Founders can now “test the waters” and gauge interest from investors before completing their legal work. This helps them launch their pitches in minutes!
What does this mean for investors?
Founders cannot accept investments prior to filing their legal paperwork. But supporters can ‘reserve’ a spot in their offering.
What is a reservation?
Reservations are non-binding – no money is sent to the company. However, if paying by your bank account, we will help you to transfer the money to your Wefunder Cash account so that it will be ready to use when the fundraise goes live and you confirm your reservation into an investment. If paying by a wire, you will be given instructions on how to send the money to your Wefunder Cash account. Similarly, if you are paying by credit card, we will do a pre-authorization check to ensure that your card is ready to be charged when the fundraise goes live. At that point, you will confirm your reservation into an investment and the amount will be charged to your credit card. (Note: The pre-authorization is not an actual charge and will drop off within a few days from your credit card account.
Once a company finalizes its contract terms and finishes all other legal disclosures, you’ll receive an email asking you to confirm your reservation and make an investment. Your investment application won't be complete until you receive this email and confirm your decision to invest.
How do I make a reservation?
To place a reservation, you'll type the amount you'd like to reserve in the invest box. Once you hit that "Invest" button, your reservation is made.
What is a Wefunder Cash account?
Your Wefunder Cash account is your online wallet with Wefunder. Literally, the money is held by our third-party banking partners, First Citizens Bank and Thread Bank.
Let's say you make a reservation to invest in XYZ Company. Once the company completes its paperwork, we'll email you to let you know it's time to sign a contract and submit a payment. If you've already funded your Wefunder Cash account, we can apply those funds to your new investment. This helps you to invest faster & potentially get in on early bird perks when applicable.
If your Wefunder Cash account isn't funded already when it’s time to convert your reservation into an investment, we'll provide instructions on how to pay for your investment with a bank, credit card, mailed check, or wire transfer.
Of course, any funds you transfer into your Cash account can be withdrawn anytime – or used to fund an investment in any company on the platform.
Can I change the amount of my reservation or cancel it?
Sure thing! Head to wefunder.com/portfolio and find the company you have a reservation with. To edit, click to confirm the investment and you can change your total in the next screen. Alternatively, you can choose to cancel your reservation at any time by going to your portfolio page and clicking "Discard Reservation." Voila!