How financial literacy moderates the relationship between qualitative business information and the success of an equity crowdfunding campaign: Evidence from Mediterranean and Gulf Cooperation Council countries

This paper presents empirical evidence suggesting that financial literacy moderates the inverted U-shaped relationship between the amount of qualitative business information provided and the success of an equity crowdfunding campaign. Drawing on a sample of 807 equity offerings posted on 26 platforms operating in 6 Mediterranean and Gulf Cooperation Council countries (Cyprus, France, Israel, Italy, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates), the findings indicate that higher levels of financial literacy amplify the positive effect of more comprehensive qualitative business information. However, once a qualitative business information threshold is crossed, financial literacy results related to observed negative returns are even more substantial. These results, rooted into the signalling and information overload theoretical frameworks, offer valuable insights for entrepreneurs, platform administrators, investors and policymakers.