Good News from Mass Media Induces More Investments in the Equity Crowdfunding Market

ABSTRACT This study verifies the association between the text sentiment of news items and the value of capital investments in the equity crowdfunding market. It also analyzes the influence of geographic attributes on the investments made. Based on data for 736 investments made in different ventures in the largest equity crowdfunding platform in one of the main emerging markets, this study’s results indicate that the attributes of ventures can affect the amount of capital invested in them. In addition, published mass media news items that have a greater quantity of positive words can stimulate larger investments in these ventures. On the other hand, the geographic distance between the entrepreneur and the investor can negatively affect the value of these investments. These results are relevant since they can contribute to the definition of fundraising strategies on the part of entrepreneurs and platform managers.