StartEngine Is Quietly Taking Over Private Markets — And You Can Own a Piece of It

In partnership with

Hello everyone

Alberto here, and today’s newsletter is a little different.

We’re not talking about an early-stage startup, we are talking about a company looking to IPO.
We’re talking about a full-on platform that’s quietly building one of the biggest machines in private investing…

You heard that right, and KEVIN O’LEARY from Shark Tank is on it.
And — here’s the kicker — they’re letting you invest in them.

StartEngine’s $30M Surge — Own a Piece Before June 26

Private markets are having a moment, thanks to companies like StartEngine.

The leading alternative investing platform is helping everyday investors like you access deals once reserved for VCs and insiders, including exposure to private market titans like OpenAI, Databricks, and Perplexity.¹

How’s it going? In Q1 2025, StartEngine pulled off $30M in revenue, its biggest quarter ever (based on unaudited financials).²

But StartEngine isn’t just a middleman. The company earns 20% carried interest on select pre-IPO offerings, unlocking value for shareholders when these deals succeed.³

How can you tap into this diversification play? By investing in StartEngine.

StartEngine has crowdfunded $85M+ to date, and you can join 45K+ shareholders before the company’s current round closes on June 26.

Invest in StartEngine

_{Reg A+ via StartEngine Crowdfunding, Inc. No BD/intermediary involved. Investment is speculative, illiquid & high risk. See OC and Risks on page.}

Let’s rewind for a second and set the scene.👇

📊 The Rise of the Private Markets

Over the past decade, retail investors have been locked out of the best deals.

Private markets — aka startups, real estate, collectibles, even VC itself — were gated by:

• Accredited investor requirements

• Old-school networks

• Complex compliance

• And firms that only wanted your money if your last name was on a building

But now?
That wall is starting to come down.

The JOBS Act, platforms like Wefunder, Republic, and StartEngine — and a growing hunger from everyday investors to get in early — have completely changed the game.

And StartEngine?
They’re building the infrastructure for that $7 trillion to move.

🚀 What Makes StartEngine So Different?

While others talk about democratizing access… StartEngine is doing it.

Here’s what they’ve quietly built in the past few years:

✅ $1.1 BILLION+ raised for private companies
✅ 1,800,000+ registered users
✅ 1,000+ startups and businesses funded
✅ Acquired SeedInvest (their largest competitor)
✅ Launched their own secondary market — so investors can sell shares before IPO
✅ Expanded into real estate, collectibles, and alt-assets
✅ Built by Howard Marks (Activision co-founder)
✅ Backed and promoted by Kevin O’Leary (Mr. Wonderful)

And now…
They’re raising capital themselves.
Publicly.
On their own platform.

🔍 So Why Should You Care?

Because this is one of the only times you can invest in the platform — not just the products.

Imagine:

• Investing in Shopify before every brand used it

• Backing Robinhood before the meme stock boom

• Owning part of a platform that’s powering the next thousand unicorns

That’s the kind of infrastructure bet StartEngine is offering.
And the round is open. Right now.

🔒 Here’s Where It Gets Interesting (and Profitable for You)

We partnered with StartEngine to bring you this opportunity.
So, we’re not going to overhype it.
We’ll just say this:

You’re probably going to want to at least watch this one.

Why?

Because:

• It’s rare to invest in a platform this big, this early

• The window is limited

• Looking to IPO soon

• And you're one of the few actually hearing about it now

If you’re even slightly curious, check it out.
(It’ll open in a new tab — come back and thank me later.)

🧠 TL;DR

• Private markets are unlocking — fast

• StartEngine is leading the charge, with $1B+ in capital raised and 1.8M users

• They’re letting the public invest in them

• The opportunity is live — and limited

👉 Click the link aboe to explore StartEngine’s investment round

Even if you’re not ready to invest, it’s worth the look.

That’s it for today.

We’ll be back Sunday with a founder story that turned TikTok traction into a billion-dollar exit.

(And yes, we’ll break down how early investors made 77x returns.)

Until then —
Stay curious,
Alberto
Founder

@Founderscrowd