RICHMOND (WSLS 10) - Del. Scott Taylor's (R-Virginia Beach) legislation to make it easier for entrepreneurs to raise capital through "crowdfunding" passed the House of Delegates Monday.
House Bill 1360 creates an exemption from some of the requirements of the Securities Act for certain businesses to be able to more easily take advantage of the benefits of "crowdfunding." The issuer of the security must be a for-profit business entity formed under the laws of the Commonwealth.
The exemption would apply to only the first $2 million raised per year and the business could not raise more than $10,000 from any single purchaser unless the purchaser is an accredited investor as defined by 17 C.F.R. § 230.501.
Speaking about the bill, Del. Scott Taylor said, "Crowdfunding is a recent innovation to help entrepreneurs get their companies off the ground and find the capital to grow. My bill would eliminate many of the regulatory stumbling blocks for a business looking to take advantage of the opportunity to solicit investments by crowdfunding. There is no doubt this bill will enable Virginians, investing in Virginia companies, to create jobs."