Monthly Archives: September 2026
The LOI Is Where Sellers Have the Most Leverage. Most Waste It.
For many startup founders, the goal is to sell to a larger corporation and to make a significant amount in doing so. In large part, these are mid-market transactions, and it is crucial for startup founders to understand how, at this stage, the letter of intent (LOI) can protect your sale. Indeed, the LOI… Read More »
Beyond the Headline: Where Sellers Lose Money After the Handshake
Mid-market M&A often hinges on a single deal. It doesn’t involve a full-time team to handle the sale of your startup, and there’s little room for minor mistakes without impacting the deal. After you’ve built your startup’s value, you want to make sure you don’t take steps or make errors that could cost you… Read More »
Earnouts: Deferred Purchase Price or Deferred Argument?
How can a Founder bridge a valuation gap with a buyer when selling their business? One solution is to structure a portion of the purchase price as an earnout. Earnouts function as the “prove-it” component of M&A purchase price and are often used to bridge disagreements on purchase price. We regularly see them in… Read More »
Different Stages of Startup Financing
Startup financing occurs in multiple stages, and startup founders should not expect to obtain all the funding they need up front. Indeed, many startups must go through multiple “seed rounds” before they can even move on to the next stage of financing. There is no specific number of financing rounds a startup must have—it… Read More »
Common Forms of Equity Financing
When a startup is seeking funding, equity financing is a common option for founders. Unlike debt financing, equity financing provides startups with money for short-term needs—including building a team and creating a minimum viable product (MVP )—without going into debt. With equity financing, startup founders don’t repay the entities or individuals who provide equity… Read More »
What are the Pros and Cons of Angel Investors?
When your startup is considering early-stage funding options, one of the possibilities for raising capital that you may be considering is working with one or more angel investors. Angel investors – those investors that are more organized and sophisticated than friends and family, but not quite as formal as a venture capital or investment… Read More »
What is a Hybrid Incubator/Accelerator?
Obtaining funding, or raising capital, is among the most important steps in the life of a startup. If your startup does not have funding to build a team, conduct market research, and create a minimum viable product, you are not likely to be able to meet your ultimate business goals. But programs differ enormously… Read More »