An investor who invests through equity crowdfunding has an expectation of some return on investment in the future. However, return on equity crowdfunded ventures may take many years to materialize. In many cases, equity may not ever accrue to the investor. Management may deviate from the business plan, or could be out of its depth when trying to scale up the company. Over time, this may lead to capital erosion rather than wealth creation. In such cases, there may be an opportunity cost attached to equity crowdfunding because it ties up capital that could be deployed elsewhere to generate returns