Abstract

The aim of the article is to identify and evaluate the operation of crowdfunding platforms in Poland in 2012 - 2022. The research covered crowdfunding platforms in the donation and equity model, with an emphasis on equity crowdfunding platforms. In order to verify the hypothesis, the author used inductive-deductive inference and desk research analysis. The Polish crowdfunding market is fragmented. Between 2011 and 2022, several dozen platforms were created, some of which remained inactive (no fundraising took place on them), and several collections took place on some. The dominant model of crowdfunding on platforms was and still is donation crowdfunding. The prospects for the development of donation crowdfunding are huge, because it meets real needs. There are and will be many people who need help, and on the other side there are people who have the opportunity to help and want to do it. A rapid increase in equity crowdfunding (more platforms, more issues, more companies) was also in the resent years observed. The development prospects for the equity crowdfunding have also changed. An important step was to regulate and supervise the market.