Life, as we know it, is dependent upon phosphates; they are necessary for many extant biomolecules, such as nucleic acids and phospholipids. However, due to low solubility, phosphates would have been limited and unreactive in the prebiotic oceans. To alleviate the phosphate dilemma, complex coacervates were used to dissolve and concentrate phosphate from minerals during wet-dry cycles. Analysis from 31P-NMR showed that phosphorylation of glycerol was achieved in a one-pot crowded environment.