Is having immigrants in entrepreneurial teams good for equity crowdfunding success and long-term venture survival?

While immigrant entrepreneurs contribute to economies by creating employment opportunities and innovative ventures, they often represent a marginalised group facing greater challenges in access to entrepreneurial finance. Crowdfunding may help remedy some of this challenge through more democratic access to finance and investment opportunities. This study examines the effects of the presence of immigrants in entrepreneurial teams on equity crowdfunding campaigns’ success and on the ventures’ survival. To answer these questions, we build on risk-attitude, cognitive resource diversity, and social capital theories. Our analysis uses data about UK-based firms behind 1,171 equity crowdfunding offerings on three platforms (Crowdcube, Seeders and SynicateRoom). The results suggest a relation following an inverted U-shape between the share of immigrants in entrepreneurial teams and both the amount raised and number of investors. Furthermore, the campaign’s goal sum mediates these associations. Interestingly, the higher the share of immigrants among entrepreneurial team members, the lower the likelihood of an equity crowdfunded venture’s long-term survival. However, such effects may be overturned when fundraising by majority immigrant teams involve relatively high sums, while avoiding undercapitalisation.