Safe harbor, the four dates, and how to stop lending the IRS money.
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Owners borrowed $34.7 billion against their own companies in the year to September 2025 to pay themselves without giving up control. The mechanics are legal, the tax treatment is favorable, and almost nobody explains them outside private equity circles.
A headline exit number is a press release. The wire transfer is a different document entirely, and the gap between them is built from preferred stock, tax code, and clauses nobody reads until the term sheet is signed.
Starting a business is no easy feat, and for many, the financial side of things can be the most confusing and overwhelming part of it all.
Reasonable compensation rules and the split that holds up under audit.
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