Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and of alternative finance. Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising monetary contributions from a large number of people.
Mostly crowdfunding is oriented towards start up businesses. 
 

People who support this method of financing micro-enterprises are organized through different organizations, cooperatives, NGO’s, Business accelerators, business incubators and in recent times even through the internet

Although the concept can also be executed through mail-order subscriptions, benefit events, and other methods, it is now often performed via Internet-mediated registries. 
 

This modern crowdfunding model is generally based on three types of actors: the project initiator who proposes the idea and/or project to be funded, individuals or groups who support the idea, and a moderating organization (the "platform") that brings the parties together to launch the idea.
 

Crowdfunding has been used to fund a wide range of “for-profit” entrepreneurial ventures as well as artistic and creative projects, medical expenses, travel, or community-oriented social entrepreneurship projects.
It has generated collective groups, such as community or interest-based groups, pooling subscribed funds to develop new concepts, products, and means of distribution and production, particularly in rural areas.
 

There are different types of crowdfunding such as: 

• Reward-based: mostly used for  motion picture promotion, free software development, inventions development, scientific research and civic projects.
• Equity based: to support efforts initiated by other people or organizations through the provision of finance in the form of equity.
   

There are different types of crowdfunding such as: 

• Debt-based: the application is reviewed and verified by an automated system, which also determines the borrower's credit risk and interest rate
• Software value token: is to raise funds for a project where a digital or software-based value token is offered as a reward to funders
   

There are different types of crowdfunding such as: 

• Donation-based: is the collective effort of individuals to help charitable causes. In charity crowdfunding, funds are raised for pro-social or pro-environmental purposes
• Litigation: allows plaintiffs or defendants to reach out to hundreds of their peers simultaneously in a semi-private and confidential manner to obtain funding, either seeking donations or providing a reward in return for funding