StartEngine CEO Howard Marks recently conveyed an odd message for a market downturn. 

While many big players like Apple Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. are downsizing, StartEngine might be looking to acquire other companies again. This most recent announcement comes on the heels of StartEngine’s recent acquisition of SeedInvest, another leading equity crowdfunding platform.

StartEngine is currently the largest equity crowdfunding portal in the U.S. and, following the acquisition, boasts a respectable 1.7 million users.

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Following the initial SeedInvest acquisition, Marks said they were just getting started because StartEngine is “going on the offensive.” Marks didn’t make this assertion lightly, as another announcement this week is encouraging its investors to comment on what StartEngine’s next acquisition target should be on its raise page.

While many other significantly larger companies are laying off employees, StartEngine is seemingly ramping up. This move is also counter-cyclical to the rest of the venture capital world as Crunchbase recently reported a staggering 50% decline in venture capital funding year-over-year in October.

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