Black Unicorn Factory is a pre-IPO startup accelerator and venture capital firm founded in 2020 that focuses on supporting underrepresented entrepreneurs and early-stage companies. The company operates a breakthrough equity crowdsourcing platform called Follow Me For Equity (FMFE), which rewards individuals—especially college students and young professionals—with monetizable equity in high-growth startups for performing online and social media engagement tasks. BUF has positioned itself as the largest Black-owned venture capital firm by volume of startups funded and serves a portfolio of over 150 startups positioned for IPO.
Black Unicorn Factory is publicly traded
Listed directly on July 31, 2025
This company is no longer available on our private secondary market. Shares can be traded publicly under its listed ticker.
Company data and valuation marks are estimates and may be incomplete, stale, erroneous, or revised.
Founded
2020
Total Funding
$645M
2 rounds
Last Private Valuation
$6.1B
May 2021
Total raised $645M across 2 rounds
Funding data and valuation marks are estimates and may be incomplete, stale, erroneous, or revised.
Last updated 08-14-2026
| Date | Round | Amount Raised | Valuation | Lead Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2021 | Series B | $420M | $6.1B | BarterVentures |
| October 2020 | Series A | $225M | — |
Johnny Stewart
Founder & President
Black Unicorn Factory has an amended Form S-1 on file with the SEC (February 2026) covering a proposed direct listing of 77,368,436 existing common shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol BLKS, at a stated reference price of $154 per share. The resale is not underwritten on a firm-commitment basis and no proceeds go to the company; the registration also states that the company has ceased offering new equity-based investment opportunities in its pre-IPO program companies. The filing follows the company's announcement of an independently appraised $18 billion valuation as of July 31, 2025 by Transaction Capital LLC, a figure sourced to company press releases and one the filing's own reference price and share count imply at roughly $11.9 billion; the listing remains subject to SEC and Nasdaq review and no trading has commenced.
Black Unicorn Factory shares can be purchased through any standard brokerage account — including Fidelity, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, and online platforms like Robinhood or E*TRADE. Search for the ticker to place an order.
Black Unicorn Factory went public in July 31, 2025 via direct_listing, with an offering valuation of approximately $6.1B. Black Unicorn Factory has an amended Form S-1 on file with the SEC (February 2026) covering a proposed direct listing of 77,368,436 existing common shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol BLKS, at a stated reference price of $154 per share. The resale is not underwritten on a firm-commitment basis and no proceeds go to the company; the registration also states that the company has ceased offering new equity-based investment opportunities in its pre-IPO program companies. The filing follows the company's announcement of an independently appraised $18 billion valuation as of July 31, 2025 by Transaction Capital LLC, a figure sourced to company press releases and one the filing's own reference price and share count imply at roughly $11.9 billion; the listing remains subject to SEC and Nasdaq review and no trading has commenced.
Black Unicorn Factory raised $645M across 2 disclosed funding rounds prior to its public listing.
Black Unicorn Factory was founded by Johnny Stewart in 2020.
Black Unicorn Factory is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, United States.
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