WEBVTT - EYL #172 Black Owned Equity Crowdfunding Platform 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:03.600 An illegal alien from Guatemala charged with raping a child 0:00:03.680 --> 0:00:07.480 in Massachusetts. An MS thirteen gang member from Al Salvador 0:00:07.720 --> 0:00:11.840 accused of murdering a Texas man of Venezuelan charged with 0:00:11.920 --> 0:00:15.840 filming and selling child pornography in Michigan. These are just 0:00:15.920 --> 0:00:19.680 some of the heinous migrant criminals caught because of President 0:00:19.720 --> 0:00:23.320 Donald J. Trump's leadership. I'm Christy nom the United States 0:00:23.320 --> 0:00:28.120 Secretary of Homeland Security. Under President Trump, attempted illegal border 0:00:28.160 --> 0:00:31.680 crossings are at the lowest levels ever recorded, and over 0:00:31.760 --> 0:00:34.960 one hundred thousand illegal aliens have been arrested. If you 0:00:35.040 --> 0:00:38.920 are here illegally, your next you will be fined nearly 0:00:39.000 --> 0:00:43.000 one thousand dollars a day, imprisoned, and deported. You will 0:00:43.040 --> 0:00:46.680 never return. But if you register using our CBP home 0:00:46.720 --> 0:00:50.120 app and leave now, you could be allowed to return legally. 0:00:50.479 --> 0:00:55.240 Do what's right. Leave now. Under President Trump, America's laws, 0:00:55.400 --> 0:00:57.840 border and families will be protected. 0:00:57.920 --> 0:01:00.840 Sponsored by the United States Department of Homeland Security. 0:01:02.160 --> 0:01:08.760 My graduates from my school being forced back drop drop drop. 0:01:10.200 --> 0:01:10.400 Drop. 0:01:21.040 --> 0:01:24.640 All right, guys, welcome back, e y l. We are 0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:29.520 in our Atlanta headquarters. Yes, yes, yes, So this is 0:01:30.160 --> 0:01:32.240 episode that is going to be extremely educator. I already 0:01:32.280 --> 0:01:35.959 know off the rip. So we talk about funding a business. 0:01:35.959 --> 0:01:38.640 A lot of times people hear about like venture capital 0:01:39.160 --> 0:01:41.240 or they know, like you know, just liquidate the money 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:44.200 that they have. But equity crowdfunding is something that we 0:01:44.240 --> 0:01:46.560 spoke about a while ago. Shout out to Mike Brown. 0:01:46.959 --> 0:01:48.800 He think it was the first person on our platform. 0:01:49.920 --> 0:01:52.840 He was on a perspective of actually raising money, so 0:01:52.880 --> 0:01:57.040 he came in, he spoke about equity crowdfunding. But it 0:01:57.160 --> 0:02:04.200 hasn't been something that we really have touched on. So Pierre, Yeah, 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:11.360 the l person sorry, yeah, so actually came to our 0:02:11.360 --> 0:02:15.800 event in La, right, so he has an interesting stories 0:02:15.840 --> 0:02:19.120 from La originally but then was a ten year veteran 0:02:19.160 --> 0:02:21.200 of Wall Street or the Wall Street for ten years 0:02:22.040 --> 0:02:25.960 as a banker and now actually has a startup company 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:28.880 called Seat at the Table where it's a black owned, 0:02:29.760 --> 0:02:34.600 a black owned equity crowdfunding platform similar to like Republic 0:02:34.720 --> 0:02:37.160 or something like that, right where now you can actually 0:02:37.200 --> 0:02:40.920 go on the platform and a if you're a business, 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:43.760 you can be listed, and if you're an investor, you 0:02:43.800 --> 0:02:46.160 can look for opportunities to invest in the business. Because 0:02:46.160 --> 0:02:47.720 that's something a lot of people always talking about like, well, 0:02:47.720 --> 0:02:50.200 how can I find these deals to invest in early 0:02:50.280 --> 0:02:52.920 if I'm not you know, So that's what the equity crowdfunding. 0:02:52.960 --> 0:02:55.920 So we'll explain what equity crowdfunding is your platform, all 0:02:55.960 --> 0:02:58.840 of that stuff. But this is extremely important episode for 0:02:59.040 --> 0:03:03.120 a business owners but also from investors as well to 0:03:03.160 --> 0:03:05.840 be educated on how to invest in startup company. So 0:03:06.400 --> 0:03:07.720 this is going to be dope. Shots to my man 0:03:07.800 --> 0:03:08.880 lu Tucker for putting this together. 0:03:08.960 --> 0:03:13.480 The last Lewis, He's going by Lewis now. 0:03:13.320 --> 0:03:15.640 And first and foremost, thank you for joining us. 0:03:15.639 --> 0:03:19.040 Appreciate it. We said, La, but specifically Compton. 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:21.239 Yeah, well since we Compton, Long bea chairs my dad 0:03:21.280 --> 0:03:21.799 is from Compton. 0:03:21.919 --> 0:03:24.040 We wanted we got to make that I want I 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:24.839 want the Polly eyes. 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:27.480 So like when you're from LA, like the delineating factors, 0:03:27.520 --> 0:03:29.560 where'd you go to high school? Like really like dudes, 0:03:29.600 --> 0:03:31.560 like you said, like where'd you go to the Poly High? 0:03:31.639 --> 0:03:34.160 I'm like a long beach kid, thro and through. As 0:03:34.200 --> 0:03:35.760 you mentioned, I was in New York for for ten years. 0:03:35.760 --> 0:03:38.119 I was a banker at Goldman. As we talked about, 0:03:38.240 --> 0:03:40.880 I never got rid of my California I d uh, yeah, man, 0:03:40.880 --> 0:03:43.240 it's just kind of like ears of the Streets always 0:03:43.240 --> 0:03:46.240 tapped in, which has kept me grounded. But it was 0:03:46.240 --> 0:03:48.600 definitely frustrating in New York working on Wall Street, just 0:03:48.600 --> 0:03:51.280 in terms of like fit perspective. 0:03:51.280 --> 0:03:52.320 But we can talk about that. 0:03:52.840 --> 0:03:55.600 Let's talk about that now, let's get into it. So 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:59.200 all right, so coming from from a Long Beach and 0:04:00.040 --> 0:04:02.640 that's a long way from Wall Street. Yeah, so how'd 0:04:02.680 --> 0:04:06.680 you make your way from from California? And he was 0:04:06.720 --> 0:04:09.240 working at Goldman Sachs right, correct, What was your exactly? 0:04:09.840 --> 0:04:12.480 Yeah, So I think I think what's important life, man, 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:14.000 is like when you hear about these stories like what 0:04:14.000 --> 0:04:15.720 can be replicated, people tell you like, oh, I did 0:04:15.720 --> 0:04:16.960 this all that, So you're like, let me know how 0:04:16.960 --> 0:04:18.839 you started, so I can know if it's like attainable 0:04:18.839 --> 0:04:20.880 to me. So I went to public on the Polly 0:04:20.960 --> 0:04:23.760 High four thousand kids on MLK to kind of give 0:04:23.800 --> 0:04:24.880 you perspective, right right next. 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:25.400 To the poly apartment. 0:04:25.440 --> 0:04:27.640 It's like projects at the time, went to Long Beach 0:04:27.640 --> 0:04:30.760 State undergrad public school. I went to University of Virginia 0:04:30.800 --> 0:04:33.359 for business school, right, and so got an MBA. So 0:04:33.440 --> 0:04:36.080 that allowed me to pivot to banking. But before that, man, 0:04:36.080 --> 0:04:38.080 when I was an undergrad. I was a social science major. 0:04:38.160 --> 0:04:40.760 I wanted to be a I was a psychology anthropology major. 0:04:40.960 --> 0:04:42.840 I wanted to get a PhD in psychology, like health 0:04:42.880 --> 0:04:43.640 the community. 0:04:43.960 --> 0:04:45.400 And I was like my first job out of undergrad. 0:04:45.400 --> 0:04:48.000 Actually, so when I went to business school, that's when 0:04:48.000 --> 0:04:50.839 I found out about banking, investment banking, and you know, 0:04:51.240 --> 0:04:53.479 on the West Coast, banking isn't dig at all. It's like, 0:04:53.480 --> 0:04:56.679 I know, entertainment and so forth. Had a bank account 0:04:56.720 --> 0:04:58.640 at a regular bank. But like you know, even today, 0:04:58.680 --> 0:05:00.840 my parents still don't understand what bank is, my sister. 0:05:00.880 --> 0:05:03.760 But to answer your question, I managed money when I 0:05:03.800 --> 0:05:05.000 was in when I was in New York, so I 0:05:05.000 --> 0:05:07.240 worked at Goldman. I was in their investment management division. 0:05:07.279 --> 0:05:12.080 So I managed money for individuals, you know, ballplayers, people 0:05:12.080 --> 0:05:14.839 that prayed note pass and made thirty forty million dollars 0:05:15.200 --> 0:05:18.719 wealth management, wealth management and then foundations as well. So 0:05:19.800 --> 0:05:21.440 you know, it's a very and so that the minimum 0:05:21.480 --> 0:05:23.760 at that time. This is back from like eight twenty 0:05:23.880 --> 0:05:26.320 nineteen because things have changed. The firm was like a 0:05:26.320 --> 0:05:29.160 twenty million dollar liquid though so not real estate, right 0:05:29.279 --> 0:05:31.160 when you think about people that I have twenty million 0:05:31.200 --> 0:05:34.240 dollars of liquid capital. They walk a very different form 0:05:34.240 --> 0:05:37.560 of life, right, So my job was to get to 0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:39.760 know them, build relationships, but actually to really manage their 0:05:40.120 --> 0:05:41.719 I was their guy. It was like I was reporting 0:05:41.760 --> 0:05:42.640 to somebody else. 0:05:42.520 --> 0:05:43.479 Like so my firm. 0:05:43.600 --> 0:05:47.000 My first account was he was a Frenchman. He's probably 0:05:47.000 --> 0:05:48.200 that I was. I'm not French. She thought I was 0:05:48.200 --> 0:05:50.039 friends who thought about this, you know, the last thing 0:05:50.120 --> 0:05:53.719 may have but shout today's out there. But nonetheless he 0:05:53.720 --> 0:05:55.640 thought I was French. But he was a founder of 0:05:55.080 --> 0:05:56.800 a publicly traded company. 0:05:57.400 --> 0:05:57.599 Ex. 0:05:57.680 --> 0:06:00.599 McKenzie guy like real cerebral. He would call it a 0:06:00.640 --> 0:06:02.640 desk bro and he would literally say it's Pierre there. 0:06:02.920 --> 0:06:04.520 It wasn't like any of the older white dudes was 0:06:04.520 --> 0:06:06.119 like this Pierre. So I was this guy was trading 0:06:06.160 --> 0:06:09.480 de rivert this form, managing markets and so in that 0:06:09.600 --> 0:06:12.400 seat though, it allowed me to see so much deal 0:06:12.440 --> 0:06:15.360 flow and from a context perspective. You know, at that time, 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:17.880 in my group there were about four hundred of US advisors. 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:21.120 They're probably about fifteen black advisors. I was one or 0:06:21.160 --> 0:06:23.039 two in New York. But I was very much I 0:06:23.080 --> 0:06:25.159 was more so street facing, right like I was you know, 0:06:25.200 --> 0:06:26.040 I kind of knew everybody. 0:06:26.120 --> 0:06:27.200 It was being helpful to everybody. 0:06:27.240 --> 0:06:29.280 So when there was when it came to like having 0:06:29.320 --> 0:06:31.320 a relationship at Goldman, it was like Pierre was one 0:06:31.360 --> 0:06:33.080 of the first guys you would reach out to, even 0:06:33.080 --> 0:06:35.520 if it wasn't a fit, just to be a resource. 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:36.479 So you know, it was. 0:06:36.560 --> 0:06:38.159 It was a great experience to that extent in terms 0:06:38.160 --> 0:06:40.200 of being a resource for the people, but in terms 0:06:40.200 --> 0:06:45.080 of managing money for a profile that was drastically different 0:06:45.560 --> 0:06:47.440 than mine, Like that was I wasn't going I wasn't 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:48.440 going to the Hampton's one. 0:06:49.400 --> 0:06:51.640 I didn't roll crew. Yeah, like you know, it's very different. 0:06:51.839 --> 0:06:54.560 So like when you said fit, that's automatically thinking right, 0:06:54.640 --> 0:06:57.400 Like you have a salary with your managing millions and 0:06:57.440 --> 0:06:59.599 billions of dollars, so like going to work on a 0:06:59.640 --> 0:07:03.040 daily basis, Like what's that like? Because a lot of 0:07:03.160 --> 0:07:05.080 us have never even seen that type of money and 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:06.680 I had to manage it, So what's that life? 0:07:06.839 --> 0:07:09.279 So when I got the gig, I had to literally 0:07:09.320 --> 0:07:10.880 describe it to my home and my friends like, yo, 0:07:10.960 --> 0:07:13.200 it's like the equivalent getting drafted by the Lakers, because 0:07:13.240 --> 0:07:14.920 dudes don't really get like they didn't really get it right, 0:07:14.960 --> 0:07:16.800 Like all the people that like are b school, like 0:07:16.800 --> 0:07:18.400 all the book smart dudes, like they get it. Like 0:07:18.400 --> 0:07:19.840 all you work at moment one of the best firms 0:07:19.880 --> 0:07:20.920 at the time, Like I got to say, like it's like, 0:07:20.960 --> 0:07:22.040 you know, getting drafted by a Lakers. 0:07:22.080 --> 0:07:24.760 So for me, I was just happy to be there. Also, 0:07:24.920 --> 0:07:25.680 the challenge was. 0:07:25.600 --> 0:07:27.600 Like, especially within our community, like I don't want to 0:07:27.600 --> 0:07:29.440 I don't want to mess things up, right, It's like 0:07:29.440 --> 0:07:31.080 you kind of like keep your head down. You're not 0:07:31.120 --> 0:07:33.160 really loud and vocal. So it was more of a 0:07:33.160 --> 0:07:36.320 surreal feeling being there. I would say one of the 0:07:36.360 --> 0:07:39.440 benefits though, is that although it was frustrating, I saw 0:07:39.480 --> 0:07:41.240 so much deal flow, Like I'm like, so now when 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:43.360 you think about it, literally talking to somebody that makes 0:07:43.520 --> 0:07:45.720 like notepads and so their business for thirty million dollars, 0:07:45.760 --> 0:07:47.640 like I can make a notepad, right, So, like you 0:07:47.720 --> 0:07:50.119 see so many ideas and how people have accumulated wealth 0:07:50.360 --> 0:07:53.960 and are are are creating businesses and transacting on those businesses. 0:07:54.200 --> 0:07:56.040 But then you also learn the derby in terms of 0:07:56.040 --> 0:07:58.240 like how they're actually starting their businesses right, in terms 0:07:58.280 --> 0:07:59.960 of like where did they start from? Did you kind 0:07:59.960 --> 0:08:01.680 of building from ground up or did somebody cut you 0:08:01.720 --> 0:08:03.640 that check? You know, they give you the first million 0:08:03.720 --> 0:08:06.320 dollars so you can scale. So it was definitely an 0:08:06.320 --> 0:08:09.560 eye opening experience for sure. So you said, working on 0:08:09.560 --> 0:08:10.840 Wall Street seeing deal. 0:08:10.720 --> 0:08:14.600 Flow, you saw that the black house black companies weren't 0:08:14.600 --> 0:08:15.239 being funded. 0:08:15.640 --> 0:08:21.000 Yeah, yeah, so yeah, So my friend network man literally 0:08:21.120 --> 0:08:24.320 is like older black man from like fifty to seventy 0:08:24.680 --> 0:08:26.120 and like a bunch of my young boys and obviously 0:08:26.120 --> 0:08:28.280 our peers, our age group. And the reason why I 0:08:28.600 --> 0:08:30.120 bring that up is that when I was in New York, 0:08:30.160 --> 0:08:31.320 like I used to work with a bunch of like 0:08:31.400 --> 0:08:33.679 senior partners at law firm because I was always giving them, 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:35.400 like a firm reach out to me. 0:08:35.400 --> 0:08:37.480 It's like, hey, I'm doing seven million dollars on revenue. 0:08:38.360 --> 0:08:39.920 Came home at IPO me and it was like, now 0:08:39.920 --> 0:08:42.120 you finally need like two zeros behind you. But I 0:08:42.120 --> 0:08:44.079 can introduce you to a middle market banker, or I 0:08:44.120 --> 0:08:47.800 can introduce you to you know, an attorney, right they 0:08:47.800 --> 0:08:49.800 can like actually structure the deal. So I was always 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:53.960 given out opportunities that weren't necessarily a fit for the firm. 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:55.599 And you know, when you think about the minimums in 0:08:55.679 --> 0:08:57.760 terms of transacting, and they were looking at deal on 0:08:57.760 --> 0:08:59.719 a hundred million dollar companies, right, and like we don't 0:08:59.800 --> 0:09:00.439 work not in. 0:09:00.440 --> 0:09:01.280 That space yet. 0:09:01.440 --> 0:09:03.840 Minimum yeah, yeah, because they got to get their fees 0:09:03.840 --> 0:09:04.920 in terms of like the investments. 0:09:05.000 --> 0:09:05.160 Right. 0:09:05.240 --> 0:09:08.040 So my group is always about trading on information, like 0:09:08.080 --> 0:09:10.760 literally positioning people to get deals done. So the goal 0:09:10.840 --> 0:09:12.480 is you help them sell their business and then when 0:09:12.480 --> 0:09:13.880 they sell their business, they bring the money back to 0:09:13.920 --> 0:09:16.440 you and you manage it. But I saw so many businesses, man, 0:09:16.440 --> 0:09:18.240 that are out there. They're doing you know, three to 0:09:18.320 --> 0:09:21.000 five million dollars that cauldn't get funding from a bull 0:09:21.080 --> 0:09:24.120 back investment bank, let alone funding from some of the 0:09:24.120 --> 0:09:27.160 other resources or other like pipe our other access points 0:09:27.160 --> 0:09:28.840 of capital. We'll love to talk to you guys about that. 0:09:28.880 --> 0:09:30.800 What that looks like from entrepreneurs respective. 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:33.640 So in terms of funding, right, we got golden up here, 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:35.480 one hundred millions to the minimum. 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:36.640 But what's that mid rate? 0:09:36.720 --> 0:09:39.960 It did like a number a scale that that like 0:09:40.040 --> 0:09:42.600 wealth managers use that like if it's ten million, it 0:09:42.600 --> 0:09:43.360 has to be this level. 0:09:43.400 --> 0:09:45.000 Bank it's fifty million, so it's this level. 0:09:45.080 --> 0:09:46.800 Yeah, So let me let me differentiate it too, so 0:09:46.920 --> 0:09:49.120 to having your assets managed. At the time, it was 0:09:49.120 --> 0:09:51.720 like twenty million dollars a liquid network, right. But then 0:09:51.720 --> 0:09:53.400 when you think about a business that may not even 0:09:53.400 --> 0:09:55.400 be liquid yet that wants to sell their business. They 0:09:55.440 --> 0:09:58.439 want to sell that NOTEPAC company for three hundred million dollars, 0:09:58.440 --> 0:10:01.440 it has to be at least one hundred million dollars transaction, right, So, 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:02.840 like that's the difference between the two. So one is 0:10:02.840 --> 0:10:06.520 getting your assets managed and the other is when you 0:10:06.559 --> 0:10:08.600 when you're trying to engage an investment bank of that 0:10:08.760 --> 0:10:10.000 caliber to do the deal. 0:10:10.080 --> 0:10:11.480 It has to be worth a certain amount, it has 0:10:11.480 --> 0:10:12.040 to be worth their time. 0:10:12.080 --> 0:10:14.600 But there are tons of middle what's called middle market bankers, right, 0:10:15.120 --> 0:10:17.160 So the middle market bankers are typically you know, regional 0:10:17.160 --> 0:10:20.720 smaller banks still notable, Maan, I think there's like excellence everywhere, right, 0:10:20.760 --> 0:10:22.440 you don't got to be at a certain firm. 0:10:22.480 --> 0:10:23.920 I think there's like brilliance. 0:10:23.640 --> 0:10:26.280 Everywhere, but nonetheless they're situated where they can take on 0:10:26.320 --> 0:10:28.599 those size deals. But yeah, but there's just like in 0:10:28.640 --> 0:10:30.120 the equal you got to see more deals than I 0:10:30.120 --> 0:10:32.079 do now. But right, like in the eCos, like there's 0:10:32.120 --> 0:10:34.880 so many interesting companies out there that are looking for 0:10:35.000 --> 0:10:38.360 access to capital, and it's been a challenge, right and 0:10:38.400 --> 0:10:40.440 for a number of varying reasons we can dig into, 0:10:40.679 --> 0:10:42.960 but that when I worked in that capacity, it was 0:10:42.960 --> 0:10:44.280 more so like I have a company that's worth a 0:10:44.360 --> 0:10:44.840 hundred million. 0:10:45.120 --> 0:10:46.720 Helped me sell it? If you help me sell it 0:10:46.960 --> 0:10:48.440 or your firm sells and not bring you the asset. 0:10:48.760 --> 0:10:51.240 So all right, so talk about let's get into equity 0:10:51.240 --> 0:10:54.280 crowdfunding conversation. What made you want to start set at 0:10:54.320 --> 0:10:54.720 the table? 0:10:54.880 --> 0:10:56.720 Yeah, man, it's I think I caught the interview with 0:10:57.040 --> 0:10:57.760 the brother's name was Mike. 0:10:57.760 --> 0:10:59.560 I think I caught the interview. Like, yeah, I think 0:10:59.600 --> 0:11:00.360 I caught that interview. 0:11:00.360 --> 0:11:00.440 Mat. 0:11:00.480 --> 0:11:01.480 It's like I was randomly in a. 0:11:01.520 --> 0:11:04.560 Starbucks and I was just frustrated because like I would 0:11:04.520 --> 0:11:06.400 always when whatever I get it, whenever I would get 0:11:06.440 --> 0:11:08.000 a deal, I would reach out to my network of 0:11:08.120 --> 0:11:09.600 angel investors, wealthy individuals. 0:11:09.840 --> 0:11:10.680 It's a small handful. 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:13.400 Why, it's not a lot of us, And I'm sure 0:11:13.400 --> 0:11:15.720 they got tired of receiving They appreciated the call, but 0:11:15.760 --> 0:11:17.080 you know, we all get tired of being hit up 0:11:17.080 --> 0:11:19.880 at the same time. So I spent a year working 0:11:19.880 --> 0:11:22.120 at a commercial bank, so it was different about like 0:11:22.120 --> 0:11:24.440 commercial banking, thinking about like a Bank of America where 0:11:24.440 --> 0:11:26.120 you have your deposits or whatever. Right, I worked at 0:11:26.160 --> 0:11:28.000 a commercial bank on the West Coast, Like, well, I'm 0:11:28.040 --> 0:11:30.000 working at the small regional commercial bank. Now I can 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:32.439 really extend capital and help people get loans and so forth. 0:11:32.480 --> 0:11:34.800 And I realized how hard it was in that space, right, 0:11:35.160 --> 0:11:37.760 So I was watching it. So I was at Starbucks. 0:11:37.800 --> 0:11:38.599 I was frustrated. 0:11:38.960 --> 0:11:42.200 I was watching like YouTube videos, and like randomly, equity 0:11:42.200 --> 0:11:44.160 crowdfunding poppeduble I knew nothing about it. I've never even 0:11:44.240 --> 0:11:48.080 invested in equity crowdfunding portal before that. We all, I mean, 0:11:48.160 --> 0:11:50.560 most of our community knows about gofund me and kickstarted 0:11:50.559 --> 0:11:54.120 for varying reasons, right, but equity clowd funding was different 0:11:54.200 --> 0:11:56.760 at the time. So I saw like this episode from 0:11:56.800 --> 0:11:59.040 this other one of the competing portals, and I was like, oh, 0:11:59.040 --> 0:12:01.520 this is interesting, and I points like raised capital at 0:12:01.559 --> 0:12:05.319 lower dollar amounts right where everybody the community can participate. 0:12:05.960 --> 0:12:07.960 There are tons of research, and I quickly realized that 0:12:08.000 --> 0:12:11.720 there was no portals that was intentionally focused on black 0:12:11.720 --> 0:12:14.559 and brown entrepreneurs. Right, So the name is called it's 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:16.760 called Seed at the Table and it's a play of 0:12:16.920 --> 0:12:19.319 having a seat at the table or a lack thereof, right, 0:12:19.360 --> 0:12:21.120 so we don't often have a seat at the table. 0:12:20.880 --> 0:12:21.520 For guil flow. 0:12:21.600 --> 0:12:24.320 So gather the group of my friends who call family 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:27.679 with the process of getting approved by the SEC and FENRA. 0:12:28.080 --> 0:12:29.840 So like all the portals are listed, they're approved. It's 0:12:29.840 --> 0:12:32.920 like equivalent to explain with FINRA's yeah, thank you, because 0:12:33.040 --> 0:12:36.200 sometimes you get caught up ye wait yeah. So FINRA 0:12:36.320 --> 0:12:39.160 is the regulatory agency, right, So like any investment bank 0:12:40.200 --> 0:12:42.360 that is our chartered bank has to deal with the 0:12:42.400 --> 0:12:45.199 regular So the SEC is the Securities Exchange Commission. FINRA 0:12:45.800 --> 0:12:48.640 was an additional regulator. And what they do is they're 0:12:48.640 --> 0:12:53.600 making sure that everything is in proper place, right, so documentation, auditing, 0:12:54.280 --> 0:12:56.280 when companies come to the portal, we have a process 0:12:56.320 --> 0:12:59.160 in place and run diligence and so forth. So seat 0:12:59.200 --> 0:13:00.760 at the table. The team we meet with fineral on 0:13:00.760 --> 0:13:05.000 an annual basis. They're they're monitoring everything on a monthly basis, 0:13:05.000 --> 0:13:07.880 you know, whether it's media, whether it's it's what we 0:13:07.920 --> 0:13:09.520 put on the website, whatever the case they need. But 0:13:09.559 --> 0:13:12.920 they're they're there to ensure the safety of the public. 0:13:13.000 --> 0:13:15.080 Right to make sure that, because what they don't want 0:13:15.120 --> 0:13:16.679 is like anybody just to pop up and create an 0:13:16.679 --> 0:13:19.960 equity crowdfunding portal and start aggregating dollars, right and not 0:13:20.120 --> 0:13:22.640 be uh, you know, good stewards of capital. 0:13:22.679 --> 0:13:25.080 So that's what they do. So they basically regulate the process. 0:13:25.640 --> 0:13:28.080 Can you talk about what equity crowdfunding is for people 0:13:28.080 --> 0:13:28.840 that might not understand? 0:13:28.960 --> 0:13:29.200 Sure? 0:13:29.280 --> 0:13:32.840 So I mentioned uh, Kickstart and go Homeie. Those are 0:13:32.880 --> 0:13:35.240 donation based crowdfunding sites. And actually, you know what I 0:13:35.240 --> 0:13:38.400 should mention fun Black Founders is another donation I've got 0:13:38.400 --> 0:13:40.199 to start thinking about us, right, I continue to think 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:43.320 about fund Black Founders is another donation based crowdfunding site. 0:13:43.360 --> 0:13:46.160 And what they do is that they'll donate. An investor 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:48.200 can donate, us as a community can donate to the 0:13:48.200 --> 0:13:48.960 companies that we like. 0:13:49.000 --> 0:13:50.560 And when you donate, you may. 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:53.080 Get some swag or like a T shirt, right, just 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:54.160 like some kind of like perks. 0:13:54.240 --> 0:13:54.400 Right. 0:13:55.200 --> 0:13:58.000 But with equity crowdfunding, you literally own a piece of 0:13:58.040 --> 0:13:59.480 the businesses that you're investing in. 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:02.400 Right. So so it's when President Obama was in office, 0:14:02.520 --> 0:14:05.320 he signed what's called the Jobs Act. Jobs Act took 0:14:05.360 --> 0:14:06.160 many different forms. 0:14:06.200 --> 0:14:09.360 One of the benefits was it allowed for non accredited 0:14:09.400 --> 0:14:11.440 investors now describe a credit versus not non a credit 0:14:11.520 --> 0:14:14.920 investors to be able to invest in businesses. So historically, 0:14:15.400 --> 0:14:17.040 when you think about you always hear people talk about 0:14:17.080 --> 0:14:19.400 VC like I want to give mention capital access, private 0:14:19.400 --> 0:14:22.359 equity access. Historically that was the only available to wealthy individuals, 0:14:22.360 --> 0:14:25.320 so people that made two hundred thousand dollars or more, right, 0:14:26.360 --> 0:14:28.240 or they had a household income of three hundred thousand 0:14:28.240 --> 0:14:31.160 dollars or they have assets of a million dollars, right, 0:14:31.200 --> 0:14:33.320 So you would hear these crazy stories like oh, I 0:14:33.400 --> 0:14:36.640 invested in Uber ten years ago for five thousand dollars 0:14:36.680 --> 0:14:38.200 and now I'm worth fifty million. But the reason why 0:14:38.200 --> 0:14:39.400 you were able to do that because you were an 0:14:39.400 --> 0:14:41.400 a credit investor. I'm sure I can start a five 0:14:41.400 --> 0:14:43.480 thousand dollars among many of my friends right to have 0:14:43.560 --> 0:14:45.960 that opportunity. But when President Obama signed the Jobs Act, 0:14:46.080 --> 0:14:48.080 it allowed for non credit investors, so people that make 0:14:48.160 --> 0:14:50.840 less than that amount to literally invest in the companies 0:14:50.880 --> 0:14:52.880 that they consume, the products that the consumer as well. 0:14:52.960 --> 0:14:56.920 So equity crowdfunding is more broadly. 0:14:56.800 --> 0:14:59.640 Is the ability to invest in companies that lower dollar 0:14:59.680 --> 0:15:02.000 amount too, So you can come to the portal see 0:15:02.040 --> 0:15:03.840 at the table. You can invest in a company for 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:06.480 a little as one hundred dollars per investment. Two hundred 0:15:06.520 --> 0:15:08.840 fifty dollars per investment are one thousand dollars per investment, 0:15:09.320 --> 0:15:11.600 which is different from the old world when you have 0:15:11.640 --> 0:15:13.800 to cut a twenty five thousand dollars check to be 0:15:13.880 --> 0:15:16.760 invested in one particular company. So now as investors, whether 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:20.320 creditor or non accredited, you can actually spread those chips around, right, 0:15:20.360 --> 0:15:21.920 It's like that's the cool part about it too. It's 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:24.960 like now you get to diversify your venture capital portfolio 0:15:25.240 --> 0:15:27.200 and you really do have the opportunity to be an 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:31.040 investor early stage investor in early stage companies and experienced 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:31.760 that growth as well. 0:15:31.800 --> 0:15:34.440 So when you are non incredited is there it's still 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:38.480 a limit amount of assets. 0:15:37.200 --> 0:15:38.760 So fin or sec is on it. 0:15:38.760 --> 0:15:42.160 So typically like ten percent of of your income or 0:15:42.200 --> 0:15:43.680 your net worth. Right, So like when you go to 0:15:43.720 --> 0:15:45.720 sea at the table, there are a couple of questions 0:15:45.720 --> 0:15:48.160 and they'll ask you, like what's your networth? Have you 0:15:48.200 --> 0:15:50.600 invested in equity crowd funding in the past? Because you 0:15:50.640 --> 0:15:54.080 are capped, they tracked that information as well. It's such 0:15:54.120 --> 0:15:57.520 a new space equity crowd funding. So last year companies 0:15:57.640 --> 0:15:59.320 can raise up to a million dollars. This year you 0:15:59.320 --> 0:16:02.560 can raise up to five million. But what's consistent about 0:16:02.560 --> 0:16:05.080 the space is that the regulators are trying to protect 0:16:05.400 --> 0:16:06.400 the investors right. 0:16:06.440 --> 0:16:09.000 And it may feel heavy candid at times because you do. 0:16:09.000 --> 0:16:11.320 It all without breaking a sweat, and you do it 0:16:11.360 --> 0:16:13.760 all in style, from being a boss exec to getting 0:16:13.800 --> 0:16:17.520 the kids ready for school, checking homework, family dinners, lunches 0:16:17.520 --> 0:16:19.960 and brunches with your day ones, trips to the salon, 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:23.120 and we can getaways at anything but a getaway. That's 0:16:23.120 --> 0:16:26.320 why Infinity fully reimagine the QX sixty to help you 0:16:26.360 --> 0:16:29.920 conquer it all with ease, a luxury suv as functional 0:16:29.960 --> 0:16:33.160 as it is stylish, and as versatile as it is serene, 0:16:33.680 --> 0:16:35.800 even when you have back to back conference calls on 0:16:35.840 --> 0:16:38.680 top of the kids basketball practices, not to mention your 0:16:38.720 --> 0:16:42.000