations across European countries (2016, 2020, 2021 editions).
• Shifting Paradigms: 4th European Alternative Finance Industry Report Comprehensive industry report produced by Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance and University of Agder covering 45 European countries with data from 269 platforms.
• European Centre for Alternative Finance (ECAF) Research centre within Utrecht University School of Economics providing academic research on alternative finance, financial inclusion, and access to finance.
• AltFinator MOOC on Alternative Finance Massive Open Online Course program introducing key models and approaches for alternative finance sources, developed in collaboration with Politecnico Milano and The University of Manchester.
• Employee Ownership Research ECAF research report on making employee ownership work in startups and SMEs, providing international comparison and policy recommendations for inclusive ownership models.

Quantifiable outcome

• Published research covering 45 European countries on alternative finance markets and regulations
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core, major and minor.

• European Centre for Alternative Finance (ECAF)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 February 2019Joint initiative of Utrecht University School of Economics, CrowdfundingHub, and Sustainable Finance Lab. ECAF is a research centre within Utrecht University that guides the international research agenda on alternative finance, supporting financial inclusion and access to finance.
• Stichting MKB Financiering (Foundation for SMEs Financing)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 October 2018Foundation launched with Dutch State Secretary for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy to improve access to alternative financing for SMEs. Includes 10 alternative financiers: Boozt24, Collin Crowdfund, Dynamic Credit, Fiduciam, Funding Circle, Fund IQ, Lendix, NPEX, Voldaan and Spotcap.
• AltFinator Policy NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolicy network co-founded by Ronald Kleverlaan and Karsten Wenzlaff connecting more than 700 industry experts and regulators to shape European crowdfunding regulation.
• CROWDTHERMAL ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU Horizon 2020 funded project consortium including CrowdfundingHub, European Federation of Geologists, Institute for Futurenergy, University of Glasgow, GeoThermal Engineering GmbH, La Palma Research Centre, SZETÁV, Spanish Geothermal Technology Platform, GEORG, and Eimur. Project aims to develop alternative funding schemes for geothermal energy.
• HUB-IN ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU-funded project led by University of Lisbon with 8 European cities and 18 partners. European Centre for Alternative Finance, CrowdfundingHub, and municipality of Utrecht contribute expertise on entrepreneurship and alternative finance. Project focuses on historical urban area regeneration.
• Politecnico MilanomajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner collaborating on AltFinator MOOC program on Alternative Finance.
• The University of ManchestermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner collaborating on AltFinator MOOC program on Alternative Finance.
• German Crowdfunding AssociationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKarsten Wenzlaff serves as Secretary-General of German Crowdfunding Association and co-founded AltFinator Policy Network with Ronald Kleverlaan.
• ikosomminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCrowdfunding consulting firm owned by Karsten Wenzlaff, closely involved with European crowdfunding regulation.
• Utrecht UniversityflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership through European Centre for Alternative Finance (ECAF). Ronald Kleverlaan serves as Director of ECAF at Utrecht University School of Economics.
• University of Cambridge (Judge Business School)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKarsten Wenzlaff is Research Affiliate at Centre for Alternative Finance at Judge Business School of University of Cambridge.
• University of HamburgminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKarsten Wenzlaff is Researcher at University of Hamburg.
• Sustainable Finance LabcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the joint initiative with Utrecht University and CrowdfundingHub creating the European Centre for Alternative Finance.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF): Academic research center at Cambridge Judge Business School focused on alternative finance market intelligence globally. Co-produced the "Shifting Paradigms" European report with CrowdfundingHub, making it the most direct research and policy-influence peer.
• European Crowdfunding Network (ECN): Industry association co-founded by Ronald Kleverlaan that brings together European crowdfunding platforms and stakeholders for policy advocacy. Directly comparable as a peer network shaping EU crowdfunding regulation.
• Sustainable Finance Lab: Utrecht-based research initiative co-founding ECAF alongside CrowdfundingHub and Utrecht University. Comparable academic/think-tank peer working on alternative and sustainable finance research with EU policy influence.
• German Crowdfunding Association (Bundesverband Crowdfunding): German industry association where Karsten Wenzlaff serves as Secretary-General. Directly comparable peer in alternative finance industry advocacy and policy work at the national level.
• Alternative Finance Lab (Politecnico di Milano): Academic research group at Politecnico di Milano that collaborates with CrowdfundingHub on the AltFinator MOOC. Comparable as an academic partner producing alternative finance research and education across Europe.

Emerging players

• Beauhurst: UK-based data provider tracking high-growth and alternative finance-backed companies. Adjacent peer in alternative finance market intelligence and research, though more commercially data-product oriented.
• Dealroom.co: Global startup and venture finance data platform covering funding rounds and alternative finance activity. Comparable as a data-driven alternative finance market intelligence provider, though with a broader tech-investment lens.

Others

• ICOSOM (Karsten Wenzlaff's consultancy): Berlin-based crowdfunding consulting firm owned by CrowdfundingHub co-founder Karsten Wenzlaff. Overlapping consulting services in crowdfunding strategy and regulation, with closely tied personnel.

Broad incumbents

• Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI): Global inclusive finance research and policy organization with comparable missions of expanding access to finance through research, advocacy, and convening stakeholders. Broader scope but analogous research/policy/ecosystem-building function.
• Innovate Finance: UK-based industry body representing the global FinTech community, including alternative finance. Comparable industry advocacy and research function, though broader in scope beyond crowdfunding.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/crowdfundinghub
• Facebookfacebook.com/crowdfundinghub
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/crowdfundinghub

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CrowdfundingHub