Loading article...
Loading article...
Stream/Area:
-
Subject:
-
Paper ID:
IJSREM67846
Volume:
10 |
10 |
Oct 2026
Pages:
1-16
Publication Frequency:
Monthly (12 issues per year)
License:International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering and Management follows the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) License, allowing free use and distribution with proper attribution.

Bachelor of Business Administration.
Koneru Lakshmaiah University
Bachelor of Business Administration.
Koneru Lakshmaiah University
Bachelor of Business Administration.
Koneru Lakshmaiah University
While there is promise in the alternative financing source of crowdfunding in the context of start-ups, the awareness level of entrepreneurs in India regarding crowdfunding and the connection with adoption has not been studied extensively. This study compares the perception of crowdfunding with traditional financing resources (bank loans, angel investment and venture capital) of young entrepreneurs/entrepreneurs in India. Primary data was gathered using a structured online questionnaire of five-point Likert-type with twenty-five statements. 22 unique responses were analyzed after the removal of duplicate responses using one-sample t-tests, chi-square tests of independence, one-way ANOVA and ordinary least squares regression to test four hypotheses, including a moderation model. The mean favourability score for the respondents was 3.34 (on a scale from 5 to 1, with 5 representing the most positive attitude and 1 the most negative attitude), which is still within the moderate range; however, the perceived accessibility score was not significantly different from the neutral point (M = 3.24, one-tailed p = .152). There was no significant difference between experience level (ANOVA p = .795) and role (p = .172) with regard to favourability. The only significant predictor of preference for crowdfunding was financial literacy (B = 0.63, p = .004), and those who had high digital/financial awareness were significantly more likely to be highly favourable towards crowdfunding (χ² = 9.21, p = .002). There was no interaction effect among perceived accessibility and preference (B = −0.02, p = .896). Due to the small size of the sample and the business students' prevalence, the results are exploratory and should be replicated on a larger population of founders in practice.
KEYWORDS
This study assessed crowdfunding awareness and perceived adoption amongst young Indian entrepreneurs and aspiring founders using chi-square tests, one-way ANOVA and regression in Excel. Crowdfunding was viewed with moderate favourability but not significantly more accessible than traditional finance. There was no variation in favourability by experience or role, whereas financial literacy and awareness were most strongly linked to a preference for crowdfunding. Awareness did not mediate the relationship between accessibility and preference. The primary practical implication is that boosting financial and digital awareness is likely to be more important than targeting more experienced entrepeneurs, although further research is needed given the small sample size.
Block, J. H., Colombo, M. G., Cumming, D. J., & Vismara, S. (2018). New players in entrepreneurial finance and why they are there. Small Business Economics, 50(2), 239–250. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-016-9826-6 Butticè, V., & Vismara, S. (2022). Inclusive digital finance: The industry of equity crowdfunding. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 47(4), 1224–1241. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10961-021-09875-0 Cortinovis, N. (2026). Does crowdfunding foster rural entrepreneurship? Small Business Economics. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-026-01194-8 G P, G., & Ghosh, S. (2020). Dynamics between digital visibility through social media marketing and crowdfunding: Path to succeed in entrepreneurship. Indian Journal of Finance and Banking, 4(2), 28–37. https://doi.org/10.46281/ijfb.v4i2.698 Gołembski, M., & Narojczyk, S. (2025). Understanding the challenges of starting a business for Generation Z. Scientific Papers of Silesian University of Technology: Organization and Management Series, (240), 99–116. https://doi.org/10.29119/1641-3466.2025.240.6 Naiki, E., & Ogane, Y. (2022). Human capital effects on fundraising for necessity- and opportunity-based entrepreneurs. Small Business Economics, 59, 721–741. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-021-00596-0 Prokop, J., & Wang, D. (2022). Is there a gender gap in equity-based crowdfunding? Small Business Economics, 59, 1219–1244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-021-00574-6 Pedrazzoli, A., Bongini, P., Rossolini, M., & Vismara, S. (2026). The role of decentralized and traditional entrepreneurial finance in startups financing: An analysis of ICO-funded startups. Small Business Economics, 66(3), 1471–1493. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-025-01153-9 Stephen A, S., & Sanesh, C. (2025). Crowdfunding for start-ups & entrepreneurship: A bibliometric review. International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology. https://ijirt.org
Publication Date
10/12/2026
Peer Review Type
Double-Blind Peer Review
Review Rounds: 2
Documents
Article Views
1
Total views since publication
PDF Downloads
9
Total downloads since publication
Geographic Reach
5
Digital Preservation: This article is permanently archived on Zenodo and complies with all data preservation standards across major indexing platforms.
Plagiarism Screening
This manuscript has been checked for plagiarism using TurnitinPlagiarismChecker software.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest related to this research work.
Funding Information
No funding information available for this research.
Related research in the same subject area
Loading similar articles...