By Naomi O’Leary ROME (Reuters) – A software firm has become the first Italian company since the country introduced a pioneering crowdfunding law to raise target capital from investors buying equity through an online portal. Rome was an early mover in implementing a legal framework for equity crowdfunding, passed as part of a 2012 package of laws intended to encourage startups, which the government sees as a way to boost growth and employment in a struggling economy with record joblessness. Equity crowdfunding resembles services offered by online fundraising sites such as Kickstarter, through which creative projects gather donations from supporters. The startup, Diaman Tech Srl, raised 157,780 euro ($217,500), exceeding an initial target of 147,000 euro from 65 investors in a three-month fundraising effort that concluded on Monday on online platform Unicaseed, the website shows.