Danae Ringelmann
Born 1978 · Age 47
Co‑founder and Chief Development Officer of Indiegogo, a pioneer in rewards‑based and later equity crowdfunding. UNC alumna (’00), Berkeley MBA (’08), former JP Morgan and Cowen analyst, recognized for democratizing access to capital.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in San Francisco; raised in small‑business family
Grew up in San Francisco as the daughter of small moving/storage‑company owners; childhood exposure to parents' bootstrapping and financing struggles shaped later mission.
Matriculated at University of North Carolina (UNC Chapel Hill)
Began undergraduate studies at UNC Chapel Hill as a Morehead Scholar (entered ~1996; graduated 2000).
Awarded Morehead Scholarship / joined varsity rowing team
Attended UNC as a Morehead Scholar and rowed on the varsity team; these experiences contributed to leadership and teamwork foundations.
Study abroad and summer teaching experience
Traveled to England for study and spent a summer teaching in the Bronx while an undergraduate — formative experiences cited in interviews.
Graduated from UNC with BA in American Studies
Completed undergraduate degree (class of 2000); left with desire to understand finance to help entrepreneurs like her parents.
Joined J.P. Morgan — corporate finance analyst
Started career in corporate finance on Wall Street to learn how capital markets worked and to better understand financing challenges.
Produced a play to raise funding; confronted limits of gatekeeper finance
Co‑produced a theatrical preview for potential investors after meeting filmmakers at a 'Where Hollywood Meets Wall Street' event; investors declined to fund — a catalytic moment.
Moved to San Francisco; research analyst at Cowen & Co.
Relocated to SF to research publicly traded media, entertainment and video‑game companies for Cowen & Co.; deepened industry finance experience.
Volunteered as 'Wall Street Wizard'
Volunteered teaching at‑risk high‑schoolers about finance and college/career pathways — formative civic/education involvement.
Enrolled in MBA program at UC Berkeley Haas
Returned to school as an MBA student (Haas); used grad school as a lab to refine crowdfunding concept and met future co‑founders.
Met future Indiegogo co‑founders at Berkeley (Slava Rubin, Eric Schell)
Formed core founding team while at Haas; brainstormed crowdfunding concept and pivoted to an internet rewards model.
Launched Indiegogo (co‑founder)
Danae Ringelmann, Eric Schell, and Slava Rubin launched Indiegogo in January 2008 as a rewards‑based crowdfunding platform to democratize access to capital.
Set Indiegogo 'rewards/perks' model and platform fee policy
Indiegogo popularized the rewards/perks crowdfunding model (donors receive gifts rather than equity); early fee model described in sources (various figures reported over time).
Returned home to live with her mother during early startup years
Moved back in with her mother and tightly managed personal finances while Indiegogo worked to gain traction and raise external financing.
Indiegogo closed first $1.5M financing round
After ~three years of fundraising and explaining 'crowdfunding' to investors, Indiegogo secured a $1.5 million round to scale operations.
Named among Fast Company Top 50 Women Innovators in Technology
Recognition for innovation in technology and democratizing funding.
Indiegogo accepted ~£15M in venture capital (reported)
Press reported Indiegogo accepted roughly £15 million in VC funds to drive expansion (BBC reported 'last year' = 2013).
Advertising Women of New York 'No Apologies' Changemaker Award
Received Advertising Women of New York's Changemaker recognition for leadership and innovation.
High‑profile Indiegogo success: cat‑ear headphones raised ~$3M
A crowdsourced hardware campaign raised about $3 million on Indiegogo and later partnered with retailer Brookstone — example of platform enabling product commercialization.
Featured in ELLE's Women in Tech list
Included among influential women in technology by ELLE magazine (June 2014 piece).
BBC profile: 'The crowdfunding boss inspired by her parents' struggles'
BBC Business profile highlighted Ringelmann's background, Indiegogo's role and growth metrics and noted Indiegogo fees and platform stats (profile published 13 Jan 2014).
Indiegogo raised another $40M in funding (reported)
Media (Elle) reported Indiegogo 'locked down another $40 million' in funding — larger institutional investment to grow the platform.
GAA Distinguished Young Alumni Award (UNC)
Received the General Alumni Association's Distinguished Young Alumni Award (UNC) in recognition of achievements and leadership.
Berkeley Haas 'Leading Through Innovation' award (with Eric Schell)
Danae Ringelmann (MBA '08) and Eric Schell honored by Haas for changing the financing ecosystem via Indiegogo (Haas recognition, 2015).
Indiegogo‑backed films at Sundance / Slamdance (11 films)
Eleven Indiegogo‑funded films screened at the 2016 Sundance and Slamdance film festivals (3 at Sundance, 8 at Slamdance) — proof of creative impact.
Named in Silicon Republic 'Women Invent 100' (profile)
Included in Silicon Republic's list of notable women in tech (article published March 2016).
Platform fee models reported (varied figures in press)
Press pieces across years reported varied Indiegogo fee rates (e.g., UNC mentioned 9% dropping to 4% on goal; other sources later report 5% platform fee) — reflects product/pricing evolution.
Frequent international speaker (TEDx, SXSW, Capitol Hill)
By mid‑2016 Ringelmann had spoken widely — TEDx, South by Southwest (SXSW) and on Capitol Hill — evangelizing crowdfunding and democratized capital access.
Platform used by major corporations for product testing (e.g., GE, Hasbro)
Indiegogo expanded into partnerships with large companies who used the platform as a low‑risk market test for new products.
Indiegogo workforce and offices (reported ~100 employees)
Coverage reported Indiegogo employed roughly 100 people across San Francisco, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles (reported in 2016 profile pieces).
Platform scale metrics reported (~600,000 campaigns, ~$1B raised)
UNC and other coverage (mid‑2016) reported Indiegogo had enabled ~600,000 campaigns in multiple countries and had facilitated close to $1 billion in funding since 2008.
Indiegogo launches equity crowdfunding via MicroVentures (partnership)
Following SEC rule changes, Indiegogo partnered with MicroVentures to enable equity‑based campaigns starting November 2016, allowing unaccredited investors to participate.
Press metrics (Wikipedia) — monthly visitors (~15M), global presence
Public sources (e.g., Wikipedia) state Indiegogo draws ~15 million monthly visitors and operates globally in many countries/currencies/languages (dates vary by source).
Ongoing role as Indiegogo co‑founder & Chief Development Officer
Ringelmann continued in leadership at Indiegogo, focusing on growth, partnerships, and product expansion (public profiles reference continued leadership role).
Key Achievement Ages
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