Investor Overconfidence and the Evaluation of Climate‐Oriented Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns: The Mediating Role of Visual Attention

ABSTRACT Equity crowdfunding (EC) represents an important financing channel for climate‐oriented ventures facing capital access, but investors differ substantially in how they process campaign information. This study examines whether and how investor overconfidence influences the perceived attractiveness of climate‐oriented EC campaigns, focusing on visual attention as a key underlying cognitive mechanism. Using a within‐subjects online experiment combined with webcam‐based eye‐tracking, 130 US participants evaluated 24 real‐world EC campaigns. Visual attention to the business idea section, where sustainability is conveyed, was linked to perceived campaign attractiveness. Results show that climate‐oriented campaigns are generally more attractive than non–climate‐oriented ones; however, this effect decreases as investor overconfidence increases. Eye‐tracking evidence indicates that higher overconfidence is associated with reduced visual attention to the business idea section, which mediates the reduction in perceived attractiveness. The findings highlight how individual differences in information processing affect the effectiveness of sustainability signals and investment evaluations in EC markets.