INDUSTRY INSIGHTS YOUR PEERS ARE READING
→ More on Liquidation Preferences Posted on December 16, 2010 by admin A long time ago I had asked a VC about what pre-money valuation he was planning to put in a term sheet he had promised to send over. But first, let’s look at pre-money valuation by liquidation preference. MORE
To this day I’m still surprised how few CEOs really understand the differences between 2x liquidation preference and a liquidation preference with a 2x cap. Or what “participating preferred&# stock is and how it can screw you. MORE
For example, he will explain to you how the liquidation preference works and run spreadsheets, if necessary, to show you how much money you will receive based on different sale scenarios; he will explain to you how the option pool works, including the founders’ significant dilution; and he will discuss what protective provisions are and other tricky legal terms, such as drag-along rights and anti-dilution provisions. MORE
Indeed, whether a minority common stockholder is a founder, an advisor or even a friends/family investor, such stockholder will usually not be contractually granted any of the rights that are typically granted to preferred stockholders. Startup Issues anti-dilution provisions controlling stockholders conversion rights derivative claim fiduciary duty inspection rights liquidation preferences minority stockholders oppression proper purpose redemption rights MORE
It usually happens in a later round, when the company is in fact worth much less than the liquidation preference overhang and insiders use a pay-to-play and a low valuation to reset the preferences and the cap table. Here’s the scenario. A company raises $1m of seed money from angels in a convertible note with a $6m cap. MORE
To better understand the arguments for / against convertible equity I suggest you read my posts on those topics: Is convertible debt preferable to equity? ” And some seed stage investors told me, “I prefer not to fight over price now. million of liquidation preferences. MORE
VC Issues due diligence exploding term sheets founders Fred Wilson investors' option liquidation preferences no shop Rand Fish redemption rights startup vc VC term sheet venture capital MORE
The terms Liquidation preference: a very important clause… This story continues at The Next Web. Andrej Kiska is an Associate at Credo Ventures. If you haven’t read the first part on equity term sheets, I strongly recommend doing so before moving on. MORE
These normally include what percentage of the company the investor now owns, how and when tranches of money will be delivered, and even how and when you can sell your own shares (liquidation preferences). MORE
And that too usually when there is sufficient investor demand for the next round, i.e. the leverage needs to be in the company’s hand (rather than investors) for any type of founder liquidity to even be an option. There are several arguments against providing founder liquidity: 1) The money doesn’t go to the company, but into founders’ pockets : Yes, the money from founder liquidity does go to founders’ pockets, but that’s entirely the point. MORE
Depending on the delta between the price cap and the pre-money valuation of the qualified equity financing, the convertible note investors could receive a windfall in terms of liquidation preference. Most convertible notes have a price cap as a feature term. The Potential Problem Let’s say Series A investors invest at a pre-money valuation that [.]. Convertible Notes MORE
I’ve seen every imaginable type of liquidation preference structure, pay-to-play dynamic, preferred return, ratchet, share/option bonus, option repricing, and carveout. I suffered through the next financing after implementing a complex structure, or a sale of the company, or a liquidation. Then use the down round to clean up your preference overhang. When I see a carveout being proposed these days, I know there’s a liquidation preference problem. MORE
This typically results when the company has raised a lot of money and the preferred stock liquidation preference would absorb an out sized portion of the exit proceeds. The second ( Liquidity_Bonus_Plan_-_Board_Meeting_Slides ) is a power point presentation that a startup board might review when adopting a plan. I have posted a few times on management carve out plans (back in February 2011 and November 2011 ; wow, time flies!!). MORE
The question is whether they need to issue common or preferred stock. The answer depends on how and what rights are defined in the preferred stock. The liquidation preference means what is sounds - namely that preferred stock holders with this right get all of their money back (i.e. MORE
There's also the aspect that the equity that you typically get as part of equity compensation is behind other equity in preference and thus effectively has lower value. MORE
We’ve updated our Foundry Group web site with the new Liquidation Preference beer photo. Foundry Group beer diversion i'm a vc liquidation preference websiteEveryone needs a diversion. MORE
In my own portfolio I have companies that are generally perceived to be extremely successful with high profile customers and lots of sales…but they just happen to have a liquidation preference ladder of $25 million! Parts of the answer are that (a) there are enormous regulatory requirements relating to secondary markets, and (b) there are no analysts tracking private company stocks. MORE
ii) why are convertible notes issued instead of shares of common or preferred stock? If the noteholders invested $500,000 and the price per share of the Series A Preferred Stock were $1.00, the noteholders would convert the loan at an effective price of $0.50 MORE
ii) why are convertible notes issued instead of shares of common or preferred stock? In the context of a seed financing, the debt typically automatically converts into shares of preferred stock upon the closing of a Series A round of financing. MORE
When you do a convertible note with a cap that converts into the next round of funding one of the unintended consequences is that if you’re successful and raise at a larger price than your cap the early angels often get “multiple liquidation preferences” on their dollars in. When that initial note converts in stead of $500,000 liquidation preference they would get $2.5 They get their full investment as a 1x liquidation preference. MORE
All of the deals had a liquidation preference of 1x or more. However, few of the deals went beyond a simple 1x non-participating preference share. I always wondered if companies were accepting multiple liquidation preferences in exchange for high valuations, but that was only the case in 3% of the deals analysed. Last May law firm Fenwick and West published an analysis of the 37 US unicorn deals that happened in the twelve months ending 31st March 2015. MORE
That means that the likely have a minimum of $15 million in liquidation preferences. It will usually be higher because the liquidation preference has a dividend so if the deal is long in the tooth assume that the liquidation preference might be $20-22 million. MORE
Investors typically demand preferred stock, to give themselves certain voting and liquidation privileges over later shareholders. Preferred shares are not possible with a limited liability corporation (LLC), so expect to convert to a C-corp to get an equity investment. MORE
Or, if you just want the paragraph, it’s: “If this note converts at a price higher than the cap that you have been given you agree that in the conversion of the note into equity you agree to allow your stock to be converted such that you will receive no more than a 1x non-participating liquidation preference plus any agreed interest.”. As an angel investor, I have never asked for a liquidation preference on conversion that is greater than the dollars I’ve invested. MORE
Otherwise the investors won’t make the multiple on their investment that they want and after liquidation preferences are paid the amount left for the entrepreneur may well also be disappointing. MORE
As an investor, would I rather own 30% of a company that is acquired for $300m in cash that had only raised $10m or 2% of a company with a paper value of $1b and $200m of liquidation preferences? The current usage of the word unicorn makes me tired. MORE
Down: Liquidation preference. Term Sheet board seat liquidation preference pro-rata terms VCAt the HBS VC Alumni event I was at last week (no – I didn’t go to HBS – I was a panelist) I heard a great line from a wise old VC who has been a VC about as long as I’ve existed on this planet. MORE
So my suggestion here is that (a) you accept the fact that in exchange for the 15K investment you are paying a 20K liquidation preference and 10% of the gross revenue, and that such payments and repayment will inure to the benefit of your investor and his estate, and (b) that you immediately go to a lawyer, and have the lawyer re-draft your agreement to supersede the home-grown one that you are now using. MORE
@altgate Startups, Venture Capital & Everything In Between Skip to content Home Furqan Nazeeri (fn@altgate.com) ← Holiday Cards Year End Management Changes → The 3X Liquidation Preference Is Back! Let’s recap how expensive a 3x liquidation preference really is. MORE
Here are the issues I have addressed to date: common mistakes dealing with VC’s valuation liquidation preferences stock options exploding term sheets and no-shop provisions anti-dilution provisions dividends Board control protective provisions drag-along provisions pay-to-play and pull-up provisions In today’s post, I examine conversion rights of investors. As many of you know, VC investors are typically issued shares of preferred stock, not common stock. MORE
These normally include what percentage of the company the investor now owns, how and when tranches of money will be delivered, and even how and when you can sell your own shares (liquidation preferences). MORE
If the money comes from professional investors it usually has a “liquidation preference” meaning that their money comes out before the founders or common stock. (If That’s why liquidation preferences exist – downside protection. MORE
Things like “ participating preferred stock &# in legalese unsurprisingly never actually call out, “hey, this is the participating preferred language.&# We got a3x participating liquidation preference with interest (not participating with a 3x cap, but 3x participating. MORE
Continuing with the “No Mess” theme of commenting on things that give VCs pause, I thought it would be good to touch on liquidation preference. Specifically, “too much” liquidation preference (I will use “LP” for liquidation preference). As most of you probably know, LP is one of the fundamental economic attributes of preferred stock that preferred shareholders enjoy. MORE
If you want to discuss liquidation preferences, vesting schedules, or anything startup-related, I’ll be holding an office hour session this Friday March 7th from 130-230pm at UP Global’s SXSW Startup Oasis. The office hour portion of Startup Oasis is blocks of time where you can meet with mentors across a diverse range of skill sets. […]. Startup Lawyer MORE
At an accelerator … Me: Raising convertible notes as a seed round is one of the biggest disservices our industry has done to entrepreneurs since 2001-2003 when there were “full ratchets” and “multiple liquidation preferences” – the most hostile terms anybody found in term sheets 10 years ago. I know how to structure around that to protect the founders from getting screwed on a multiple liquidation preference. This week. MORE
What Is A Liquidation Preference? Miscellaneous antidilution crowdfunding legal checklist liquidation preference no shop startup startups term sheetsBelow is a list of my top ten posts in 2011 based solely on pageviews. Indeed, I was inspired by Chris Dixon and his post of last night (which you should definitely check-out). Moreover, I’m publishing an eBook with Hyperink entitled The Startup Law Playbook , which should be available shortly. MORE
Indeed, there comes a point in time in just about every deal where both sides have dug into certain positions and the question becomes which side will blink first; for example, in a venture capital financing, perhaps the issue is the liquidation preference or the size of the option pool ; or, in an acquisition, perhaps the issue is the cap on seller’s liability or the amount of the escrow. MORE
The punishment comes in the form of “unjust” liquidation preference that the note holders end up with when they convert at a valuation cap that is way lower than the valuation of the actual round. The “unjust” liquidation preference comes in when the valuation cap price applies (it also applies a bit with a discount that is large). Each share of Series A will have a liquidation preference of $1.00 (assuming 1X preference, which is normal). MORE
And that too usually when there is sufficient investor demand for the next round, i.e. the leverage needs to be in the company’s hand (rather than investors) for any type of founder liquidity to even be an option. There are several arguments against providing founder liquidity: 1) The money doesn’t go to the company, but into founders’ pockets : Yes, the money from founder liquidity does go to founders’ pockets, but that’s entirely the point. MORE
Here are the issues I have addressed to date: common mistakes dealing with VC’s valuation liquidation preferences stock options exploding term sheets and no-shop provisions anti-dilution provisions dividends Board control protective provisions drag-along provisions pay-to-play and pull-up provisions conversion rights In today’s post, I examine the redemption rights of investors. MORE
It turns out that ‘time bomb’ is the much maligned and, I suspect, little understood, liquidation preference. To be clear, liquidation preferences are sometimes used badly and founders should generally turn away from investors who ask for multiple liquidation preferences. However, most of the later rounds or companies raise feature simple 1x liquidation preferences and we’re fine with that. MORE
Preferred versus common shares. They can buy common shares or preferred shares. That’s because preferred shares operate under a completely separate set of rules (which will be defined in the investment documents) than your shares. Liquidation preference. MORE
In most equity financing rounds, an investor will ask for (and get) a term called a liquidation preference. A liquidation preference is the amount that must be paid to a preferred stock holder before any sale proceeds may be paid to the holders of common stock (i.e., The amount of the liquidation preference is usually expressed as a multiple, with the most common liquidation preference being “1X non-participating.” MORE
Liquidation Preference Related Topics The Equity Kicker
NOVEMBER 9, 2016
It turns out that ‘time bomb’ is the much maligned and, I suspect, little understood, liquidation preference. To be clear, liquidation preferences are sometimes used badly and founders should generally turn away from investors who ask for multiple liquidation preferences. However, most of the later rounds or companies raise feature simple 1x liquidation preferences and we’re fine with that.
The Startup Lawyer
JANUARY 10, 2012
In most equity financing rounds, an investor will ask for (and get) a term called a liquidation preference. A liquidation preference is the amount that must be paid to a preferred stock holder before any sale proceeds may be paid to the holders of common stock (i.e., The amount of the liquidation preference is usually expressed as a multiple, with the most common liquidation preference being “1X non-participating.”
Altgate
DECEMBER 16, 2010
→ More on Liquidation Preferences Posted on December 16, 2010 by admin A long time ago I had asked a VC about what pre-money valuation he was planning to put in a term sheet he had promised to send over. But first, let’s look at pre-money valuation by liquidation preference.
The Startup Lawyer
JANUARY 22, 2013
Depending on the delta between the price cap and the pre-money valuation of the qualified equity financing, the convertible note investors could receive a windfall in terms of liquidation preference. Most convertible notes have a price cap as a feature term. The Potential Problem Let’s say Series A investors invest at a pre-money valuation that [.]. Convertible Notes
ithacaVC
DECEMBER 14, 2011
Continuing with the “No Mess” theme of commenting on things that give VCs pause, I thought it would be good to touch on liquidation preference. Specifically, “too much” liquidation preference (I will use “LP” for liquidation preference). As most of you probably know, LP is one of the fundamental economic attributes of preferred stock that preferred shareholders enjoy.
Altgate
DECEMBER 18, 2008
@altgate Startups, Venture Capital & Everything In Between Skip to content Home Furqan Nazeeri (fn@altgate.com) ← Holiday Cards Year End Management Changes → The 3X Liquidation Preference Is Back! Let’s recap how expensive a 3x liquidation preference really is.
Feld Thoughts
JUNE 13, 2012
We’ve updated our Foundry Group web site with the new Liquidation Preference beer photo. Foundry Group beer diversion i'm a vc liquidation preference websiteEveryone needs a diversion.
Scott Edward Walker
APRIL 9, 2012
ii) why are convertible notes issued instead of shares of common or preferred stock? In the context of a seed financing, the debt typically automatically converts into shares of preferred stock upon the closing of a Series A round of financing.
Scott Edward Walker
APRIL 22, 2012
ii) why are convertible notes issued instead of shares of common or preferred stock? If the noteholders invested $500,000 and the price per share of the Series A Preferred Stock were $1.00, the noteholders would convert the loan at an effective price of $0.50
Scott Edward Walker
SEPTEMBER 14, 2011
VC Issues due diligence exploding term sheets founders Fred Wilson investors' option liquidation preferences no shop Rand Fish redemption rights startup vc VC term sheet venture capital
Scott Edward Walker
DECEMBER 29, 2011
What Is A Liquidation Preference? Miscellaneous antidilution crowdfunding legal checklist liquidation preference no shop startup startups term sheetsBelow is a list of my top ten posts in 2011 based solely on pageviews. Indeed, I was inspired by Chris Dixon and his post of last night (which you should definitely check-out). Moreover, I’m publishing an eBook with Hyperink entitled The Startup Law Playbook , which should be available shortly.
K9 Ventures
NOVEMBER 21, 2011
And that too usually when there is sufficient investor demand for the next round, i.e. the leverage needs to be in the company’s hand (rather than investors) for any type of founder liquidity to even be an option. There are several arguments against providing founder liquidity: 1) The money doesn’t go to the company, but into founders’ pockets : Yes, the money from founder liquidity does go to founders’ pockets, but that’s entirely the point.
K9 Ventures
NOVEMBER 21, 2011
And that too usually when there is sufficient investor demand for the next round, i.e. the leverage needs to be in the company’s hand (rather than investors) for any type of founder liquidity to even be an option. There are several arguments against providing founder liquidity: 1) The money doesn’t go to the company, but into founders’ pockets : Yes, the money from founder liquidity does go to founders’ pockets, but that’s entirely the point.
Scott Edward Walker
JULY 20, 2011
Indeed, there comes a point in time in just about every deal where both sides have dug into certain positions and the question becomes which side will blink first; for example, in a venture capital financing, perhaps the issue is the liquidation preference or the size of the option pool ; or, in an acquisition, perhaps the issue is the cap on seller’s liability or the amount of the escrow.
Scott Edward Walker
JUNE 9, 2011
Here are the issues I have addressed to date: common mistakes dealing with VC’s valuation liquidation preferences stock options exploding term sheets and no-shop provisions anti-dilution provisions dividends Board control protective provisions drag-along provisions pay-to-play and pull-up provisions In today’s post, I examine conversion rights of investors. As many of you know, VC investors are typically issued shares of preferred stock, not common stock.
Scott Edward Walker
JULY 27, 2011
Indeed, whether a minority common stockholder is a founder, an advisor or even a friends/family investor, such stockholder will usually not be contractually granted any of the rights that are typically granted to preferred stockholders. Startup Issues anti-dilution provisions controlling stockholders conversion rights derivative claim fiduciary duty inspection rights liquidation preferences minority stockholders oppression proper purpose redemption rights
Scott Edward Walker
JULY 7, 2011
Here are the issues I have addressed to date: common mistakes dealing with VC’s valuation liquidation preferences stock options exploding term sheets and no-shop provisions anti-dilution provisions dividends Board control protective provisions drag-along provisions pay-to-play and pull-up provisions conversion rights In today’s post, I examine the redemption rights of investors.
Scott Edward Walker
AUGUST 31, 2011
For example, he will explain to you how the liquidation preference works and run spreadsheets, if necessary, to show you how much money you will receive based on different sale scenarios; he will explain to you how the option pool works, including the founders’ significant dilution; and he will discuss what protective provisions are and other tricky legal terms, such as drag-along rights and anti-dilution provisions.
Both Sides of the Table
MAY 30, 2015
When you do a convertible note with a cap that converts into the next round of funding one of the unintended consequences is that if you’re successful and raise at a larger price than your cap the early angels often get “multiple liquidation preferences” on their dollars in. When that initial note converts in stead of $500,000 liquidation preference they would get $2.5 They get their full investment as a 1x liquidation preference.
Feld Thoughts
FEBRUARY 9, 2016
I’ve seen every imaginable type of liquidation preference structure, pay-to-play dynamic, preferred return, ratchet, share/option bonus, option repricing, and carveout. I suffered through the next financing after implementing a complex structure, or a sale of the company, or a liquidation. Then use the down round to clean up your preference overhang. When I see a carveout being proposed these days, I know there’s a liquidation preference problem.
Feld Thoughts
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
As an investor, would I rather own 30% of a company that is acquired for $300m in cash that had only raised $10m or 2% of a company with a paper value of $1b and $200m of liquidation preferences? The current usage of the word unicorn makes me tired.
Feld Thoughts
JUNE 2, 2015
Or, if you just want the paragraph, it’s: “If this note converts at a price higher than the cap that you have been given you agree that in the conversion of the note into equity you agree to allow your stock to be converted such that you will receive no more than a 1x non-participating liquidation preference plus any agreed interest.”. As an angel investor, I have never asked for a liquidation preference on conversion that is greater than the dollars I’ve invested.
The Startup Lawyer
MARCH 3, 2014
If you want to discuss liquidation preferences, vesting schedules, or anything startup-related, I’ll be holding an office hour session this Friday March 7th from 130-230pm at UP Global’s SXSW Startup Oasis. The office hour portion of Startup Oasis is blocks of time where you can meet with mentors across a diverse range of skill sets. […]. Startup Lawyer
Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 5, 2012
To better understand the arguments for / against convertible equity I suggest you read my posts on those topics: Is convertible debt preferable to equity? ” And some seed stage investors told me, “I prefer not to fight over price now. million of liquidation preferences.
Growthink Blog
JANUARY 24, 2011
The question is whether they need to issue common or preferred stock. The answer depends on how and what rights are defined in the preferred stock. The liquidation preference means what is sounds - namely that preferred stock holders with this right get all of their money back (i.e.
The Next Web
FEBRUARY 15, 2015
The terms Liquidation preference: a very important clause… This story continues at The Next Web. Andrej Kiska is an Associate at Credo Ventures. If you haven’t read the first part on equity term sheets, I strongly recommend doing so before moving on.
Both Sides of the Table
JULY 25, 2011
To this day I’m still surprised how few CEOs really understand the differences between 2x liquidation preference and a liquidation preference with a 2x cap. Or what “participating preferred&# stock is and how it can screw you.
ithacaVC
JUNE 3, 2015
The punishment comes in the form of “unjust” liquidation preference that the note holders end up with when they convert at a valuation cap that is way lower than the valuation of the actual round. The “unjust” liquidation preference comes in when the valuation cap price applies (it also applies a bit with a discount that is large). Each share of Series A will have a liquidation preference of $1.00 (assuming 1X preference, which is normal).
Gust
APRIL 16, 2014
So my suggestion here is that (a) you accept the fact that in exchange for the 15K investment you are paying a 20K liquidation preference and 10% of the gross revenue, and that such payments and repayment will inure to the benefit of your investor and his estate, and (b) that you immediately go to a lawyer, and have the lawyer re-draft your agreement to supersede the home-grown one that you are now using.
Both Sides of the Table
JULY 22, 2010
Things like “ participating preferred stock &# in legalese unsurprisingly never actually call out, “hey, this is the participating preferred language.&# We got a3x participating liquidation preference with interest (not participating with a 3x cap, but 3x participating.
The Equity Kicker
JUNE 28, 2013
Otherwise the investors won’t make the multiple on their investment that they want and after liquidation preferences are paid the amount left for the entrepreneur may well also be disappointing.
Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 18, 2014
At an accelerator … Me: Raising convertible notes as a seed round is one of the biggest disservices our industry has done to entrepreneurs since 2001-2003 when there were “full ratchets” and “multiple liquidation preferences” – the most hostile terms anybody found in term sheets 10 years ago. I know how to structure around that to protect the founders from getting screwed on a multiple liquidation preference. This week.
Startup Professionals Musings
FEBRUARY 3, 2018
These normally include what percentage of the company the investor now owns, how and when tranches of money will be delivered, and even how and when you can sell your own shares (liquidation preferences).
Up and Running
MAY 21, 2015
Preferred versus common shares. They can buy common shares or preferred shares. That’s because preferred shares operate under a completely separate set of rules (which will be defined in the investment documents) than your shares. Liquidation preference.
ithacaVC
JUNE 29, 2018
This typically results when the company has raised a lot of money and the preferred stock liquidation preference would absorb an out sized portion of the exit proceeds. The second ( Liquidity_Bonus_Plan_-_Board_Meeting_Slides ) is a power point presentation that a startup board might review when adopting a plan. I have posted a few times on management carve out plans (back in February 2011 and November 2011 ; wow, time flies!!).
The Equity Kicker
MARCH 3, 2016
All of the deals had a liquidation preference of 1x or more. However, few of the deals went beyond a simple 1x non-participating preference share. I always wondered if companies were accepting multiple liquidation preferences in exchange for high valuations, but that was only the case in 3% of the deals analysed. Last May law firm Fenwick and West published an analysis of the 37 US unicorn deals that happened in the twelve months ending 31st March 2015.
Both Sides of the Table
APRIL 14, 2010
That means that the likely have a minimum of $15 million in liquidation preferences. It will usually be higher because the liquidation preference has a dividend so if the deal is long in the tooth assume that the liquidation preference might be $20-22 million.
Both Sides of the Table
MAY 13, 2013
If the money comes from professional investors it usually has a “liquidation preference” meaning that their money comes out before the founders or common stock. (If That’s why liquidation preferences exist – downside protection.
Feld Thoughts
JULY 14, 2015
It usually happens in a later round, when the company is in fact worth much less than the liquidation preference overhang and insiders use a pay-to-play and a low valuation to reset the preferences and the cap table. Here’s the scenario. A company raises $1m of seed money from angels in a convertible note with a $6m cap.
Startup Professionals Musings
AUGUST 16, 2015
These normally include what percentage of the company the investor now owns, how and when tranches of money will be delivered, and even how and when you can sell your own shares (liquidation preferences).
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 26, 2015
Investors typically demand preferred stock, to give themselves certain voting and liquidation privileges over later shareholders. Preferred shares are not possible with a limited liability corporation (LLC), so expect to convert to a C-corp to get an equity investment.
SoCal CTO
SEPTEMBER 27, 2011
There's also the aspect that the equity that you typically get as part of equity compensation is behind other equity in preference and thus effectively has lower value.
Gust
NOVEMBER 15, 2012
In my own portfolio I have companies that are generally perceived to be extremely successful with high profile customers and lots of sales…but they just happen to have a liquidation preference ladder of $25 million! Parts of the answer are that (a) there are enormous regulatory requirements relating to secondary markets, and (b) there are no analysts tracking private company stocks.
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