Sam and Michael from Palus Finance are launching a treasury management platform for startups and SMBs that targets 4.5-5% returns on idle cash, compared to roughly 3.5% from typical money market funds. The YC W26 startup was born from the founders' own need to earn better yields on their startup's cash reserves after joining the accelerator.

Traditional startup treasury products simply sweep cash into money market funds with no strategy, charging management fees of 0.15-0.60%. Palus instead invests in short-duration floating-rate agency mortgage-backed securities managed by Regan Capital, the largest floating-rate agency MBS ETF provider. The platform charges a flat 0.25% annual fee on assets under management and offers liquidity within 1-2 business days.

Palus connects to existing bank accounts via Plaid rather than building another neobank, focusing solely on treasury management with a simple two-button interface. The company is live with early YC customers and accepting new clients on a rolling basis through their website. By making sophisticated bond portfolio strategies accessible to startups, Palus aims to help founders earn meaningful returns on capital that would otherwise sit idle for 18-24 months between funding rounds.