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StartEngine

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North Carolina
1 review
6 helpful votes
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AML check takes months
October 30, 2021

Took them 3 months to run an AML check on my LLC for trading in their secondary market. During that time they held my $ and froze those from being transferred back to the original source account. Rather interesting that when I suggested that the SEC be called in to investigate that approval came through. Oh and the toll free number for the company points people to their email address. Very kindergarten like operation. Would have 1 star except their customer service emails are polite while lacking anything useful in content.
Update: Their response was to an issue still creeping into their management of the data customers upload. 3 times a different company's IRS form was associated with my company and stalled the AML. More recently they updated their trading policies page and wanted me to enter my name to acknowledge. However their 'bots' can't seem to associate my name or the company name with the account. Took 2 weeks for them to respond to my request for help. Email is not a way to operate a help desk.

Date of experience: October 30, 2021
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

Hi Lee, We asked you to get on the phone to discuss with our CTO and provide more information but never heard back. There is no way to download a document of this nature from our site, but should you wish to Zoom with our CTO the offer stands. We have not received an email from you subsequent to this offer to Zoom. Thank you.

Florida
2 reviews
9 helpful votes
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Bad investment fo me
April 21, 2023

When reading your purchase agreement you're screwed. The contract says its for long-term investors. Who knows what long-term means? Start Engine says I can sell them myself but you never know the value good luck. Who would buy something useless? You will go around in circles trying to see the progress I give up. I have seven certificates This is my interpretation. Any good help would be appreciated that is not confusing.

Date of experience: April 21, 2023
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

Hi Victor. We are sorry to hear that you have not had a good experience with our platform. We encourage our investors to read the agreements, our FAQ, and other resources prior to investing as startup investing can be risky. If you want to learn more about investing in startups and the potential outcomes, you can check out the articles at www.startengine.com/blog/investing-in-startups-101 and help.startengine.com​.

California
1 review
21 helpful votes
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Rip off Scam
January 13, 2023

Mr. Wonderful should be sitting in jail with the crypto Bahamas guy. You give start engine money and then…. Nothing. No communication, not trade able, no communications from the so called start up you put money in, the money is gone. $5000 into some company called graze whose only communication was to send me an email saying they contracted out to some other company to track who owned what shares. Useless hope they are enjoying my money. I'll never see it again. I hope the Californian AG starts an investigation into this scam.

Date of experience: January 13, 2023
Minnesota
1 review
8 helpful votes
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I invested two years ago. Can't get my money out. I thought that it would be a safe investment since Kevin O'Leary was involved. Getting in on the ground floor sounded like a great opportunity. Now it says 5-10 years. I have not seen any growth. No potential upside. Just money stuck in limbo. BUYER BEWARE. Has anyone been seen growth?

Date of experience: June 26, 2022
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

Hi Mary, I apologize for any confusion over the nature of the type of investments on our platform. When investors create an account with us, they acknowledge that they have read our educational materials, which describe that these investments are high risk and illiquid with no guarantee of future returns. To learn more, we encourage you to check out our help center (https://help.startengine.com), or reach out to our support team at contact@startengine.com.

Wisconsin
1 review
33 helpful votes
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Scam
December 13, 2020

I invested as a ordinary person wanted to invest in a start up company gave them 275 dollars for 100 shares and 10 percent bonus on ally my investment ally i got was a page with my name and no investment sent several emails and they keep telling me i didn't invest. They have a phone number, that directs you to email them. But you never speak to a live person. With the kind of money that is being given you would think they would have live support so these issues can be address the screwed me out of my money which I am still trying to recover

Date of experience: December 13, 2020
California
1 review
11 helpful votes
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Please don't use this company and they use to be good, but now is very very bad, it's all about startengine and keep holds funds once money raised. Give any excuse for delay reimbursement. I make a big mistake to use them.

Date of experience: July 4, 2022
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

Thank you for sharing your feedback Vincent. We regret to hear the experience you have had. The final disbursement has been issued this last week and they will be sending over a final reconciliation report. If you have any questions, we recommend reaching out to your Campaign Manager directly and they will ensure your issues are taken care of promptly.

Texas
1 review
66 helpful votes
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Stay away
April 6, 2020

Highly fraudulent, stay away do not invest with Start Engine, made the mistake to invest with them on Commerce AI and after a whole week the funds are nowhere to be found. My bank account reflect that the wire transfer was made. Customer service gives me the run around.

Date of experience: April 6, 2020
Florida
1 review
13 helpful votes
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I invested $1,000 in a company (less than 10% of my income per year like guidelines) and after 5 weeks Start Engine sent an email that they are sending my money back and closing my account without a reason of why. When I asked, I had no clarification. I have not received my $1,035.00 back as of yet and I am getting VERY concerned.

Date of experience: May 4, 2022
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

We have confirmed your refund was successfully processed, though if you have any further issues, please let us know.

Tennessee
1 review
5 helpful votes
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I dont make much so Why would I think the Shark guy would care about the very small ppl. I only invested a little because that's all i had. Now im out of that. Then to use my favorite player for the ad? I just feel stupid for even trying.

Date of experience: July 30, 2022
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

I apologize for any confusion over the nature of the type of investments on our platform. When investors create an account with us, they acknowledge that they have read our educational materials, which describe that these investments are high risk and illiquid with no guarantee of future returns. To learn more, we encourage you to check out our Help Center (https://help.startengine.com), or reach out to our support team directly at: contact@startengine.com

Florida
1 review
22 helpful votes
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Horrible Customer Service
February 23, 2021

They have some interesting offerings but they are just horrible to deal with. First, no responses to phone calls. Then, they would no longer accept phone messages and you would need to email them. Five days later, three emails and no response on a specific issue of payment. There are many other platforms and if customer service means anything to you, especially if you are a company making an offering on their site, I would look elsewhere.

Date of experience: February 23, 2021
StartEngine T. StartEngine Rep
over a year old

Hi Theodore, I'm sorry to hear you had this experience. We are offering customer service via e-mail due to everyone working remotely. We apologize for any inconvenience caused. I am not Please drop us a line at contact@startengine.com and we will be happy to resolve any concerns you may still have. Best, The StartEngine Team

Overview

StartEngine has a rating of 2.7 stars from 182 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers dissatisfied with StartEngine most frequently mention customer service, phone number and email address. StartEngine ranks 2nd among Crowd Funding sites.

service
79
value
74
shipping
12
returns
16
quality
69
This company responds to reviews on average within 1 day