Attorney, entrepreneur, and policy leader Ashley D. Bell is building Redemption Bank, a modern Minority Depository Institution designed to give founders something Silicon Valley rarely does: non-dilutive capital that preserves ownership.

With experience spanning the SBA, the White House, and co-founding the National Black Bank Foundation with Dr. Bernice A. King (daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), Ashley is fusing community banking, MDI syndication, and fintech infrastructure into a new model of founder finance.

In this episode, we break down how to use banks—not just VCs—to extend runway, stabilize cash cycles, and raise without giving up equity.

What We Cover

• Why Redemption Bank: the market gaps MDIs can uniquely fill—credit where venture dollars don’t reach
• Debt > Dilution (sometimes): picking the right facility (LOC, equipment, AR, revenue-based) for your stage
• Underwriting that sees your business: when ARR, AR aging, and cohorts matter more than FICO
• Syndication & Scale: how MDIs partner to increase check sizes without predatory terms
• Treasury as RevOps: banking tools that speed collections, reduce working-capital drag
• Signals & Stakeholders: why banking with a mission brand opens doors (enterprise, municipal, talent)
• Playbook: the 30-day path to “bank-ready” for early-stage companies

Chapters

1. 00:00 Introduction to Modern Banking and Treasury
2. 05:42 Ashley Bell's Journey to Redemption Bank
3. 11:08 The Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
4. 16:11 Redemption Bank's Unique Approach to Banking
5. 20:15 The Importance of Role Models in Entrepreneurship
6. 26:36 Reimagining Banking for Modern Founders
7. 34:25 Building Community and Trust in Banking

Ashley D. Bell

Co-Founder, Chairman & CEO of Redemption Bank. A former SBA Regional Administrator and White House policy advisor, he co-founded the National Black Bank Foundation with Dr. Bernice A. King to channel capital into underserved communities. As an attorney and entrepreneur, he’s focused on building a scalable, tech-forward MDI that expands access to responsible credit for founders and small businesses.

Who Should Listen

• Founders exploring non-dilutive options (SaaS, e-comm, services)
• Operators/finance leads responsible for cash conversion cycles
• Angels/seed investors advising portco’s on runway without dilution
• Ecosystem builders interested in MDIs, community finance, and equitable growth

Music Credit

“Neptuno” – Phondupe (Album: Onykia)

Access All Areas.

Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTube

Subscribe: Substack

Community & Events: Founders Circle

Connect: LinkedIn

Socials: TikTok || Instagram || X

Web: startupsdecoded.com

94 percent of sports-science research excludes female physiology.

The result? A $10 billion fitness industry that burns women out, leads to injury, and disrupts hormonal health.

Lizzy Palmer, Founder and CEO of SyncN, is changing that. SyncN is the first cycle-aware fitness and nutrition platform that personalizes training and nourishment around women’s hormonal rhythms — used by athletes, creators, and founders who want performance without burnout.

Sponsored by Cherub

In this conversation, Lizzy unpacks:

• How SyncN helps founders align health with high performance — designing systems for consistency, not guilt.
• The hidden toll of fundraising — what chronic stress does to founders’ energy, hormones, and focus, and how to lead without self-erasure.
• Scaling through partnerships — how SyncN’s growth strategy ties mission to distribution through gyms, coaches, and women’s health platforms.

What a free 6-month trial on SyncN?*

Visit the SyncN Linktree and use the word Decoded” to unlock a Startups Decoded exclusive trial today. (Conditions apply)

Disclosure: Andy Walsh serves as an advisor to SyncN. The views expressed here are my own and not influenced by my advisory role.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Health and Wellness for Founders

01:21 Lizzy’s Journey: From Dance to FemTech

04:37 The Gap in Female Health Research

09:10 Understanding Female Physiology and Hormones

13:16 Training Female Athletes: The Importance of Cycle Awareness

17:57 Self-Compassion and Acceptance in Fitness

22:15 Normalizing Conversations Around Menstruation

25:53 Partnerships and Collaboration in FemTech

28:15 Building Partnerships for Growth

31:20 The Importance of Action in Partnerships

32:52 Leveraging Professional Relationships

36:10 Storytelling and Education in Fitness

39:34 Mental Health and Founder Life

43:50 Navigating Fundraising Challenges

49:45 Introducing Sync In: A New Approach to Women’s Health

Guest Bio

Lizzy Palmer is the Founder and CEO of SyncN, a cycle-aware fitness and nutrition platform helping women train and fuel in sync with their physiology. A former UX researcher at Meta and Roblox and a professional dancer and fitness coach, Lizzy founded SyncN to close the research gap in women’s health and empower female founders to optimize performance without burnout.

Check out SyncN

Music Credit

“Neptuno” – Phondupe (Album: Onykia)

Access All Areas.

Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTube

Subscribe: Substack

Community & Events: Founders Circle

Connect: LinkedIn

Socials: TikTok || Instagram || X

Web: startupsdecoded.com

Forget Ivy League. Build Your Own Startup Empire.

From Peter Thiel’s Fellowship revolution to building the 1517 Fund, Michael Gibson has made a career out of betting on outsiders.

In this episode, he reveals how Thiel’s philosophy, back people, not pedigrees, shaped his mission to fund dropouts, renegades, and deep-tech builders rewriting the future.

We unpack how to spot unconventional talent before the world does, why early bets on unproven founders can outperform safe money, and how the next wave of transformative startups won’t emerge from Ivy League halls, but from the edges of the system.

Chapters

• 00:00 From Journalism to Venture Capital: A Unique Journey
• 07:05 The Dynamics of Founders and VCs
• 12:50 The Role of Experience in Venture Capital
• 17:32 Investing in Young Founders: The 1517 Fund
• 22:56 Backing Renegades: A New Approach to Investment
• 24:36 The Democratization of Innovation
• 25:36 Identifying the Renegade Mindset
• 28:10 The Impact of Educational Systems on Creativity
• 32:25 Curiosity as a Key Trait
• 36:20 The Role of Unorthodox Thinking
• 38:40 Challenging the 10,000 Hour Rule
• 42:16 The Importance of Unique Perspectives
• 45:48 Managing Investor Expectations

Guest Bio

Michael Gibson is the co-founder and general partner of 1517 Fund, a venture firm dedicated to backing dropouts, renegade students, and deep tech scientists who challenge the traditional path.

Before starting 1517, he was Vice President of Grants at the Thiel Foundation, where he helped launch and run the Thiel Fellowship, and worked at Thiel Capital. With an academic background in philosophy from Oxford and early editorial roles at places like MIT Technology Review, Michael brings both intellectual depth and contrarian edge to venture capital.

At 1517, he’s leading a reformation of how innovation is funded, betting on people with the courage to break from convention.

Michael Gibson Links

• LinkedIn
• X
• Book: "Paper Belt on Fire"

Who Should Listen

• Founders who’ve taken the unconventional path — dropouts, outsiders, or builders challenging industry norms.
• Aspiring entrepreneurs looking for insight into how Peter Thiel’s philosophy still shapes venture investing today.
• VCs and angel investors who want to understand how to spot raw, uncredentialed talent before it becomes obvious.
• Operators and innovators curious about how deep-tech and frontier thinkers are funded at the idea stage.

Music Credit

“Neptuno” – Phondupe (Album: Onykia)

Access All Areas.

Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTube

Subscribe: Substack

Community & Events: Founders Circle

Connect: LinkedIn

Socials: TikTok || Instagram || X

Web: startupsdecoded.com