Did you know that women make up 70% of all crowdfunding participants?
This under-reported fact convinced Gerry Poirier, a 25-year executive in FinTech and finance at Credit Suisse Bank, to set about creating what claims to be the world’s first social crowdfunding platform built and powered by women.
“They’re fundraising to help pay medical bills, send their sons and daughters to college, and fund local projects like community gardens and after school programs,” Poirier tells TechBlast.
“Yet, before our platform AngeLink, there was no social crowdfunding platform that specifically catered to women, to raise money for yourself, someone you love, or a cause you believe in.”
Poirier’s vision in founding AngeLink is to bring innovative solutions to social change through life-changing technology – creating a safer, more trusted platform by screening every fundraiser with a mission to close the gap on gender-based economic disparity.
“There are three things that set AngeLink apart from other crowdfunding platforms,” she explains. “The first is security: AngeLink uses groundbreaking, patent-pending, anti-fraud algorithms to detect potential fraudulent activity on our web and mobile app to keep our community safe.”
This tech reviews every fundraiser before their campaigns are published on its platform, with a seven-point risk score flagging system developed by CTO Sheila Nasehi, who has a phD in artificial intelligence.
“The second is creating a female-centric community,” continues Poirier (above). “In addition to a female founder, female CTO, female CFO, female head of growth & SEO, 90% of our team are women, which allows us to speak authentically to our target audience.
“The third is gamification: the AngeLink App makes fundraising fun and engaging, with virtual rewards for donors and achievement badges to help campaign organisers succeed.”
Based in Miami, Florida, AngeLink has experienced explosive growth since launching in June 2022. It has raised $5.5 million in seed funding, gained over 35,000 platform users, processed over $1.5m in donations and welcomed over 50,000 community followers.
“We’re particularly proud of our 600% compound growth rate,” says Poirier. “In 2023, our growth rate continues to rise, so we’re looking forward to reaching new audiences in the months ahead.”
The team is looking globally for that growth. “We do plan to launch in the UK. In fact, we’re planning a Series A financing now to accelerate our international expansion plans for 2024,” confirms the CEO.
So where does she hope AngeLink will be three years from now?
“I hope to continue doing exactly what we’re doing now—helping individuals and teams fundraise to pay for life’s most important moments – but on a massive global scale,” says Poirier.
“Through our AngeLink Community Foundation, we aim to create a powerful impact and lift women to their highest potential.”