Runway, SAFEs, cap tables, term sheets, and investor updates: fundraising without the fog.
Every round sets how long the company can run and who owns what afterwards. These guides cover how much runway to plan for, how SAFEs, notes and term sheets shape dilution, and what changes when a round is priced down.
Start with runway, then the instruments, then the terms and the cap table they produce.
The Pulley cap table app closes on 8 December 2026. Opt in to Carta by 30 November, or export the stock ledger, 409A reports and 2026 ISO exercises yourself.
Equity dilution is the fall in each owner's percentage when a company issues new shares. The formula, median dilution by round, SAFEs, pools and anti-dilution.
An investor update template works because its lines are fixed, so a missing number reads as bad news. What to include, how often, and what the law requires.
A down round resets the price, but the liquidation preferences stacked above it decide whether anyone will fund the company. Clear the stack, fairly.
Startup valuation methods each borrow one market number: a target stake, a local median, an exit multiple. Name and date it before you negotiate the price.
Size an option pool on grants net of what leavers return: unvested options come back at once, and vested ones when the exit window closes.
A term sheet sets a round's price, preference and control terms. The money terms decide who is paid in a middling sale; the votes decide whether it happens.
A 409A valuation sets the strike price on startup options. Its discount to the preferred price measures the distance to an exit, and closes as one nears.
A cap table lists who owns a company's shares, options and SAFEs. A median round dilutes it by about 16%; pools and SAFEs priced in can cost founders more.
A SAFE note promises future shares with no interest or maturity. In the safe vs convertible note choice, its post-money cap puts later dilution on founders.
Startup runway is cash divided by monthly net burn. Size it for a raise that fails: rounds come about 23 months apart, so start raising with 16 months left.
Venture debt costs about 13% to 15% a year with fees and warrants. It beats equity as a bridge to a likely round and falls short as insurance against a miss.
