3 Ways to Invest in Unicorn Startups as a Retail Investor

Most unicorn startups — private companies valued at $1 billion or more — raise capital from venture capital firms, institutional investors, and accredited individuals. Retail investors are largely shut out of the direct path. But "direct" is not the only path. There are now three ways for non-accredited investors to participate in the upside of private companies, each with different tradeoffs.

This article walks through all three options so you can figure out which make sense for you.

Why retail investors want access to private companies

Companies are staying private for longer — and that means more of their growth is happening before they reach a public exchange. The median age of U.S. companies at IPO has increased significantly over the past two decades, especially in technology. A company like SpaceX, founded in 2002, has been private for over 20 years and has grown to a $1.25 trillion valuation without ever listing publicly.

By the time these companies go public, much of the compounding has already happened. Retail investors who wait for an IPO may be buying in after the steepest part of the growth curve. The interest in earlier access is not about speculation — it reflects the reality that private markets now capture a larger share of long-term company value than they did a generation ago.

The accreditation barrier

Under SEC rules, most private securities offerings are restricted to accredited investors — individuals who earn at least $200,000 per year ($300,000 jointly) or have a net worth above $1 million excluding their primary residence. Certain professional certifications (Series 7, Series 65, Series 82) also qualify. The idea is that wealthier or more sophisticated investors can absorb the risks of illiquid, lightly regulated investments. In practice, it means the vast majority of people cannot participate.

This matters because private companies are not listed on public exchanges. You cannot open a brokerage app and buy shares of SpaceX or Anthropic. The primary paths to owning private-company stock — participating in funding rounds, buying on secondary markets, or investing through SPVs — almost universally require accreditation. Even when access exists, minimums are high. Secondary-market transactions often start at $10,000 to $50,000, and liquidity is low — you may wait weeks or months to buy or sell.

For a full breakdown of who qualifies, see what is an accredited investor.

The result: most retail investors have no practical way to participate in a unicorn startup's growth. But three types of investment options have emerged that give retail investors a path to private-company exposure.

Option 1: Equity crowdfunding

The JOBS Act created Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF), which lets non-accredited investors buy actual equity in private companies through registered platforms like Wefunder, Republic, and StartEngine.

How it works: Companies list funding campaigns on a crowdfunding platform. You invest as little as $100 and receive actual shares or convertible notes. If the company later exits — through an IPO, acquisition, or secondary sale — you may realize a return.

The catch: Most Reg CF campaigns are for early-stage startups, not billion-dollar private companies. The biggest names — OpenAI, SpaceX, Anthropic — do not raise through crowdfunding. So while equity crowdfunding gives you real ownership in private companies, it rarely gives you access to the specific companies you are most likely reading about.

SEC limits apply. If your annual income and net worth are both under $124,000, you can invest up to the greater of $2,500 or 5% of the lesser of your income or net worth per year across all Reg CF offerings. If either exceeds $124,000, the cap rises to 10%.

Option 2: ETFs and funds with private holdings

Several publicly traded funds hold stakes in high-value private companies. Because the funds themselves are listed on exchanges, any retail investor can buy shares through a standard brokerage account.

Examples include:

• Destiny Tech100 (DXYZ) — a closed-end fund holding stakes in private tech companies including SpaceX and Anthropic
• SuRo Capital (SSSS) — a business development company with venture-stage private holdings
• ARK Venture Fund (ARKVX) — an interval fund from ARK Invest that blends public and private holdings

The tradeoffs: You get indirect private-market exposure, but you do not control which companies the fund holds, and the fund's share price may trade at a significant premium or discount to its net asset value (NAV). Destiny Tech100, for example, has historically traded at a steep premium to its underlying holdings. You are also paying management fees, and the fund manager decides when to buy or sell positions — not you.

This path works best if you want broad, passive exposure to the private-market category without targeting specific companies.

Option 3: Price exposure through derivatives

A third category does not involve owning shares or fund units at all. Instead, you get price exposure — your position gains or loses value based on a company's implied market valuation. Two types of derivatives make this possible today: perpetual futures and prediction markets.

Perpetual futures

Platforms like Ventuals offer perpetual futures that let you go long or short on specific private companies. If you think SpaceX's valuation will rise, you open a long position. If it rises, you profit. If it falls, you lose. Your returns track the company's valuation movement directly — similar to owning shares in terms of price participation, without the shares themselves.

A quick example: Say SpaceX is trading at an implied valuation of $1.25 trillion on Ventuals and you open a $200 long position. If the valuation rises 20% to $1.5 trillion, your position is up roughly $40. If it drops 20%, you are down roughly $40. You can close at any time.

Prediction markets

Platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi let you trade on the outcome of specific events — for example, "Will OpenAI's valuation exceed $1 trillion at IPO?" You buy a contract priced between $0 and $1 reflecting the market's implied probability, and it settles at $1 if the event happens or $0 if it does not.

The key difference: prediction markets pay out based on whether something happens, not on how much a company's valuation changes. If SpaceX's valuation goes from $1 trillion to $2 trillion, a prediction market contract only helps if the specific threshold in your contract was crossed. Perpetual futures, by contrast, move with the valuation itself.

What makes derivatives different

• No accreditation required — anyone can participate
• Low minimums — positions can start at $10 or less
• Liquid — you can enter and exit whenever the market is open, with no transfer approvals or lock-up periods
• Company-specific — unlike a fund, you choose exactly which company to invest in

The tradeoff is that you do not own any shares, have no shareholder rights, and your position is subject to funding rates (perpetual futures) or binary outcomes (prediction markets). For a deeper look at how price exposure compares to actual ownership, see ownership vs. price exposure.

How the three options compare

What to watch out for

Each option has risks that are easy to underestimate:

• Equity crowdfunding: Most startups fail. Your capital may be locked for years with no secondary market. And the companies available on Reg CF platforms are rarely the household-name private companies driving headlines.
• ETFs and funds: The price you pay for fund shares may be far above or below the actual value of the underlying holdings. Fees compound over time, and you have no say in which positions the fund enters or exits.
• Perpetual futures: You do not own anything — no shares, no voting rights, no dividends. Positions carry ongoing funding costs. And because derivatives can amplify both gains and losses, risk management matters.
• Prediction markets: Payouts are binary — if the event does not happen, you lose your entire stake regardless of how close it came. Contracts are also event-specific, so you need a market that matches your thesis.

None of these options is a substitute for doing your own research. If you want a broader breakdown of every path to private-company investing — including options for accredited investors — see our full guide on how to invest in private companies.

Next steps

• How to Invest in Private Companies: The 2026 Guide — the complete breakdown of every method, from direct rounds to derivatives
• Ownership vs. Price Exposure — a deeper comparison of holding shares vs. tracking price, with a worked numeric example
• What Is an Accredited Investor? — what the SEC thresholds are, how verification works, and why accreditation is not always required

Ready to invest in private companies? Start on Ventuals →