Hippoland

AUGUST 9, 2016

One question that seed investors love to ask is if you have a lead investor in your seed round. But once you figure out why an investor is asking, tactically speaking, what do you do? Let’s say that you find out that an investor is asking because he/she does not invest without a lead investor in place.

Lead Investor 48

Lead Investor Term Sheet Due Diligence Convertible Security 48

View from Seed

JULY 8, 2020

Now many Founders face a situation where they have raised a pre-seed or seed round from a multitude of investors (both angels and institutional groups) on SAFEs or convertible notes — without a term-driving lead investor who serves on the company’s Board of Directors.

Email 331

Email Seed Stage Syndication Syndicate 331

View from Seed

APRIL 14, 2020

Choosing a lead investor is a big decision and long commitment, so it’s actually in everyone’s best interest to enter into a relationship with eyes wide open. In a FOMO world, VC’s were occasionally willing to scramble to get to “yes” in a few days with shockingly limited due diligence.

Early Stage 374

Early Stage Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence 374

View from Seed

OCTOBER 11, 2022

Specifically: – We are high-conviction, hands-on lead investors. We see the new fund and the addition of Stephanie as cementing what has become true about NextView over the past several years. We make very few investments on a per-partner basis, which is why we are quite top-heavy as a firm.

Cofounder 156

Cofounder San Francisco Portfolio Limited Partner 156

Gust

NOVEMBER 16, 2013

This is changing as the whole world of venture/angel/seed funding is rapidly morphing, but typically a ‘real’ Series A round is small enough for one traditional venture fund to do the whole thing itself. Very occasionally, they might split it with another fund, but that would probably be the exception.

Lead Investor 150

Lead Investor Term Sheet Early Stage Angel Groups 150

Feld Thoughts

JUNE 9, 2021

Fred Wilson was his lead investor. I was the lead investor for Veripost. I’ve been working with Matt since 2000. That year, we merged two companies: Return Path and Veripost. Matt was the co-founder/CEO of Return Path.

Fractional CTO 70

Fractional CTO Cofounder Startup Lead Investor 70

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

It’s hard to be a great lead investor . VCs take their time precisely for the reason Fred articulates – they play the role of “lead investor.” They will have to help get the next round done. Essentially they will have to work. . … Not everyone is good at this. In fact, very few are.

Syndication 356

Syndication Syndicate Cofounder Early Stage 356

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

When my co-founders and I got the company scalable and repeatable, we hired an operating executive as the CEO and returned a billion dollars to each of our two lead investors. We established a team of founders who worked collaboratively. Lessons Learned. Six stages of failure and redemption.

Redemption 333

Redemption Cofounder Silicon Valley Burn Rate 333

View from Seed

OCTOBER 24, 2019

The reality is that if a founder raised every one of these rounds, and lead investors always got their “target” ownership, the level of dilution would be ridiculous. As seed rounds have atomized, it’s not uncommon for founders to raise 3 or even 4 rounds prior to a series A.

Dilution 149

Dilution B2B Burn Rate Early Stage 149

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Lead investors are few. Leads that are true force-multipliers are exceedingly rare. Although seed funding has exploded since we started Nextview, we continue to hear the refrain from founders that there are tons of investors that will pile-in on a round that is coming together, but that lead investors are few and far between.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

I told Ethan on the spot that I wanted to be the lead investor in his new company. And I had been telling my partners for a couple of years that I thought Ethan was one of the more talented entrepreneurs I had come across in San Francisco. We like to be able to see the concept.

Southern California 359

Southern California San Francisco CTO Hire SEM 359

Gust

DECEMBER 27, 2012

Accelerators typically provide several months of intensive mentoring, at the end of which they host a Demo Day to introducing all their graduating companies to a large number of local angel investors. Your goal in all this is to try to find a lead investor. He or she will be your primary champion, and often mentor.

Software Review 164

Software Review Term Sheet Technical Review Angel Investor 164

ithacaVC

MARCH 9, 2017

I have now done 2 deals where there has been a lead investor (not CVF) who did not mind the “founder as sole board member” trap. We followed in line with the lead investor and went along with the structure. From my perspective, this is typically a sign of paranoia. .

Seed Stage 58

Seed Stage Software Review Institutional Investors Lead Investor 58

Gust

NOVEMBER 28, 2023

The principal roles of the lead investor was to negotiate the terms of an investment with the founder of the startup. In theory, the terms could be “here’s a million dollars to use; if the company becomes a big success, please give it back to us.” Unfortunately, that’s not the way it works.

Due Diligence 91

Due Diligence Term Sheet Common Stock Preferred Stock 91

View from Seed

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

In previous blog posts I’ve written about the two main approaches to building a seed round syndicate – the subscription method (where an entrepreneur presets a structure with a convertible note or SAFE and recruits investors who subscribe to the round, all without a term-driving lead investor) and a term-driving lead investor approach.

Syndication 257

Syndication Syndicate Lead Investor Venture Capital 257

View from Seed

JUNE 11, 2019

Aside from the early commitments, the next most important thing to focus on is nailing down your lead investor. I’ve found that the lead investor will end up doing 90% of the work for a startup (or will cause 90% of the pain if you get the decision wrong). As the old adage says, big rocks first.

Syndication 202

Syndication Syndicate Seed Stage Lead Investor 202

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 12, 2017

Obtaining term sheets, note agreements, or even emails from lead investors stating their intentions to continue funding the entity may help support management’s assertion that they can raise more capital. If there is insufficient cash, then the company should have a plan to obtain sufficient capital.

San Francisco 133

San Francisco Forecast Early Stage Term Sheet 133

View from Seed

JANUARY 27, 2021

Investors take chances when they invest in seed stage companies, but founders take a profoundly larger chance when selecting a lead investor or board member for their company. Most importantly, we want to say thank you to each and every founder that we’ve had the privilege to work with.

LP 411

LP Early Stage Seed Stage Venture Capital 411

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

When my co-founders and I got the company scalable and repeatable, we hired an operating executive as the CEO and returned a billion dollars to each of our two lead investors. We established a team of founders who worked collaboratively. Lessons Learned. Six stages of failure and redemption.

Redemption 225

Redemption Cofounder Silicon Valley Burn Rate 225

David Teten

DECEMBER 15, 2018

Existing investors have said they’d be glad to invest…if she gets a new lead investor, which 6 months of searching have failed to generate. Almost all VCs will have companies that fail. The CEO comes to us. She has 3 months of cash left.

Startup 60

Startup Later Stage Technical Review Software Review 60

ReadWriteStart

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

Though still in early funding stages, Truora left Y-Combinator with regional investors Magma Partners and Kaszek Ventures, and foreign investors Y-Combinator and Accel. Elmer Ortega ’s Bogotá-based fintech company offers credit and digital financial services and raised $14M this year with lead investor Andreessen Horowitz.

Colombia 146

Colombia America Technical Review Startup 146

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 16, 2017

We felt proud to be the lead investor in Maker Studios at a sub $5 million valuation. Because that would a very long and bitchy article I’m sure. There will be more enormous successes in Los Angeles and it’s our job to get into enough of these.

IPO 214

IPO Los Angeles Technical Review Silicon Valley 214

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

See my summary on how lead investors think about building out their syndicate. . See Where Are the Deals?!: Best Practices of Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds in Originating Investment Opportunities. 5) Manage deal flow. 6) Due diligence. See How to Judge Investment Pitches. 7) Negotiate transaction.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Private Equity Management Cap Table 60

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

See my summary on how lead investors think about building out their syndicate. . See Where Are the Deals?!: Best Practices of Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds in Originating Investment Opportunities. 5) Manage deal flow. 6) Due diligence. See How to Judge Investment Pitches. 7) Negotiate transaction.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Private Equity Management Cap Table 60

YoungUpstarts

MAY 1, 2020

Most startups will need a viable product and proof of credibility before they can expect early-stage investors to really bite. The most common fundraising mistake I see is when early stage entrepreneurs focus all their attention on trying to secure a $1 million check from a lead investor. How to Secure Money to Ensure Success.

Early Stage 165

Early Stage Security Angel Investor Lead Investor 165

View from Seed

MAY 29, 2019

But there wasn’t always a clear lead investor that really rolled up her sleeves to work with a company. As each fund focuses more and more on winning a lead or co-lead slot in a syndicate, it will be more and more important to show that they can deliver on the value and responsibility of being a lead investor.

Syndication 267

Syndication Syndicate Cofounder Cap Table 267

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 17, 2023

Similarly, founders of these companies are looking for lead investors who can de-risk their path forward. Being a pure generalist VC makes it very difficult to convince savvy founders that you have the industry relationships, relevant pattern-matching, and density of experience to be their best lead investor.

Early Stage 88

Early Stage Lead Investor Matching Software 88

Gust

SEPTEMBER 27, 2014

As such, your public profile should include everything non-confidential about your business that may attract the interest of potential investors, and your private profile should contain complete, accurate information about all the details of the business that will lead investors to request an in-person meeting with you.

Angel Groups 159

Angel Groups Elevator Pitch Software Review Deal Flow 159

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 15, 2016

There are ways to do this politely and even if your investors don’t answer as directly as you may like – there is at least something that can be read into this. If you have mostly angels or don’t feel your existing investor can support you without new capital from the outside then you might want a smaller burn rate.

Burn Rate 150

Burn Rate Cap Table Valuation Software Review 150

Berkonomics

JANUARY 25, 2024

Board members or lead investors as coaches If you take smart money from a good angel or venture organization, the lead investor usually becomes your board member and has a vested interest in your success.

SBA 62

SBA Warrant Stock Options Vesting 62

Gust

AUGUST 6, 2014

Other investors will be invited to put in money on the same terms as the lead investor (and thus, as part of the same round.). However, because it is so damn difficult to get that lead investor, companies will often be desperate enough to try shortcuts. Good personal chemistry with the entrepreneur.

Term Sheet 170

Term Sheet Lead Investor Preferred Stock Common Stock 170

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 1, 2021

She’s also our lead investor interface, and great at articulating our vision to investors and partners alike. David has built a solid reputation for developing exceptional client and partner relationships and successfully delivering large-scale commercial construction projects.

Technical Review 110

Technical Review Founder Saudi Arabia Cofounder 110

View from Seed

FEBRUARY 4, 2021

It’s a super important, near permanent relationship, especially for a lead investor that is likely to take a board seat for many years. There is a well-known trope that choosing a VC to partner with is like marriage. This is true. But in my experience, the metaphor ends there.

Founder 280

Founder Lead Investor Portfolio Reputation 280

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 17, 2012

That means investors are going to buy that much of your company at a time. It means lead investors can get to 10, 15 or 20% ownership depending on whatever math they have that makes their own success model work. It's a function of a few things. That's just roughly the equilibrium we've come to in this world.

Venture Capital 128

Venture Capital Framework Dilution Equity 128

Lightspeed Venture Partners

APRIL 12, 2016

His full time job is CEO of Cheddar , the OTT video company he founded, and where Lightspeed is the lead investor. In addition, Jon Steinberg has also joined us, as a Venture Partner.

Technical Cofounder 60

Technical Cofounder Cofounder SCRUM Committed Capital 60

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 23, 2019

In short, sharing pricing expectations early with potential lead investors fundamentally potentially qualifies your conversations, but it also runs the risk of prematurely losing a potential financing partner, or even reduce options to maximize your fundraise outcome.

Cap Table 211

Cap Table Seed Stage Valuation Dilution 211

SiliconHills

APRIL 30, 2019

Active Capital, a new venture capital firm based in San Antonio and led by Pat Matthews, is the lead investor in the seed stage round of funding. Other investors include Altair. Cliently, which moved to San Antonio last July, announced Tuesday that is has received $1 million in venture capital.

San Antonio 98

San Antonio Seed Stage Venture Capital Lead Investor 98