garry

We are absolutely taking steps internally to prevent this.

Nicely done Gabe!

Thanks Finbarr. The group partners and MD's and I know these are important and valuable programs, and there is a lot more we need to be doing for alumni and the experience after companies do YC.

I don't have more to share now, but know that I really value you and this note.

I will say that large % of the batches turn out to still be good companies later, sometimes much later. The journey of being a founder sets people up to do a lot more: YC alums are often great C-level executives at other fast growing startups, and/or just because their first startup doesn't work doesn't mean they don't go on to create great companies later.

The key thing about networks is Metcalfe's law: the power of a network is the square of its nodes. This is also what makes the Internet more and more valuable over time.

Those things together mean scale increases value for founders, and what we've learned is those effects are most potent early.

Changes of this sort cannot happen in a very short amount of time. The timing was coincidental.

It's not, this is about making YC awesome for early stage founders right at the beginning.

We're asking for a backstop for deposits for small and medium sized businesses that will not survive without being able to make payroll.

Choice of bank historically has been one of the lower priority things people have to worry about. I think this changes now.

If your personal bank went out of business through no fault or gain of your own, most individuals would feel that it would be fair for you as the depositor should be made whole. That's the same with a business, and as important since this represents the payrolls of thousands of people.

This isn't some sort of complex bid call option strategy. This is a checking account, and one choice out of many that founders make regularly.

To my knowledge SVB was never required, and startups always had choice.

These are deposits at a bank. We're advocating for protection of 37,000 small business accounts, a small number of which are YC.

We discovered about 30% of YC companies would not be able to make payroll even after the $250,000 insured amount if they were to wait months for their payments. That is detailed on the FDIC website currently as the process for remediation.

This petition represents the lived experience of thousands of founders, and this is how we are communicating this is a real problem that DC needs to be aware of.

Again, this is not about saving SVB, the bank that made decisions that led to this, nor their equity holders. This is about saving innocent depositors.

We're trying to help our founders, and this is a moment where awareness of this problem in DC and in the halls of power matter.

$250,000 will be available initially, which is doable for payroll of up to 15 to 25 people for one month, generally if you're a startup.

FDIC website indicates remediation time in the months-to-years. This is the concern.