For most founders, issuing a SAFE used to mean the same painful “Early Stage Shuffle”: agree on terms with an investor, hunt down a template, pay for a standalone e-signature tool, and then (if you remember) manually update your cap table spreadsheet.
It’s fragmented, it’s slow, and it usually costs you a monthly subscription fee you don’t really want.
That workflow is officially a thing of the past. If you’re wondering how to issue a SAFE quickly and without the overhead, Mantle now has free SAFE issuance and e-signing built directly into the platform.
Here’s your complete step-by-step guide on how to issue a SAFE using Mantle’s integrated worfklow.
1. Set up a Mantle account
If you’re not already on Mantle, you can create your free Mantle account here. Signing up takes just a few minutes. No credit card required.
2. Create a SAFE draft
Navigate to Mantle SAFEs to begin issuing your SAFE. You’ll enter stakeholder details (name, email address) and fill out the key SAFE terms, including:
- Investment Amount (Required)
- Valuation Cap (Optional)
- Discount (Optional)
- Most Favored Nation (Optional)
3. Select your template
One of the most common headaches when issuing a SAFE is tracking down the right template version. With Mantle, you have instant access to standard YC SAFE agreement templates, including:
- Valuation Cap Only (US or Canada)
- Discount Rate Only (US or Canada)
- Most Favored Nation Only (US or Canada)
Need a custom template? You can upload your own on any of Mantle’s paid plans.
4. Send for e-signature
This is where the old way of issuing a SAFE usually got expensive. Instead of exporting the SAFE agreement to a third-party signing service like DocuSign, you can send the SAFE directly through Mantle — for free. Your investor receives a secure link via email and can e-sign in just a few clicks.
5. Watch your cap table update automatically
Once the final signature is collected, your cap table updates automatically inside Mantle.
Bonus: Model your SAFEs before you issue
Before issuing a SAFE, it’s worth stress-testing the terms. Mantle’s Scenario Modeler lets you input round assumptions and SAFE details to generate a pro forma cap table, so you know exactly what you’re signing before anyone else does.
Want to see it in action? Book a demo here.
We’ve launched Mantle SAFEs on Product Hunt! Show your support for the launch here.