Company Formation & Support

The process of launching a new company takes about five weeks. After formation, we continue to support the company by leading the CEO search, helping companies gain traction, and guiding the fundraising process.

Formation Process

The company formation process begins once the founder(s) have signed the Founder Offer Letter. OCV will initiate the legal incorporation process, bank account setup, and set up core business systems and equipment.

OCV manages the process end-to-end and will notify founders when they have action items to complete. It typically takes a minimum of 6 weeks to complete the company formation process.

1

Legal incorporation

The legal incorporation process takes 2-3 weeks from the day founders sign their engagement letter. The process includes drafting and executing formation legal documents, receiving an Employer Identification Number (EIN), and filing the IRS letter required for a bank account application. It typically takes about two weeks to finalize legal documents, and a week for DE filing.

Founders will establish their domain (purchase or transfer) at this stage. OCV will transfer existing domain names to the company, if applicable. Founders can start building their website at this stage.

2

Banking and equity funding

Bank account setup and funding take 1-2 weeks from the day we receive the company's EIN and IRS letter. An EIN is required for bank account setup. Founders may be required to complete KYC steps for the bank account application.

It typically takes three days for bank account setup, one day for common share purchases, and two days for SAFE funding. Common shares must be purchased by OCV and the founders before OCV SAFE funding. Founders will file their 83b Election to the IRS and confirm with the Legal Team within 30 days of the common share purchase.

3

Corporate credit card and EOR setup

Corporate credit card and employer of record (EOR) setup takes 1-2 weeks from the day the bank account is funded. Founders may be required to complete KYC steps for a corporate credit card. Founders will need to sign the EOR contract and complete founder onboarding in the EOR system.

4

Core business systems setup

Systems access happens concurrently with other formation steps. Founders typically get access to administrative-related systems (digital workspace, email, internal messaging) the week after signing their offer letter. Banking, equity, and people management systems access will follow setup.

Formation fees

OCV may incur certain startup expenses on the Company’s behalf during the formation process. Incurred expenses will be reimbursed to OCV at cost. Amounts should be minimal unless a special domain purchase was required. Once the Company’s finance systems are set up, all expenses will be billed to the Company directly. OCV will invoice companies for reimbursement for actual costs incurred.

We do not charge companies any fees.

Applying to YC

We encourage all of our portfolio companies to apply to Y Combinator (YC). If you get accepted to YC, we'll increase the founders’ equity stakes by 10% from your current holding.

Sid and Rich both went through YC, and Rich returned to YC years later as a visiting partner. It is a big part of our DNA, and we know how much value it can add to a company.

Many of OCV’s founders aren’t looking to start companies when we first reach out. We become the virtual co-founder that enables you to focus on building, often starting with increasing the velocity of your contributions to the OSS. We then help get the company into a shape and trajectory that can attract YC and other investors. We believe that companies that go through YC are, on average, 100% more valuable in their next fundraising round, and we think you will benefit from the experience and network for the rest of your life.

Post-external funding

After a company raises its Seed round, we step down from active board participation and transition to a monthly touchpoint cadence with ad hoc support as needed. This "out of the nest" milestone signals the company is ready to scale independently. Post-Seed OCV companies retain access to OCV resources.