Funding Sources

After setting up their investment profile, the investor chooses how they will pay for their investments. This is their "funding source" -- the method by which money will move from the investor to the SPV.

There are four funding methods on the platform:

Bank Pull (ACH)

This is the most common funding method. The investor links their bank account, and when they invest, the platform automatically pulls (debits) the funds from that account.

How Bank Linking Works

1. The investor clicks "Link Bank Account" during onboarding
2. A secure Plaid window opens (Plaid is a trusted third-party service that connects to banks)
3. The investor selects their bank and logs in with their banking credentials
4. Plaid securely shares the bank account details with the platform
5. The bank account is created on the platform and set as the default for the investor's profile

The investor can also enter their bank details manually (routing number and account number) instead of using Plaid.

Bank Registration

After a bank account is linked, it must be registered with the payment provider before it can be used for payments. This registration happens automatically in the background. The bank account has a "transfer status" that tracks this:

An investor can link multiple bank accounts but each profile has one default bank account that is used for new investments.

Bank Account Status

Separately from the transfer status, each bank account has an overall status:

A bank account cannot be deleted if it is currently being used by any active (non-cancelled, non-refunded) investment.

Wire Transfer

Wire transfer is a manual payment method -- the investor sends a wire through their own bank after making an investment. No bank linking is required during onboarding.

How It Works

1. During onboarding, the investor selects "Wire" as their funding source
2. No additional setup is needed -- there is no bank to link
3. When the investor makes an investment, the system creates an Expected Payment and sends them a link to view wire instructions
4. The investor logs into the portal and sees the destination routing number, account number, and reference code
5. The investor initiates the wire through their bank using those details

Important: Wire instructions are never sent directly in email. For security (to prevent wire fraud), the investor must log into the portal to view the banking details. The email they receive only contains a link.

When Wire Is Common

• Larger investments where the investor prefers to control the transfer
• International investors whose banks may not support ACH
• Investors who prefer not to link their bank account through Plaid

DAF Wallet (Managed Wallet)

DAF investors whose profiles have a provisioned managed wallet use a dedicated virtual account on the platform. Instead of sending money externally, funds are held in the wallet and transferred internally when the investor commits to a deal.

How It Works

1. An admin provisions a managed wallet for a DAF profile (this creates a virtual account through the payment provider)
2. The DAF sponsor deposits funds into the wallet
3. When the investor makes an investment, the platform transfers funds from the wallet to the SPV's virtual account
4. The investor can view their wallet balance on the platform -- it refreshes automatically and can also be refreshed on demand

Key Details

• Each managed wallet is locked to a single DAF profile -- it cannot be shared across profiles or investors. When making an investment, the system enforces this lock: a wallet can only be used as the funding source for the profile it was provisioned for.
• The wallet balance is kept current through three mechanisms: a daily sync refreshes all active virtual account balances from the payment provider; an event-driven sync refreshes the balance automatically when payment webhooks arrive (e.g., a payment completes or fails); and admins can trigger an on-demand refresh from the admin panel.
• If the wallet has insufficient funds, the investment cannot proceed until the balance is topped up
• DAF investors with a managed wallet do not need to link a bank account

When a DAF Profile Has No Wallet

If a managed wallet has not been provisioned for a DAF profile, the profile falls back to external funding (the DAF sponsor sends funds directly, the same way IRA investors work).

External

External funding is used when a third party sends the funds on behalf of the investor. This applies to IRA investors and DAF investors whose profiles do not have a managed wallet.

IRA Investments

The investor's IRA custodian (e.g. Fidelity, Charles Schwab) sends the funds via wire. The investor typically instructs their custodian to make the transfer, and the custodian handles the actual money movement. After investing, the investor downloads a custodian documentation packet (containing the PPM, operating agreement, subscription agreement, and wire instructions) and forwards it to their custodian to initiate the wire.

DAF Investments (Without Managed Wallet)

If no managed wallet has been provisioned, the investor's DAF sponsoring organization sends the funds externally. The investor makes a grant recommendation to their DAF, and the sponsor processes the transfer.

Automatic Setup

For IRA profiles, the funding source is automatically set to "external" during onboarding. For DAF profiles, the funding source is set to "managed_wallet" if a wallet exists, or "external" otherwise. In both cases, the investor does not see the bank linking step -- it is skipped entirely.

What Admins Should Know

• Bank transfer status matters -- if an investor's payment isn't going through, check whether their bank account's transfer status is "registered." If it's still "pending" or "failed," the payment cannot be processed.
• Investors can have multiple bank accounts -- but only the default one on their profile is used for new investments.
• Wire investors don't link banks -- if you're looking for a wire investor's bank account in the system, there won't be one. Wire payments come in to the SPV's Virtual Account and are matched via Expected Payments.
• IRA funding is always external -- don't expect to see ACH payment orders for IRA investors. Their funds come in as wires from the custodian.
• DAF funding depends on wallet provisioning -- DAF investors with a managed wallet use internal transfers. DAF investors without a wallet rely on external funding from their sponsor.
• Managed wallets are profile-locked -- each wallet belongs to exactly one DAF profile. If a DAF investor has multiple profiles, each needs its own wallet.
• Disabling a bank account blocks new payments from that account but does not affect already-completed payments.