From memory signing up for Crowdcube last year (a colleague asked me to review a business he's been referred to), I had to 'tick a box' declaring I was a sophisticated investor (not the right legal term - I think I'm inserting the Australian equivalent into my memory). I presume a slightly more thorough approval process would be involved if I made an investment.

So it's crowdfunding, but not in the "everybody can play" model the article discusses.