Darren Marble has spent years arguing that the wall between entertainment and investment need not exist, and that tearing down that wall could actually make private capital formation more transparent, not less.
Marble Founder and CEO Going Publicjoined ICAN public servers Nick Morgan, Mark HiraideAnd Dara Albright To make this case on the latest episode of the Capital Ideas podcast. Going Public is an interactive publishing platform built on this. Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF) and Editing A+ (Reg A) offerings where viewers can watch companies raise capital in real-time and invest alongside the story directly on the platform.
At first glance, the concept seems simple: combining media, entrepreneurship and investment into a single experience.
But underlying this idea is a much larger debate about whether retail participation, investor choice and capital formation are entering a fundamentally different era.
In recent years, ordinary investors have largely participated in growth stories only after companies have reached public markets, often long after the period of greatest value creation has occurred. Venture capital, private equity and private offerings remained primarily available to institutions and accredited investors.
But Marble pointed to a shift that may be hidden in plain sight.
One of the most revealing moments of modern capital formation was not the IPO boom. It was the ICO boom.
No matter how one looks at the results of the 2017 cryptocurrency fundraising cycle, it showed something markets couldn’t ignore: Retail’s appetite for growth investing was stronger than most thought.
This demand seems particularly strong among younger generations.
Today’s investors have grown up in a world shaped by digital communities, creative economies, social platforms and direct engagement. They are used to interacting with brands rather than passively consuming them.
Marble suggested that this behavioral shift could eventually reshape investing itself.
Young investors increasingly want more than brokerage access. They want opportunities to connect with founders, gain visibility into building companies, and get involved earlier.
They want investment advantage.
This is where Going Public tries something different.
Historically, retail investment programs did not exist because entertainment and securities regulations operated in completely separate worlds.
Traditional fundraising has been done behind closed doors through roadshows, private meetings, and curated promotions.
Going Public strives to connect the entrepreneur directly to the retail investor through modern publishing platforms.
Critics sometimes argue that combining entertainment and investing risks “gamifying” finance.
But Marble offered a different perspective: Storytelling can increase transparency rather than decrease it.
Traditional fundraising often limits investors to flashy decks, curated metrics, and brief management presentations.
Conversely, following founders as they deal with uncertainty, disruptions, pressure, and execution challenges can provide investors with knowledge and insight not available through traditional deal marketing channels.
Viewed this way, storytelling becomes less about marketing and more about due diligence.
More importantly, it was emphasized during the meeting that expanding access alone is not enough.
Deal quality remains essential.
Democratized investing should not mean offering more opportunities to retail investors just for the sake of participation. Access without quality leads to disappointment and the erosion of trust.
Long-term success depends on creating environments where investors can evaluate legitimate opportunities with sufficient information to make informed decisions.
This naturally leads to some of the most difficult policy questions in capital markets: Who should determine the terms of the agreement; issuers or investors? Who is best equipped to assess investment risk: investors or the government?
Regulators often justify restrictions on the grounds that investor protection is necessary. But Marble and the Capital Ideas team explored whether limiting access could have unintended consequences by pushing investors to less transparent alternatives or preventing participation altogether.
Risk is inherent in investing.
The strongest form of investor protection may not always be prohibition. There can be transparency.
Going Public points to a future where consumers become stakeholders, audiences become communities, and investment is embedded in mainstream culture.
Time will tell whether this future will come quickly or gradually. But one thing is becoming increasingly clear: Retail investors are no longer content to watch wealth creation from the sidelines. And they want more than front row seats.
As “investors,” they not only want to invest in the companies whose products they consume, they also want to help shape the stories that make up those companies.
Nick Morgan He is the President and Founder ICAN, Investor Choice Lawyers Networkis a nonprofit public interest litigation organization dedicated to serving as a legal advocate and voice for everyday investors and entrepreneurs. He was previously a partner in the Investigations and White Collar Defense Group. Paul Hastings law firm. Morgan previously served as Senior Litigation Counsel in the SEC’s Enforcement Division. Capital Ideas It is a series created by Morgan and Dara Albright.
