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By Jonathan Joel Mentor | @jonathanjmentor
Institutions Love Ceremony. Founders Need Systems.
FINJUS defends institutional integrity. The courts matter. So do constitutions. But beneath the scaffolding of legal order, a more elusive structure shapes daily reality: the architecture of income.
Article 8 of the Dominican Constitution guarantees the right to economic development¹. Article 50 enshrines free enterprise². And Article 219 calls for market competition³. But on the ground, these guarantees feel ornamental.
For founders outside of surnames and ceremony, justice is not measured in verdicts or reforms; it’s measured in cash flow.
Dominican institutions fetishize formality, but never fund the MVP.
Doctrine of the Uninvited
Economic justice isn’t achieved in courtrooms. It’s won in invoices.
Dominican startups aren’t struggling because they lack ideas or initiative. They’re suffocating under a policy environment that rewards registration but ignores revenue. Institutions celebrate new business formation, but remain silent on income velocity. The result? Formality without functionality.
Three Indictments
- Legal reform means nothing if economic throughput remains blocked.
Article 219 promises competitive markets, yet startups are left to navigate predatory payment cycles, opaque procurement, and shallow credit pools. - Formality without revenue is an illusion.
Public policy loves vanity metrics: “startup launched” is a headline. But “starup scaled” is the true KPI. - The Dominican startup economy is still in its early stages of development.
Our best minds are improvising systems just to survive. This isn’t a talent issue. It’s an infrastructure failure.
The Whisper Between Lines
A quiet cohort of founders is beginning to reverse-engineer the unseen mechanics of sustainable revenue. They are not waiting for external validation. They are adapting revenue frameworks to build infrastructure where none exists. It’s not a movement. It’s a method.
Successment has become a discreet laboratory for this approach.
The Last Word
Was this article a compliment or a callout?
FINJUS stands for institutionalism. But institutions without economic interface are decorative. If the 21st century demands scalable solutions, then policy must stop orbiting legality and start engaging revenue.
Otherwise, the Dominican Republic remains a nation of paperwork, not prosperity.
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Jonathan Joel Mentor is the CEO of Successment and architect of the Provoke Visibility™ campaign, scaling startups and challenging institutions to evolve. UN World Summit & ADOEXPO Award nominee. www.jonathanjmentor.co
¹ Constitución Dominicana, Artículo 8: Garantías fundamentales
² Constitución Dominicana, Artículo 50: Libertad de empresa
³ Constitución Dominicana, Artículo 219: Libre y leal competencia
