Fayetteville, AR, April 8, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EquityNet (www.equitynet.com) is announcing that the company has raised an additional $2.1 million in funding led by Proton Enterprises.  Also participating were several individual investors from around the country that we identified through EquityNet's own crowdfunding platform.  In addition, EquityNet is announcing that its leading equity crowdfunding platform has surpassed 35,000 members and $230 million in capital raised by its entrepreneurs.

EquityNet founder and CEO, Judd Hollas, stated, "With an additional $2.1 million in funding and a rapidly growing population of entrepreneurs, investors, and institutions, EquityNet is uniquely positioned to expand into the enormous new emerging market for Title III crowdfunding.  Title III will open up our platform to millions of new investors that can access opportunities that were previously only available to high net-worth individuals."

According to Proton Enterprises Executive Partner, James Murphy, "I'm confident that EquityNet will to continue to lead this space and issue in a new era of financial innovation as equity crowdfunding becomes more popular."  "The potential to unlock more of the entrepreneurial spirit in the United States and abroad makes this an exciting time for EquityNet and the crowdfunding industry," according to John D'Orazio, CEO and Executive Partner at Proton Enterprises.

EquityNet was one of the first operating crowdfunding platforms in the world and has helped hundreds of companies raise over $230 million in capital.  Companies such as Bitvore Corporation have used EquityNet and its patented crowdfunding tools to prepare for and engage investors with unparalleled efficiency.  "We are tremendously impressed with the quality of investors at EquityNet and were able to close our funding in just a few months," said David Mandel, Co-Founder & Chairman of Bitvore Corporation.

EquityNet operates the industry's leading equity crowdfunding platform and is designed to make the funding process more efficient for entrepreneurs, and the investment decision process more effective for investors. EquityNet combines its patented analytics, largest business benchmarking database in North America, and market-leading standardization to achieve a superior experience for investors, and a higher funding success rate for entrepreneurs.

According to industry research by Massolution, crowdfunding generated $2.7 billion in funding transactions in 2012 and is expected to reach $5.1 billion for 2013.  Within the next year, Title III of the U.S. JOBS Act is expected to go into effect, allowing non-accredited investors to invest in companies in exchange for equity.  Experts have estimated that crowdfunding could expand the population of potential investors from two million to more than 50 million investors.

For more information about the funding by Bitvore Corporation visit EquityNet Funded Company of the Month

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About EquityNet

EquityNet was launched in 2005 and is the only multi-patented crowdfunding platform in the world.  It is used by over 35,000 individual entrepreneurs and investors, angel groups, government entities, business supporters, and other members of the entrepreneurial community to plan, analyze, and capitalize privately-held businesses. EquityNet provides access to thousands of investors and has helped entrepreneurs across North America raise over $230 million in capital.  For more information, visit www.equitynet.com

About Proton Enterprises

Proton Enterprises is a business incubator and non-traditional venture capital firm. Proton focuses on disruptive technologies to empower entrepreneurship. For more information, visit www.protonenterprises.com.