Crowdfunding in Morocco (Law 15-18): an alternative to banks in 2026?

Law No. 15-18 on collaborative financing established a dedicated framework for crowdfunding in Morocco. Its provisions:

• Define the three categories of collaborative financing (lending, donation, investment)
• Regulate collaborative financing companies (SFC), the only entities authorized to operate a platform; operating without approval is a criminal offence
• Entrust supervision to Bank Al-Maghrib (lending and donation) and to the AMMC (investment)
• Protect contributors through rules on information, transparency and caps

Decree No. 2-21-158 issued for the application of the law sets the fundraising and contribution caps. The circulars of Bank Al-Maghrib and the AMMC, published in the Official Bulletin on 31 August 2023, specify the conditions for approval and operation of SFCs; the first platforms were approved from the end of 2023.

An individual contributor may not, across all transactions, commit more than 1,000,000 MAD. Angel investors (investisseurs providentiels: business angels who are members of a network declared to the finance administration) are not subject to these caps.

A company wishing to raise funds through crowdfunding must:

1. Be registered in the Commercial Register (Law 15-95), in the form of a SARL, SAS or SA; investment crowdfunding requires a company that can issue securities to new partners
2. Present a clearly defined project, in a complete and non-misleading manner, in an authorized sector (property development and political or religious activities are excluded)
3. Not make a public offering (appel public à l'épargne) and not be in receivership or judicial liquidation (redressement ou liquidation judiciaire)
4. Comply with the fundraising caps per project and accept the reporting obligations towards the SFC and the contributors
5. Provide a complete file: Commercial Register extract, up-to-date articles of association (statuts), identifiers (tax identification number [IF], Common Company Identifier [ICE]), identity documents of the executives, financial statements or forecasts, business plan, any guarantees (lending), draft shareholders' agreement (pacte d'associés) (investment)

The funds collected are deposited with an account-holding banking institution during the campaign. If the fundraising target is not reached within the set period, contributors are refunded. If successful, the SME carries out the formalities for the transaction: signing the loan agreements, or a capital increase (partners' decision, updated articles of association, filing with the commercial court registry [greffe du tribunal de commerce], publication in a legal announcements newspaper [journal d'annonces légales] and in the Official Bulletin). Contributions from non-residents, including Moroccans living abroad (MRE), financed in foreign currency are subject to the foreign exchange regulations and give entitlement to the transfer guarantee subject to the formalities with the Office des Changes (foreign exchange authority), like any foreign investment in a Moroccan company.

Collaborative financing companies must:

• Obtain approval from the competent regulator (Bank Al-Maghrib for lending and donation, AMMC for investment), with a single SFC able to hold several approvals
• Be incorporated as a commercial company with its registered office in Morocco and have a minimum share capital set by regulation
• Put in place systems for risk management, anti-money laundering (Law 43-05 as amended by Law 12-18) and data protection for contributors (Law 09-08)
• Comply with the contributor protection rules: clear information on risks, documented selection of projects, ring-fencing of funds, reporting

Crowdfunding offers:

• Access to financing without the collateral or personal guarantees usually required by banks
• Market validation: a successful fundraising demonstrates public interest in the product or service
• Communication and a community of customers or ambassadors around the brand
• Diversification of sources of financing, which can be combined with bank credit and public schemes

Conversely:

• The caps (3 M MAD for lending, 5 M MAD for investment) rule out the financing of highly capital-intensive projects
• The transparency obligations expose the project to competitors
• The success of the fundraising is uncertain and a campaign takes time and a communication budget
• In investment, the entry of numerous partners weighs on governance; the articles of association and a shareholders' agreement must anticipate this
• The SFC charges service fees on the amounts collected

Yes, crowdfunding is part of a broader SME financing ecosystem:

• Traditional bank loans governed by Law 103-12 on credit institutions
• Tamwilcom guarantees (formerly CCG), which facilitate access to credit, and the Innov Invest fund for innovative startups, presented in our guide on Innov Invest and Tamwilcom financing
• Intelaka program, which offers very small enterprises (TPE) and auto-entrepreneurs bank loans at a subsidized rate; its conditions and amounts are detailed in our guide on the Intelaka program and its 2% loan
• Private equity and seed funds

Funds raised through crowdfunding are recorded in the company's accounts (Law 9-88):

• Loans appear as liabilities; the interest paid is a deductible expense under the conditions of the CGI 2026
• Capital contributions follow the regime for capital increases: the increase is filed with the registry and published
• Donations received by a company are in principle taxable income, subject to corporate income tax (IS) or income tax (IR) depending on the form of the business
• Contributors who receive interest or dividends are taxed under their own regime; dividends distributed in 2026 bear a withholding tax (retenue à la source) of 11.25% (see the taxation of dividends in Morocco)

To raise funds through crowdfunding, here is what you need: a company registered in the Commercial Register, articles of association adapted to the entry of new partners and, after the fundraising, the deeds for the transaction. And with Charikaty, you do everything online.

Charikaty is a private Moroccan legal-tech platform specializing in online company formation. We create your SARL or your SAS entirely online (OMPIC negative certificate [certificat négatif], electronically signed articles of association, registration in the Commercial Register, tax identifiers, CNSS affiliation). For a SARL or a SARL AU, our SARL formation service covers all these steps. We draft articles of association adapted to the entry of new partners, a shareholders' agreement and, after the fundraising, the capital increase deeds, whose filing with the registry and legal publications are done online. More than 250 companies have already been set up with Charikaty.