Title: New Fund Allows Retail Investors to Own Shares of Top Tech Start-Ups
Stripe, a payments start-up, has been one of the most successful companies to emerge from Silicon Valley, reaching a valuation of $65 billion last year. However, for the past 15 years, there has not been a way for most individuals to invest in it.
This issue has plagued retail investors as start-ups like Stripe, SpaceX, and OpenAI soar to enormous valuations in the private market, accessible only to accredited investors with high net worth. A new fund, Destiny Tech100, is aiming to change that by offering a publicly traded fund containing shares of 23 private tech companies, including Stripe, SpaceX, OpenAI, Discord, and Epic Games.
Sohail Prasad, the CEO of Destiny XYZ, the parent company of the fund, stated that the goal is to allow anyone to own part of the tech industry’s top private companies. The fund, which began trading on the New York Stock Exchange, plans to expand its holdings to include stock in 100 start-ups.
The fund represents a convergence of the public and private markets, reflecting the increasing trend of investments in private “alternative assets.” Venture capital investments in private tech start-ups have risen significantly in recent years, reaching $170 billion last year.
Mr. Prasad, who previously founded Forge, a marketplace for private tech stocks, started Destiny in 2020 to provide access to high-growth start-ups for individuals like his father, a management consultant in Texas. The fund has raised $100 million in funding from investors, including founders of prominent companies like Coinbase, Quora, and FIGS.
Investors in the Destiny Tech100 fund will have the opportunity to benefit from the growth of private tech companies, with returns from investments being distributed as dividends or reinvested in the fund. However, the fund does come with risks, as private tech investments can be volatile and challenging to assess.
Overall, the launch of the Destiny Tech100 fund represents a significant step towards democratizing access to high-growth tech companies for retail investors, providing an opportunity to own shares in some of the industry’s top private companies.
