28

This article explores the business models related to crowdfunding in royalties via platforms connecting contributors and entrepreneurial project owners from sub-Saharan Africa. The theoretical framework adopted is that of business models made operational with the concept of hybridization. Our mixed methodological approach combines an information benchmark, four semi-structured interviews with experts involved in royalty investment operations, and a confirmatory analysis based on 96 responses to an online questionnaire filled in by African entrepreneurs confronted with platform-based crowdfunding. Our results underline that the adaptations needed to launch small-scale entrepreneurial projects in the African context reflect new value-sharing approaches. We then suggest a hybrid business model that is built around investments that make sense to stakeholders interested in developing local businesses.