December 18, 2025
The Moment Crowdfunding Grew Up
Dear Subscriber,
Editor’s note: Today is a big day for Chris Graebe’s Deal Hunters Alliance members.
One of their pre-IPO companies is about to make its public debut on the biggest stock exchange in the world.
And there’s a second startup right behind it that’s gearing up to debut on the second-biggest stock exchange any day now!
It’s no coincidence that Alliance members have these opportunities to catch lightning in a bottle.
You can catch this lightning, too, here.
Between Chris’ uncanny ability to spot high-quality deals … and the pre-IPO market only becoming MORE electric in 2026 …
Don’t be surprised to see more of these lightning strikes.
Here’s Chris with why you should consider charging up your returns with pre-IPO startups, sooner rather than later.
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| By Chris Graebe |
Every year around this time, my inbox overflows with holiday greetings from my favorite startup founders …
Mixed in with tax forms to put somewhere safe …
And then, there’s the occasional lump of coal — the dreaded “we regret to inform you” note from a startup founder who ran out of money, ideas or both.
That’s a typical December for me.
But something about 2025 already feels different.
For the first time in the almost decade-long history of Regulation Crowdfunding, we’re finally seeing a market that’s maturing.
Not just in deal flow or investment opportunities …
But actual potential for realized returns.
According to Kingscrowd’s 2025 Exits and Failures Report, more than 650 crowdfunded startups have now produced real investor outcomes — good, bad or otherwise.
Failures are at their lowest point since 2020.
Exits have stabilized.
And the industry is starting to show something we’ve been waiting for since this all began …
A pattern.
Failures are normalizing.
Repurchases and buybacks are emerging.
And IPOs? They’re no longer a pipe dream.
Trust & Will, Ludus and Generation Genius delivered 2x-10x repurchases.
Solectrac was acquired for 2x-3x.
Monogram Orthopedics and Newsmax (NMAX) both went public. Monogram has since been taken over by Zimmer Biomet (ZBH).
Still …
These are real liquidity events that would’ve sounded laughable for Reg-CF just five years ago.
It’s happening.
Slowly and quietly … but it’s happening.
A Turning Point for Real Returns
For a long time, early stage crowdfunding was painted as “Vegas for VCs.”
Flashy decks, fancy promises and not a lot of follow-throughs.
But the data now tells a different story.
Even as failures hit their lowest levels since the pandemic, exits are holding steady, right where they should be in the natural J-curve of startup returns.
Remember, most venture-style investments take 5-7 years to mature.
Reg-CF didn’t scale until 2020-’21.
That means the true wave of exits isn’t late … it’s just starting to crest.
And I’ll tell you firsthand, I’m seeing it play out.
In fact, that’s exactly what we’ll see today when our very first Deal Hunters Alliance startup goes from pre-IPO to actual IPO!
I’m excited about this deal for a lot of reasons.
Notably because it’s a signal that the early believers …
That is, those of us who back innovation before it has logos on the wall …
Just got that much closer to seeing the long game start to pay off.
What Comes Next
We’re moving into a “liquidity season” for online private investing.
The pioneers are maturing.
Platforms are smarter.
Secondary markets are forming.
And investors — the smart ones — are finally starting to separate hype from the real players.
The noise is fading. The real companies are rising.
And if the last few years were about access, the next few will be about outcomes.
Happy hunting!
Chris Graebe
P.S. With the private investing market now all grown up, there’s never been a better time to join in. Here’s how.
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