Mark Easley, an angel investor, says that if North Carolina lawmakers pass the Paces Act, it could ease the funding gap that startups face, even if they get angel money.

The Paces Act would allow in-state residents to invest in companies essentially doing at least 80 percent of their business in the state.

“I’ve seen Triangle companies get some early funding from angel investors but still find going to a seed round was hard,” Easley said.

Crowdfunding could “change things,” he said.

“There are 8.6 million accredited investors in the U.S., but only 3 percent invest in startups,” Easley said.

Why?

“It’s a pain in the butt,” he said. “It takes a lot of time, a lot of one-on-one work, a lot of due diligence.”

There are two types of crowdfunding, Easley points out.

The first is rewards-based though platforms, such as Kickstarter or Indigogo. Contributors give money and get a ticket to the play they are helping to fund.

The other form of crowdfunding allows people to actually invest in equity or debt to help a company get off the ground and grow.

“That’s where the North Carolina Jobs Act comes in,” Easley said.

To keep up with what’s happening there, see www.jobsnc.blogspot.com

Easley offered a number of resources for entrepreneurs researching crowdfunding. They include:

The AngelList at http://angel.co, which shows that 242 startups raised $104 million from 2,643 investors in 2014.

If you’re looking for a place to find crowdfunding campaigns and how the campaigns work, a good resource is www.crowdfunder.com.

For anything to do with agriculture, Easley suggests www.agfunder.com.

Other resources he suggests:

  • www.groundfloor.com (real estate)
  • www.localstake.com
  • www.malartufunds.com