Mainshares (now American Operator) vs CapitalPad
Where to look when your deal needs outside equity?
Mainshares (now American Operator)
Formerly the Mainshares marketplace where self-funded searchers raised acquisition equity from 1,300+ accredited investors; it rebranded to American Operator in December 2025 and pivoted to buying $2-7M businesses outright with its own cash, installing vetted operators as salaried CEOs with 10% day-one equity and a buy-up path to majority ownership. All mainshares.com pages now redirect to americanoperator.com, and the old equity-raising service is no longer offered to new searchers.
Custom pricing · Pricing not published. Vendor-published economics: American Operator funds the acquisition all-cash from its balance sheet and holds 90% at close; the operator receives 10% ownership on day one plus "full salary and benefits" (no figures disclosed) and earns/buys toward majority over an unpublished timeline; board advisors must invest a minimum of $25K for common equity. Acquisition box: $2-7M enterprise value, $3-10M+ revenue, roughly $950K+ adjusted EBITDA. FAQs titled "Is an upfront investment required?" and "Do I sign a personal guarantee?" exist on the become-an-owner page but their answers are not in the public page text.
- Removes the biggest self-funded search barriers for qualified operators: American Operator funds the acquisition all-cash off its own balance sheet, so no SBA loan, equity raise, or search capital is needed from the operator
- Real institutional footing: ~97-100 business transitions worth $300M+ claimed since 2022 (including legacy Mainshares deals), venture backing from 8VC and others, and a stated long-term public-listing plan
- Published, specific acquisition criteria ($2-7M TEV, $3-10M+ revenue, ~$950K+ adjusted EBITDA, trades/B2B services/distribution/light manufacturing) make it easy to self-assess fit before applying
- The product ETA searchers knew Mainshares for — raising gap equity from its 1,300-1,500 accredited investor network for YOUR deal — was discontinued with the December 2025 rebrand; every old Mainshares page now redirects and the affiliated broker-dealer site (mainstreetsecurities.net) no longer resolves
- You start as a 10% minority owner reporting to a board, with American Operator holding 90%; buy-up mechanics, valuation method, and timeline to majority are not published (third-party sources suggest 7-10 years)
- No numbers published for operator salary, fees, buyback pricing, or whether an upfront operator investment is required — key FAQ answers are hidden behind a sales conversation
Verified Jul 10, 2026 · Full review →
CapitalPad
Deal-by-deal co-investment platform that pools accredited investors into a single SPV to fill the equity gap in SMB acquisitions led by self-funded searchers and independent sponsors. Searchers with a deal under LOI (roughly $1M+ EBITDA, US/Canada) apply; approved deals are shown to CapitalPad's investor network, which typically writes a combined $500K–$2.5M equity check delivered as one subscription, one wire, and one cap-table entry.
Success fee · Free for searchers/sponsors: "Sponsors pay nothing at any stage: your closing fee, management fee, and promote stay yours" — no placement, advisory, success, closing, or participation fees, including if the deal dies (per capitalpad.com/raise/ and /self-funded-search/). CapitalPad is paid from the investor side: investors pay a one-time 1.5% administration fee at funding (no annual management fee) plus 20% carried interest, charged only after investors receive their full capital back. Investor minimum $25,000 per deal (accredited only); institutional direct positions $750K+. Indirect cost to searchers: investors expect market-standard terms (preferred return commonly ~10–12%, possible step-up/carry), so this is priced equity, not cheap money.
- Genuinely free for the searcher at every stage — no placement, closing, or success fees, even if the deal falls apart; CapitalPad earns from investor-side carry instead
- Single-SPV mechanics: one subscription doc, one wire, one cap-table line instead of coordinating a dozen individual investors before close
- Built around real self-funded/SBA deal structures — pages explicitly address SBA 7(a) stacks, 10% equity injections, and personal guarantees — with an initial fit read in 2–3 business days
- Mandate floor of about $1M EBITDA ($5M–$30M enterprise value) excludes most sub-$2M SBA deals — a large share of this directory's core audience is simply too small for CapitalPad
- Highly selective and not a guaranteed raise: fewer than 5% of reviewed deals are presented to investors, and presentation still is not a funding commitment
- Investor money comes with market-standard sponsor economics (preferred return commonly quoted at 10–12%, possible step-ups) — meaningfully more expensive than friends-and-family equity
Verified Jul 10, 2026 · Full review →
Our take
Choose Mainshares if you want a structured operator-investor ecosystem around the raise, accepting the platform shape that comes with it.
Choose CapitalPad for a lighter marketplace connection between searchers and accredited investors — more self-directed, less wrapper.