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April 7, 2025
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‍We Built a Startup. We’re Shutting it Down. Here’s What Happened.

Hello friends!

We want to give a huge thank you to all of you who’ve been with us on our entrepreneurship adventure. Your support has meant so much.

A reminder of where we are:

  • Left our comfy corporate jobs mid-career
  • Did a lot of market finding and testing and more testing
  • Built and launched a bootstrapped software business as first-time entrepreneurs - real fast!
  • And we jumped into the wild world of government compliance—oops? You can see where this is going. 

That brings us to today. Over the past months, we’ve been working on software to help businesses with the Corporate Transparency Act. But there have been more legal twists and turns than we ever would have thought—think Supreme Court opinions, injunctions popping up and disappearing… need a snapshot? Here’s a quick look at the legal stops and starts that brought us here. 

📘 Corporate Transparency Act: Key Enforcement Timeline (feel free to skim, you'll get the point)

🔹 Jan 1, 2021
 The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was enacted as part of the NDAA.
→ ⚠️ Unclear (Reporting rules still in development)

🔹 Sep 30, 2022
 FinCEN published the final rule outlining who must report and what data is required.
→ ✅ Reporting Required (starting Jan 1, 2024)

🔹 Jan 1, 2024
 CTA’s beneficial ownership reporting requirement officially takes effect; FinCEN’s system opens.
→ ✅ Reporting Required

🔹 Dec 3, 2024
 A federal judge issues a nationwide injunction blocking enforcement of the CTA.
→ ❌ Not Required

🔹 Dec 23, 2024
 Fifth Circuit stays the injunction, reinstating the CTA reporting rule temporarily.
→ ✅ Reporting Required

🔹 Dec 26, 2024
 Appeals court vacates stay, reimposing the block on CTA enforcement nationwide.
→ ❌ Not Required

🔹 Jan 7, 2025
 A second federal judge issues a separate injunction halting CTA enforcement.
→ ❌ Not Required

🔹 Jan 23, 2025
 U.S. Supreme Court lifts one injunction, but another remains in effect.
→ ❌ Not Required

🔹 Feb 19, 2025
 FinCEN announces a new March 21 deadline if injunctions are lifted.
→ ⚠️ Unclear

🔹 Mar 2, 2025
 Treasury officially suspends BOI enforcement for all U.S. companies and citizens.
→ ❌ Not Required

🔹 Mar 21, 2025
 FinCEN formally amends the rule: only foreign entities must report, excluding U.S. citizens.
→ ❌ Not Required

Shut it down

The many red x’s in recent months tell you all you need to know. On top of the judicial roller coaster, the Trump administration decided not to enforce the law for US companies (like 99% of the market)—and we’ve realized it’s time to close up shop. Plus, the government shut down the reporting API, which kind of sealed the deal.

What's next

If you're curious about the highs, lows, and comedic failures—we’ve got all of those. Follow along for the full series. In the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing some of the lessons we’ve learned—think of it as a “what not to do” guide. Hopefully, you’ll find them useful, or at least a little bit entertaining hearing about our misadventures. A sampler of topics I will cover:

  • How not to use Google Ads as a small business
  • How we built this (with AI)
  • How do you actually shut down a business
  • And more!

As for what’s next, I’m still figuring that out. I’ve been living and breathing AI and product building for the last year or so, and I’d love to continue that path. Maybe I’ll dive into another business or head back to a regular job. If anyone has an interesting opportunity, feel free to reach out!

Thanks again for being part of the journey so far. I’m excited to see what’s next—and I hope you’ll stick around to find out. Stay tuned and stay in touch!