This is definitely a good idea, but a very complicated one. They just banned such topics from the JV section due to the level of problems that arise from things not working out with investments and how unhappy people get when that happens. It's also hard to stop the scum from getting involved, who have no intention of doing anything but taking money and running. If we can come up with some good ideas on how to prevent these problems and make it possible to run a section in the forum where it's top quality, no garbage, and next to no problems I know there would be a lot of demand. I've invested in others before both successfully and unsuccessfully, and I've made many small ventures succeed because of somebody else's financial support, I've also managed to try my best but failed in the odd endeavor. Learned a lot from all the experience, and one part is that it's really a lot of work to weed out the problem people. Even come across many before that clearly have no intention of sending anyone any money at all, they probably don't even have it, but they put up a good front and get as much information as they can out of you to use for their own benefit.

The only thing I can think of that might make something like this work, would be to involve a 3rd party which would be something like an escrow service, doing background checks on people before they are allowed to be involved in any threads... If something like this can be started here, I'd be very interested in being a part of it and helping in any way I can.

Well, maybe no sub-forum, a forum for DISCUSSION ONLY. Or basic guidelines for investment. A. you need to set up a corporation to buy into. B. Don't invest money with someone you haven't vetted, meaning you read their resume and check them out. Usually, no one should be handing out money without meeting them in person first, so I see scamming as less of a problem, if a few bases are covered. Not everything needs to be handled over the web.

Sites like angel.co have been very successful in getting startups off the ground, so there's definitely a market for it, and the WF has no lack of folks with bright ideas.

I agree. This would be a great forum. Although the beauty of internet marketing is that you don't need much investment to start -- especially when selling products and doing stuff like affiliate marketing -- you still need to know this stuff when you attempt more expensive businesses. Being able to find investors and invest in others effectively a great skill to have that can make both parties a lot of money.

As noble an idea as it may seem, its best to not even touch that one. You see how problematic it can be at times when a person orders a service from another warrior, imagine how much more problematic it'd be if we were talking investment capital.

I don't agree... the 'problems' that arise need to be dealt with personally as are the rules anyway on this forum. It is up to all forum members to go with extreme care and reputation as always is an important factor...

it is not the job of the forum owner to hold hands and solve problems. I think this would be an awesome addition to the forum

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. I wonder if WF has taken notice?

I'm not sure that this really fits here... I think it would be a distraction from the goal of the forum. This is a subject I have a lot of experience with (both in raising capital, and in funding ventures), and in spite of that I couldn't see myself visiting that board here. I would also venture to say that no other accredited investors will ever set foot in it either - anyone involved in the VC space is constantly bombarded with people looking for funding for half-baked web ventures and Internet marketing schemes. Most entrepreneurs don't understand the process of attracting capital, and I think the forum would quickly degrade into a series of "I have an idea" threads like the boards at YoungEntrepreneur.com. Ideas don't get funded... a proper business plan/executive summary, complete with revenue projections and a management team with executive experience and working prototypes do.

There's a common misconception among Entrepreneurs that all you need to raise capital is a good idea, but reality has a different view. Before anyone even reads what your concept is, the first thing they do is look at the numbers... if it doesn't fit their model (usually a clear exit with 20 times initial investment), it's not even going to be seen. Plans that have no revenue projections won't be read. Plans with revenue projections that don't meet the investor's goal won't be read. Plans with revenue projections that do meet the goal, with a management team that has no advisory board or executive experience won't be funded.

Entrepreneurs looking to get their companies funded would be better served getting involved with a local startup accelerator than having discussions on this, or any forum. Just my 2 cents.

There's a website at www.angel.co where you can pitch investment firms. However, I wouldn't suggest using this website unless you're a serious business person.

This is an interesting idea, but there is a big possibility of fraud happening on the forum this way. Perhaps at least a dedicated place where Warriors can tell other Warriors about their new projects and solicit investment through other, secure sites like Kickstarter etc.