PRISM LAUNCHES STARTUP EQUITY-FOCUSED LENDING PLATFORM WITH $26M CAPITAL RAISE

LOS ANGELES, April 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Prism, a first-of-its-kind lending platform tailored to startup tech companies and employees, today announced the launch of its origination services following combined Seed and Series A fundraises of $26 million led by Pantera Capital and Human Capital.

Prism works directly with pre-IPO companies to allow employees of those startups to borrow against their company equity for personal use – from the down-payment on a home, to paying off personal recourse debt. The platform maintains a strict underwriting process and offers competitive rates to meet the needs of the current market environment. 

Prism focuses exclusively on technology companies with valuations of $1 billion or higher. The firm has signed multiple agreements to begin originating loans in the coming months and has a pipeline of over $100 million in loan volume.

The company aims to help startup workers access their slice of the $2 trillion locked up in private U.S. tech companies, which is traditionally inaccessible prior to a public listing or acquisition. 

"Prism is ideally suited to today's market: valuations have returned to attractive levels and startup workers are increasingly seeking new options to access the equity they've earned in their company without waiting years for an IPO," said Ari Stiegler, CEO and co-founder of Prism. Stiegler is also the managing partner of Flux Capital and has directed more than $200 million in transactions across venture capital, real estate and direct investments. "Today's launch and our robust capital raise reflect the growing demand for our lending platform that we've been hearing from startup leaders, employees and investors alike."

"Lending is a symbiotic relationship between borrower and lender," according to Noah Friedman, Prism's co-founder and COO. "Now that private valuations have begun to normalize, Prism can offer a valuable product that is a win-win for both sides of the equation."

Prism's third co-founder is none other than Ryan Breslow, the former CEO and founder of $11B payments platform Bolt. He joined Stiegler and Friedman on their mission, which Breslow describes as "providing financial tools to private wealth-holders (i.e. today's innovators), which liquid wealth-holders already have."

About Prism: Prism partners with VC-backed private tech companies to offer liquidity to founders, employees and investors. With Prism, employees can access cash and retain their equity's future upside. Enabling employees to unlock illiquid stock-based compensation can significantly improve job satisfaction, employee retention, and recruiting efforts at a company. Prism's loans are secured solely by the equity that each borrower posts as collateral, and have no personal recourse. So, borrowers' other assets are not at risk should the underlying equity decline in value. Prism's loan marketplace tech platform, which facilitates originations between private shareholders and institutional lenders, is available to late-stage, venture-backed companies that partner with Prism.

SOURCE Prism