I was laughed out of the room by lawyers for nearly a year trying to create the original SAFE note.
One lawyer finally helped me. One.
That lawyer helped me birth the financing instrument that now powers most early stage deals worldwide.
Every startup founder using a SAFE today owes Yokum Taku a thank you note. Yet most have never heard his name. He believed in this crazy concept.
Back in 2012, 70% of early stage deals were convertible debt. Debt was all the rage, and startups were "borrowing their way to failure."
Interest rates. Maturity dates. Repayment obligations. This debt was killing startups before they could breathe.
So, Yokum and I created Convertible Equity. Pure equity warrants. No debt. No complications.
Then, the plot twist happened.
Two of lawyers working with Yokum quit to join Y Combinator, and they asked me to use Convertible Equity. I agreed, prioritizing widespread adoption over personal credit.
In 2013, YC rebranded Convertible Equity as the Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE). They took the credit, and the rest is history.
The best innovations always sound ridiculous until they become obvious.
If you have used a SAFE, please share this post to thank Yokum! He gets no credit, and he took a huge leap of faith to make the SAFE with me.
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PS: I think the SAFE is as overused today as convertible debt was back in 2012. We need something new... π
π Exciting news from the @LipaworldAfrica team!
Weβll be attending Seamless South Africa β connecting with innovators, fintech leaders, and partners shaping the future of payments, digital commerce, and financial inclusion across the continent.
Our mission has always been clear: to build a borderless wallet that makes it easier for immigrants, freelancers, and businesses to Earn, Spend & Send across Africa and beyond. Seamless is the perfect platform to showcase what weβre building and to engage with like-minded partners.
π If youβd like to meet us and explore opportunities to collaborate, weβd love to connect!
Please use the link in the comments to book a meeting. π
https://t.co/87o0AKXEn7
#SeamlessSA #Fintech #AfricanDiaspora #FinancialInclusion #Lipaworld
So what made me predict 1 month ago that Newcastle needed Woltemade as part of an Isak succession plan. It is related to how I view counter-attacking.
One of Newcastleβs key strengths under Howe is counter-attacking. And their squad has been compiled to excel at this, even more so with the signing of Elanga who is like the modern-day Walcott in style.
And the way I think of counter-attacking is like how the heart functions. The heart contains blood (speed - Gordon & Elanga) but the blood (speed) also needs to flow in the right direction for the heart function to be effective. For this, the heart has valves which direct the blood forwards at the right time and in the right direction to allow the blood to flow out of the heart. Counter-attacks need their own valves - I call them counter-attack conductors who direct the flow of the counter-attack in the right direction and allow the speed to be released appropriately. To direct the flow of a counter-attack, you need the IQ to be able to spot where the space or overload is and also have the ability to escape your marker in order to give yourself the space to release the speed in your attack. Isak did both with his IQ to change the direction of the counter-attack to the right area and then manipulate the ball accordingly at speed. Woltemade can escape his man due to a combination of his large frame bouncing them back to goal and his top close control to turn his marker. He has high potential as a counter-attack conductor.
As a side note, the final aspect of heart function/counter-attacking is the heart muscle contracting and pumping the blood with enough force out of the heart. In counter-attacking terms, I believe this is a team having enough quality passers to fuel the counter-attack. This is another area Newcastle can improve in with Trippierβs decline, Bruno GuimarΓ£es needs additional help in this regard which is why I would like to have seen a Paqueta type midfielder signed as a creative passer.
And they said Klopp disrespected the AFCON tournament... Shameful act of cutting to commercial DURING PLAY! Just lost 2 minutes of the match π‘ #beinsportsextra#AFCON2021
a big funding announcement feels good because it:
- validates your ideas
- proves competence
- signals talent and other investors
The only antidote is realizing VCs and peers aren't your customers. Money won't save you and talent won't figure out your problems for you
@MinaFootball & @rajsinghchohan. Not sure why any club has not approached them to be part of their player data and insights staff. Both are knowledgeable and bridge the gap between vision and execution. I learn a lot from them
Today is the perfect day to call a VC, ask for their take on DeepSeek, wait until they finish talking, then sigh, say βyou are truly lostβ and hang up.
radical idea. get like 9 officials on VAR but put them in separate rooms.
then get them to vote on the decision alone & send their answer to a mediator who tallies the score & sends the decision to the ref.
remove psychological / group influence. up sample size. reduce variance
The beauty of the medical profession is the way it forces you to evolve your way of thinking. The way I thought 2 years ago is not the same way I think now. I have greater experience for A) pattern recognition to diagnose, B) of how the presentation of conditions vary from person to person. As an example, the textbooks teach you that a pain in the flank area of your abdomen (along with other infective symptoms) is very likely to be a kidney infection. I quickly learnt to stop thinking so rigidly like this after a patient instead had a gall bladder infection with flank plain.
Now Iβll give you an example in football on Ugarte, where I used to simply brand him as βa good ball-winnerβ
However what is the context of this ball-winning ? Volume is not the be-all and end-all. The key thing Iβve learnt in the last year for DMs is judging the risk vs reward of going into duels mostly well. This is ironically what made peak Casemiro an all-time great DM.