Three years ago, I watched my college roommate make $340,000 in 18 months.
He didn't inherit money. Didn't win the lottery. Didn't get lucky with crypto.
He invested $10,000 in a Series B startup called Databricks.
I couldn't.
Not because I didn't have $10,000. I did.
Not because I didn't believe in the company. I absolutely did.
I couldn't invest because I wasn't "accredited."
My roommate worked at Goldman Sachs. Annual income: $350K+. He checked the box.
I was running my own business. Annual income: $180K. Profitable. Growing. But $20K short of the SEC's magic number.
So he got access. I got shut out.
That $10,000 he invested? Worth $850,000 when Databricks hit a $134 billion valuation last year.
That's the moment I decided to build Founderscrowd.
Read time: 4 minutes
The Problem We're Solving
Here's what's broken about private market investing:
The best deals go to the smallest group of people.
Series A Stripe? Reserved for Sequoia, a16z, and a handful of Silicon Valley insiders
Early Anthropic? You needed to be friends with the founders or work at a top-tier VC
Pre-IPO SpaceX? Institutions writing $10M+ checks
By the time regular investors get access, the easy money is gone.
Look at the numbers:
Stripe Series A (2011): $2M valuation → Today: $100B valuation = 50,000x
Stripe at IPO (expected 2027): $100B → Maybe $150B in 5 years = 1.5x
The people who made 50,000x were institutions and insiders.
The people who'll make 1.5x will be retail investors buying post-IPO.
This isn't a market.
It's a rigged game.
What We're Changing
Founderscrowd exists to do one thing: Give retail investors access to institutional-quality deals.
Not the leftovers. Not the overpriced late-stage rounds. The actual good stuff.
How we do it:
We pool capital → Small investors ($100-500 minimums) get access to deals that normally require $50K-100K minimums
We negotiate allocation → Instead of 1,000 individuals asking for $500 each, we show up as "$500,000 from Founderscrowd" and get better terms
We do the diligence → You don't need to read 80-page S-1 filings. We summarize the bull case, bear case, and our thesis in 5 pages
We structure it properly → SPVs, proper legal docs, everything an institution would get
The result:
You invest like a VC, without needing to be a VC.
Why This Week Matters
In exactly one week, we're opening access to the IPO of our generation.
SpaceX. Pre-IPO. At a $800 billion private-market valuation.
IPO target: $1.5 trillion (June 2026).
If the IPO happens as planned, that's 87.5% upside in 3-4 months just from private to public pricing.
Here's the setup:
Private market today: $800B (where institutions are buying)
Public market June: $1.5T (where retail will buy)
The gap: 87.5% appreciation that happens BEFORE the stock trades publicly
Institutional investors will make that 87.5%.
Retail investors will buy at $1.5T and hope for 20-30% over 5 years.
Unless you're a Founderscrowd Premium member.
What Premium Gets You
Next Wednesday (March 12), we're opening SpaceX pre-IPO access.
But only to Premium members.
Here's why:
When we negotiate allocation to deals like SpaceX, we get a fixed number of shares. Not unlimited. Not "everyone who wants in."
A fixed allocation.
We have to decide how to distribute it. Our choice: Premium members get priority.
Why?
Premium members fund the diligence that secures these opportunities
Premium members get educational content that helps them evaluate deals properly
Premium members commit to the platform long-term
The SpaceX Opportunity (Quick Preview)
The company:
90% of global orbital payload (more than every other company combined)
10 million Starlink subscribers (growing 100%/year)
$15-18B revenue in 2025 (up from $2B in 2020)
The math:
Current valuation: $800B (private market)
IPO target: $1.5T (June 2026)
Your entry if you join Premium: $800B
Your exit if IPO hits target: $1.5T
Gain: 87.5% in 3-4 months
The catch:
9-12 month lockup (shares locked until IPO + 6 month post-IPO lockup)
Fees: 2-5% upfront + 15-20% carry on profits
Risk: IPO could delay, Musk could change plans, market could crash
But here's the thing: Even with fees, even with lockup, even with risk...
This is the same deal institutions are getting.
The difference? They're writing $5M checks. You can write a $500 check.
📈 Want weekly access to private market deals usually reserved for the 1%?
Founderscrowd Premium gives you one fully analyzed investment opportunity every week, reviewed by our analysts and investment bankers. Get access to pre-IPO companies, private-market deals, and alternative investments that most investors never see.
$40/month (beta pricing, normally $120).
See you on the other side.
Why We're Raising Premium Prices (Beta)
Right now, Premium is $40/month. (Beta)
After SpaceX launches, we're raising it to $120/month.
Why?
Because the value proposition just changed.
When we launched Premium, we were giving you:
2-4 pre-IPO deals per quarter
Investment memos
Sunday deal flow newsletter
Members-only community
Good, but not game-changing.
Now, we're giving you access to the biggest IPO in human history at a private-market price.
That's game-changing.
$40/month was the early-adopter price. $120/month is the real price.
If you join before March 12, you lock in $40/month for life.
After March 12, it's $120/month. Forever.
The choice:
Join now → $40/month for life + SpaceX access
Wait until after March 12 → $120/month forever + waitlist for SpaceX (if allocation remains)
Here's What Happens Next
Wednesday (today): We're explaining why Founderscrowd exists
Friday: We're breaking down the SpaceX opportunity in detail
Monday: We're showing you exactly how to join Premium before the deadline
Wednesday, March 12: SpaceX access opens to Premium members only
The clock is ticking.
Not because we're trying to create fake urgency. But because the allocation is real, the price increase is real, and SpaceX is launching in 7 days.
Lock in your lifetime rate. Get SpaceX access. Start investing like institutions do.
The Bottom Line
Three years ago, I got shut out of a deal that would've made me $850,000.
Not because I wasn't smart enough. Not because I didn't have the money.
Because the system is designed to keep retail investors out.
Founderscrowd exists to break that system.
Next Wednesday, you can invest in SpaceX at the same price Goldman Sachs is paying.
The question is:
Will you?
Alberto
P.S. Friday's email breaks down the SpaceX numbers in detail — revenue, Starlink subscribers, valuation comps, bull/bear case. If you're on the fence, that email will help you decide.
P.P.S. The $40/month lifetime rate? That's not marketing. After March 12, it goes to $120/month for new members. Forever.
If you've been waiting for a reason to join Premium, this is it.
See you tomorrow. ☕