With the development of the Internet, computer networks, and social media, new ways of financing emerged such as reward crowdfunding, equity crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending, and very recently Initial Coin Offering.
These innovative financing tools allow entrepreneurs for directly tapping into the crowd, bypassing intermediaries and as such accessing funds at lower costs. These tools also allow the crowd to take direct decisions about how to invest its savings.
In such a context, the small entrepreneurial firm that needs funds may leverage social media to maximize and optimize the information sharing with the community of investors and, more importantly, gain legitimization via further dissemination of the information.
However, irrespective of the accepted role of social media as determinants of the success in raising funds, so far very little is known about the determinants or strategies of the dissemination of information via social media. The answers to these important aspects will have a broad consequence not just for the success of new ways of financing but also in context of accepted role of social media as their determinants of success.
A prospective PhD candidate is expected to explore relatively a new area of research related to crypto and non-crypto assets and use of social media.
Supervisors: Professor Andrea Moro and Dr Nemanja Radic
Application Details: The PhD candidate should hold a minimum 2.1 class undergraduate degree in a related discipline and have passed, or be expected to have passed by autumn, a master’s degree or equivalent research experience in a work setting. See admission and English language requirements.
Deadline: Expressions of interest alongside a CV are invited via email to andrea.moro@cranfield.ac.uk and n.radic@cranfield.ac.uk
