Board Effect

MAY 13, 2019

Let’s not waste time listing everything startups could be doing to more effectively manage their cap tables. When it comes to cap table management in startup companies, it’s unrealistic to expect perfection. What does your cap table need to address at each stage of growth? Defining Cap Tables.

Cap Table 40

Cap Table Management Liquidity Event Dilution 40

ithacaVC

APRIL 25, 2014

I thought it might be useful to post up a model cap table ( Cap Table Model with Waterfall ). This cap table can be used by a pre-funded startup and then a financing can be layered in. Dealing with VCs Management Startup Life' Here are things to note: 1. So… enjoy the model.

Cap Table 79

Cap Table Preferred Stock Pre-Money Valuation Liquidation Preference 79

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 15, 2016

There is much talk these days that startup valuations have decreased and may continue to do so and that the amount of time it takes to fund raise may take longer. How Complicated is Your Cap Table? Cap Table issues are seldom understood by entrepreneurs. You are in a classic cap table pinch.

Burn Rate 150

Burn Rate Cap Table Valuation Software Review 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 8, 2016

Much has changed in the past four months of the technology startup world and how outsiders value the business. If you need to clean up your own cap table first – while very hard to do – it will make outside funding easier. It applies to all startups – not just SaaS. In my mind this simply means.

Burn Rate 150

Burn Rate Cap Table Balance Sheet Dilution 150

Gust

JUNE 22, 2016

Gust announces acquisitions of Sharewave and Preferred Return; creates the most robust and affordable equity management solution for early-stage startups. The post Gust Launches Comprehensive Equity Management Platform for Cap Table Management and 409A Valuations appeared first on The Gust Blog. Read more >.

Cap Table 93

Cap Table Valuation Equity Management 93

David Teten

MAY 20, 2016

As one of the lead engineers at ff Venture Capital , I spend most of my day building custom software solutions that enhance our firm’s process–tools that range from portfolio investment management to co-investor and cap table tracking and more. We posted on our site a more in-depth overview of ff’s Tech Platform.

Private Equity 113

Private Equity Equity Cap Table Venture Capital 113

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 2, 2017

And the narrative for 2017 is OLD ECONOMY COMPANIES WANT TO BUY YOUR STARTUP. When Satya and I started Homebrew in 2013 one of our bets for the coming decades was that non-traditional acquirers would become more aggressive in their pursuit of technology startups. So, is it true? ” Next Level – Buying Product.

Technical Review 115

Technical Review Cap Table Acquisition Startup 115

Feld Thoughts

FEBRUARY 9, 2016

Mark Suster wrote a great post yesterday titled The Resetting of the Startup Industry. “If you need to clean up your own cap table first – while very hard to do – it will make outside funding easier” Again, go read the post now – I’ll wait. Go read it now – I’ll wait.

Cap Table 70

Cap Table Down Round Liquidation Preference Founder 70

Version One Ventures

MAY 22, 2018

How do you decide who you should have in your cap table? The post The “reverse” pitch: Who should you have on your cap table? If you find yourself in the fortunate position of being oversubscribed, you’ll likely look to build the best investor base and find the right partners for your journey.

Cap Table 60

Cap Table Cofounder Syndicate Syndication 60

Eric Friedman

NOVEMBER 18, 2022

Advisor helping a startup – Midjourney. I have been on both sides of the cap table of advisors. I think there are 3 types of advisors to startups; Level 1 (.05%-.25%): Having them on your cap table, or even in your slide deck as an advisor would bring you credibility.] Types of Early Stage Advisors.

Early Stage 103

Early Stage Equity Vesting Cap Table 103

Up and Running

JULY 2, 2014

Picking the right attorney in your startup is as important as picking the right business partner. My business partner and I made many mistakes in our first tech startup, and so many of them were the result of choosing a lawyer who was a terrible fit. Let me paint the picture for you: We were about two months into our startup idea.

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Angel Investor Due Diligence Dilution 118

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 22, 2014

Needless to say, I have a fair amount of startup event experience. Others talked as if they were the ones doing the deals--even though they''re just the ones making the cap tables in Excel. Secondly, the audience is going to think, "It''s ok that my startup''s plan makes no sense, because I have a social mission!".

Venture Capital 140

Venture Capital Cap Table Startup Early Stage 140

OnlyOnce

JULY 30, 2020

For many startup CEOs the culmination of their life’s work is an exit of some kind (other than being fired!). Sometimes you can have a major internal problem related to the cap table–a founder with a lot of stock needs liquidity or you need to push this person out of the company.

Cap Table 48

Cap Table Institutional Investors Startup Early Stage 48

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

I love how open Danielle has been throughout the development of her startup Mattermark including honest reflections of when she has changed her opinion. “I love those Beats commercials where the basketball player puts on his music and tunes it all out, to go win the game,” she said. That’s what it feels like.”. I agree up to a point.

Cap Table 150

Cap Table Cofounder Silicon Valley Startup 150

The Next Web

OCTOBER 7, 2013

That’s what a couple of my friends – engineers at Google and Bloomberg who have been following the rise of startup culture with intrigue – told me recently. Cap tables sound intimidating. Startup employees are granted common shares out of something called an option pool. “It kinda sucks to be engineer #1.”.

Engineer 129

Engineer Dilution Option Pool Vesting 129

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2016

In fact, it’s really just an in-depth common-sense analysis of key success parameters of any startup to assess the risk before final commitment. Be prepared to present a detailed cap table, identifying by percentage all owners, investors and debtors. Team synergies, commitment and depth. Business structure and financial risks.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Cap Table Intellectual Property 120

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

If you’re a startup and you don’t have a close relationship with a few law firms you’re really missing one of the most important relationships that any entrepreneur can have. I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes. Every town has firms that focus on startups – find them.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 28, 2012

They want to see your cap table, your legal documents, your major contracts, your full financial model, etc. There is no reason to part with your cap table or legal docs until you’re convinced that they’re actually committed to doing work with you in due diligence. In my opinion that is totally old school.

Technical Review 316

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Cap Table 316

OnlyOnce

FEBRUARY 1, 2024

Why would the cap table of the target company agree to this? The post The Dowry appeared first on The Startup CEO blog. That’s right, not only do you not have to put cash OUT for the deal, you’re getting additional cash IN. Think of it as a contemporary corporate version of the dowry.

Cap Table 71

Cap Table Common Stock Acquisition Stock 71

ithacaVC

SEPTEMBER 4, 2011

Here is the latest edition of Finance Fridays from Brad Feld called “Introducing the Cap Table and CTO” Every startup needs someone to be in charge of the Cap Table. When I was General Counsel at a tech company during the 1999 bubble times, I kept the company’s Cap Table.

Cap Table 49

Cap Table Finance Option Pool Warrant 49

Hunter Walker

AUGUST 23, 2023

Specifically I’ve had the chance to spend meaningful time over the years with Michael Mignano as he went from startup CEO to Executive/Angel Investor and now VC Partner at Lightspeed. I can vouch for his genuine optimism Hunter Walk: You got to work with a number of different VCs on your cap table for Anchor. Was I right?

Founder 87

Founder Angel Investor Cap Table Distribution 87

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

See best practices in building financial models , a template financial model , and valuing startup employee options. We also use Carta , which specializes in cap table management and has just launched a fund administration service which we have transitioned to. 8) Monitor and report investments.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Private Equity Management Cap Table 60

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

See best practices in building financial models , a template financial model , and valuing startup employee options. We also use Carta , which specializes in cap table management and has just launched a fund administration service which we have transitioned to. 8) Monitor and report investments.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Private Equity Management Cap Table 60

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

When you think about the trends of faster-growing startups due to social networking, credit card enable and mobile first consumers – the reality is that many startups are becoming very large financially before needing to go public. The “big boom” in startup financing started around March 2009?—?more and hasn’t abated.

Technical Review 398

Technical Review Venture Capital Valuation Pre-Money Valuation 398

Hunter Walker

DECEMBER 11, 2023

Hunter Walk: Before we dive into your company Greenhouse , give me one story from your childhood that foretold you were going to end up a startup founder. At the same time, being private equity backed also means balancing a somewhat different set of investor goals than you may be used to as a startup founder.

Private Equity 78

Private Equity Equity DC Leveraged Buyout 78

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 2, 2011

While certainly not every business needs to raise venture financing, it is the path for many high-growth technology startups. As Steve Blank explained earlier this week on ReadWriteStart from research at The Startup Genome Project : One of the biggest surprises is that success isn't about size of team or funding.

Cap Table 125

Cap Table Term Sheet Liquidation Preference Technical Review 125

Hunter Walker

MARCH 15, 2018

Reflecting on Jennifer’s assertion, I thought of our experience with theSkimm , one of the most dynamic audience companies out there today and a startup we were fortunate to first back in 2013. Over the past five years, I’ve witnessed theSkimm be underestimated by the venture capital industry, by pundits and press.

Technical Review 71

Technical Review Cap Table Venture Capital Finance 71

Hunter Walker

MAY 13, 2023

“Worst case scenario we’ll sell to a larger startup or public company for about ~$1.5m I was on both sides of these transactions – buying startups for Google/YouTube and angel investing in high quality technical founders. per engineer.” of the time my answer is no f **g way]. Emotional I guess.

Early Stage 117

Early Stage Cap Table Acquisition Sales 117

ithacaVC

DECEMBER 9, 2013

Also, during the process, we had to clean up the company’s cap table and make sure that we all agreed on who owned what on a pro forma pre-money basis. Without having a complete pre-money cap table, it is impossible to calculate a share price. Dealing with VCs Management Startup Life' And Happy Holidays!

Term Sheet 58

Term Sheet Cap Table Technical Review IP 58

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

More and more startups are pursuing Revenue-Based VCs , but “RBI” doesn’t fit everyone. Low; a surprising number of Series A/B startups are missing basic financial reporting mechanisms. of startups raise VC. His work on VC and small communities can be found at greatercolorado.vc/blog. Of the Inc. 5000 companies, only 6.5%

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

Hunter Walker

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

As more growth and crossover investors came into the startup ecosystem they were often eager to put capital to work and happy to consolidate their positions with common or preferred shares from early employees, founders and previous investors. We’re aligned with the founders and the rest of the cap table until we aren’t.

Venture Capital 122

Venture Capital Cap Table LP Equity 122

Hunter Walker

AUGUST 8, 2023

The number of startups who raised money beyond the ‘Unicorn’ benchmark grew so dramatically before the 2022 reset that there is just simply farther to fall when many of these fail to grow into their targets, or disappear completely. Valuations. Whatever gets reported is just the tip of the iceberg.

Portfolio 98

Portfolio Cap Table LP Valuation 98

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

I know some people think the whole market has been disrupted and startups and funding work differently these days. Deep pockets – In the previous posts I’ve compared tech startup investing with poker taking analogies of The Big Short & Delivering Happiness. Tags: Startup Advice Tech Market Analysis VC Industry.

Cap Table 283

Cap Table Angel Investor Liquidation Preference Deal Flow 283

David Teten

MARCH 18, 2021

We summarize how they interrelate in the table below. A typical VC thesis: “we invest in tech startups in Europe at an early stage” However, our experience shows that in many cases: . These firms also sometimes target startups that serve a specific kind of customer (e.g. The phrase is quite ambiguous.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Cofounder Venture Capital Deal Flow 78

OnlyOnce

JULY 14, 2022

I wrote a little bit about the experience of being a multi-time founder in this post where I talked about the value of things like a hand-picked team, hand-picked cap table, experience that drives efficient execution, and starting with a clean slate. The post Second Lap Around the Track appeared first on The Startup CEO blog.

Cap Table 62

Cap Table Founder Portfolio Finance 62

Hunter Walker

JULY 18, 2022

Why I’m Not Telling Every Startup To ‘Pull The Brakes’ Just Yet. Instead I’ll suggest there are two specific questions that really matter, the answers to which will have the biggest impact on the next 1–5 years of startups and venture capital. The latter means that every Series A+ startup has to reforecast.

Valuation 116

Valuation Cap Table Startup Later Stage 116

OnlyOnce

NOVEMBER 2, 2017

I redacted our cap table and pictures of our VCs, but otherwise, feel free to use it with your own management team, or even your whole company.

Venture Capital 116

Venture Capital Cap Table Entrepreneur Startup 116