Letter to Our Community

Over the past weeks, we launched an experiment: could a venture fund redefine what it means to “back founders” by literally starting at $0.01?

The response has been overwhelming. Our announcement post reached 200,000+ views across platforms, generating conversations far beyond our expectations. For a project that began as a tongue-in-cheek critique of venture capital, the level of inbound interest has been both humbling and energizing.

Yet growth rarely comes without friction. Within days of launching, our initial payment infrastructure was unexpectedly shut down by PayPal — a reminder of the systemic risks that even the smallest investors face in the broader fintech ecosystem. While disruptive, this challenge forced us to re-evaluate our operational stack and accelerate our transition to crypto rails (Polygon USDC).

By the Numbers (as of October 2)

• 145 total applications
• In review: 74
• Declined: 18
• Accepted: 53

✅ Acceptance ratio: 53 / 145 = 36.5%

Portfolio

Our initial “portfolio” is now live at cents.vc/portfolio. While the check size is symbolic, the conviction is real. Each backed founder represents a belief in creative experimentation, resilience, and the courage to build despite resource constraints.

Operational Update

We want to take a moment to apologize to our applicants and community. Due to unforeseen issues with our original payment provider (PayPal), we are currently only able to process support via Polygon USDC.

We recognize that this creates friction and may exclude some founders who are less familiar with crypto rails. Please know that this is not our long-term vision. We are actively exploring additional infrastructure solutions to broaden accessibility and reduce barriers to entry.

Community & Communication

We now have an official presence on Twitter/X: @centsvc. Follow us there for future announcements, portfolio updates, and insights.

We are not yet looking for additional partners, but we expect to open up conversations in the future as our model evolves.

Looking Ahead

• Explore new asset classes of micro-commitment.
• Push forward a philosophy of permissionless capital allocation.
• Engage with a global community of founders who see funding not as a gate, but as a game.

This is only the first chapter. As we scale, we remain focused on one guiding principle: backing bold ideas with unmatched capital efficiency. Because sometimes, $0.01 is all it takes to start something world-changing.