This took me years to understand...

Hi,

Welcome to your no-BS guide to raising capital.

If you don't already know me, I'm James, the founder of FundOnion and the writer of this newsletter.

I've been hearing people talk about "playing the long game" everywhere lately. And honestly, it's something I think about constantly.

Right now at FundOnion, we're deep in our own version of this. We want to become a global leader in SME financing over the next few years. But that means we're currently in the unglamorous phase - building systems, creating infrastructure, placing bets on products with zero immediate payoff. It's all investment right now with no applause or quick wins.

Some days I wonder if we should've just stuck with what was already working. But here's the thing: the best outcomes usually happen when you're willing to build something before anyone else can see it.

Which brings me to this week's breakdown - Duolingo's capital raise. They're the perfect case study for this approach. Before they became the world's most addictive language app, they were just burning through cash for years with barely any revenue.

But it was completely intentional. They knew that charging users early would kill their growth before it started. So they focused on one thing: making their product impossible to quit. By the time they finally introduced paid features, they had 300 million people who were genuinely addicted to their daily streaks.

That patience paid off massively - and there's a lot we can learn from how they pulled it off.

Here are 4 things you can steal from Duolingo's playbook and use in your own business:

1/ Get real proof, not just gut feeling: Don't mistake passion for validation. Sure, you need to believe in what you're building, but belief without evidence is just wishful thinking. Look for actual user behaviour - are people coming back? Are they using it regularly? Are they sticking around? Those numbers tell the real story, not your excitement about the idea.

2/ Your industry decides the rules, not startup gurus: Software companies can give stuff away for free because it costs nothing to serve one more user. A restaurant can't. A manufacturing business can't. Every industry has different economics, competition, and customer behaviour. Stop following one-size-fits-all advice and follow the math of your specific business instead.

3/ Ignore the noise, watch what people actually do: Angry comments and social media outrage don't predict business success. People complain about changes, then keep using the product anyway. Focus on the boring stuff that actually matters - retention rates, usage patterns, churn numbers. Behaviour beats opinions every time.

4/ Build the engine first, worry about the money later: If your business model allows it, focus on creating something people can't live without before you focus on extracting cash from them. Duolingo proved that when you get the fundamentals right, the revenue follows naturally. But this only works if your economics support it.

Duolingo's story is simple: build something people genuinely need, then figure out how to get paid for it. The timing matters more than the speed.

Thanks for allowing me into your inbox every week.

Starting next week, these newsletters will be delivered from a new domain as we continue to upgrade our systems. When you receive that first email, I'd really appreciate a quick reply - it helps ensure smooth delivery and lets me know you're still finding value in these insights.

I've also created a dedicated resource page that consolidates everything I know about capital raising. 

Most founders approach fundraising like it's some mystical process, making critical mistakes that only show up months later. But here's what I've discovered: everything in capital raising comes down to one fundamental concept.

Once you understand this core principle, most of the noise and confusion disappears. The resource page breaks it down with clear frameworks and practical guidance - no hype, just the clarity you need to approach fundraising strategically.

If you're ready to treat capital raising as a learnable skill rather than a guessing game, check out the resource page and join the community of founders who actually get it.

Talk soon,

James