[ { "rogueId": "fundraising.convertible_outstanding", "slug": "convertible_outstanding", "domain": "fundraising", "defaultLabel": "Outstanding Convertible Amount", "description": "Total principal value of SAFEs and convertible notes outstanding that have not yet converted to equity. These convert at the next priced round, typically at a discount or valuation cap (per the standard Y Combinator SAFE templates and the National Venture Capital Association convertible-note model). Common pitfall: a SAFE stack quietly accumulating between rounds can convert into 15–25% dilution at the next priced round, surprising founders who modeled \"we only sold 10% in this priced round\" math. Boards should always see the fully-diluted cap table including SAFE conversion.", "fieldType": "currency", "unit": null, "maturity": "general", "suggestedForStages": [ "preSeed", "seed", "seriesA" ], "defaultOwningFunctions": [ "Finance" ], "stageRelevance": { "preSeed": "core", "seed": "core", "seriesA": "recommended" }, "definitionSource": { "tier": "published", "sourceName": "Y Combinator Post-Money SAFE (2018+ standard form)", "sourceUrl": "https://www.ycombinator.com/documents", "sectionRef": "Post-Money SAFE — Definitions (Purchase Amount)", "publicationDate": "2018-09-01", "attributionNotice": null }, "formula": "Sum of principal outstanding on all unconverted convertible instruments (SAFEs per the Y Combinator post-money SAFE template; convertible notes per the NVCA Model Documents). Pre-conversion — actual dilution depends on the next-round price and the SAFE caps/discounts.", "whyItMatters": "Hidden dilution that hits at the next priced round. A material SAFE stack changes the math on what a \"20% Series A\" actually costs the founders.", "interpretationGuidance": "When `convertible_outstanding` is more than ~10% of the company's next-likely post-money valuation, the board should require a fully-diluted cap-table walk-through at the next priced round modeling exercise. Highest-cap and lowest-cap SAFE conversion paths should both be modeled.", "relatedKpiIds": [ "fundraising.pre_money_valuation", "fundraising.post_money_valuation", "fundraising.founder_dilution" ] }, { "rogueId": "fundraising.founder_dilution", "slug": "founder_dilution", "domain": "fundraising", "defaultLabel": "Founder Dilution", "description": "Percentage of founders' fully-diluted ownership that is given up in the new round, including any pre-close option-pool top-up (the \"option pool shuffle\" — option-pool expansion taken in the pre-money dilutes existing holders rather than new investors). Common pitfall: founders often quote the \"investor dilution\" (new money / post-money) and forget the option-pool top-up component. The Carta State of Private Markets quarterly reports publish stage-typical dilution ranges that boards should use as a sanity check.", "fieldType": "percentage", "unit": "%", "maturity": "general", "suggestedForStages": [ "preSeed", "seed", "seriesA", "seriesB", "seriesC" ], "defaultOwningFunctions": [ "Finance" ], "stageRelevance": { "preSeed": "core", "seed": "core", "seriesA": "core", "seriesB": "core", "seriesC": "core" }, "definitionSource": { "tier": "published", "sourceName": "Carta State of Private Markets Q3 2025", "sourceUrl": "https://carta.com/data/state-of-private-markets-q3-2025/", "sectionRef": "Seed Round Dilution", "publicationDate": "2025-10-01", "attributionNotice": null }, "benchmark": { "p25": 12, "median": 18, "p75": 24, "unit": "%", "sourceName": "Carta State of Private Markets Q3 2025", "sourceYear": "2025", "higherIsBetter": false }, "formula": "founder_dilution_pct = (founder_shares_pre − founder_shares_post) / founder_shares_pre × 100. Includes both new-money dilution and any pre-close option-pool top-up borne in the pre-money. Per Carta State of Private Markets methodology.", "whyItMatters": "Tracks founder skin-in-the-game over time — sustained ownership matters for long-term motivation and signaling to future investors. Boards balance dilution discipline against capital needs.", "interpretationGuidance": "Per Carta State of Private Markets benchmarks, typical per-round dilution for the priced round (excluding pool top-up) is 18–22% at seed, 18–22% at A, 12–18% at B, 10–15% at C+. Out-of-band dilution either signals weak negotiating position or a strategic priced-up next-round set-up.", "relatedKpiIds": [ "fundraising.pre_money_valuation", "fundraising.post_money_valuation", "fundraising.total_round_size" ] }, { "rogueId": "fundraising.post_money_valuation", "slug": "post_money_valuation", "domain": "fundraising", "defaultLabel": "Post-Money Valuation", "description": "Company valuation immediately after the new round closes, including the new capital raised — the canonical \"valuation\" number quoted in TechCrunch headlines. Per NVCA Model Documents, post-money = pre-money + new money raised. Common pitfall: post-money math gets messy with SAFEs — modern post-money SAFEs (the YC 2018+ form, per the Y Combinator SAFE primer) fix dilution at the SAFE's valuation cap regardless of subsequent priced-round pricing, so the board should always reconcile the headline post-money against the fully-diluted cap table.", "fieldType": "currency", "unit": null, "maturity": "general", "suggestedForStages": [ "preSeed", "seed", "seriesA", "seriesB", "seriesC" ], "defaultOwningFunctions": [ "Finance" ], "stageRelevance": { "preSeed": "recommended", "seed": "recommended", "seriesA": "recommended", "seriesB": "recommended", "seriesC": "recommended" }, "definitionSource": { "tier": "published", "sourceName": "NVCA Model Legal Documents (2024 revision)", "sourceUrl": "https://nvca.org/model-legal-documents/", "sectionRef": "Series A Charter — Post-Money Valuation convention", "publicationDate": "2024-01-01", "attributionNotice": null }, "formula": "post_money_valuation = pre_money_valuation + total_round_size. Per NVCA Model Documents. With outstanding post-money SAFEs, reconcile against the fully-diluted cap table — SAFE dilution is fixed at the cap regardless of priced-round price.", "whyItMatters": "The headline number the company carries forward — sets the goalposts for the next round (a down-round means raising at a lower post-money) and the strike-price floor for new option grants.", "interpretationGuidance": "Watch the post-money-to-ARR multiple (or post-money-to-net-burn if pre-revenue): public sources covering 2024–2025 (e.g. SaaS Capital \"Private SaaS Company Valuations\" report, valuation-multiples section; Sapphire / KBCM SaaS Survey, \"valuations\" chapter) show median ARR multiples have compressed materially from 2021 peaks. Pull the current edition for the live range — do not rely on a memorized number — and flag out-of-band multiples as next-round price risk. Where you only have rough heuristics, mark them as \"directional, not citation-grade\" rather than fabricating a precise band.", "relatedKpiIds": [ "fundraising.pre_money_valuation", "fundraising.total_round_size", "fundraising.founder_dilution", "sales.arr", "finance.net_burn_rate" ] }, { "rogueId": "fundraising.pre_money_valuation", "slug": "pre_money_valuation", "domain": "fundraising", "defaultLabel": "Pre-Money Valuation", "description": "Company valuation negotiated with investors immediately before the new round closes — the denominator for the new investors' ownership math. Per the NVCA Model Documents, pre-money = post-money − new money raised. Common pitfall: when convertible instruments (SAFEs, notes) are outstanding, the \"headline\" pre-money the CEO quotes and the effective pre-money after conversion can differ materially — the board should always ask for both. Equally important: option-pool top-ups taken pre-close come out of the pre-money share count, diluting founders not investors (the \"option pool shuffle\").", "fieldType": "currency", "unit": null, "maturity": "general", "suggestedForStages": [ "preSeed", "seed", "seriesA", "seriesB", "seriesC" ], "defaultOwningFunctions": [ "Finance" ], "stageRelevance": { "preSeed": "core", "seed": "core", "seriesA": "core", "seriesB": "core", "seriesC": "core" }, "definitionSource": { "tier": "published", "sourceName": "NVCA Model Legal Documents (2024 revision)", "sourceUrl": "https://nvca.org/model-legal-documents/", "sectionRef": "Series A Charter — Original Issue Price", "publicationDate": "2024-01-01", "attributionNotice": null }, "formula": "pre_money_valuation = post_money_valuation − total_round_size. Per NVCA Model Documents convention. Effective pre-money after SAFE/note conversion can be lower than headline — surface both when convertibles are material.", "whyItMatters": "Sets the price for the round. Drives `founder_dilution`, the option-pool top-up math, and the precedent for the next round (down-rounds are punishing to recover from).", "interpretationGuidance": "Compare to stage-relative ranges from quarterly Carta / PitchBook reports (e.g. seed median has moved $12–18M post-money in 2024–2025). A pre-money below stage median typically signals either harsher terms or a strategic discount; above stage median demands real metric backing.", "relatedKpiIds": [ "fundraising.post_money_valuation", "fundraising.total_round_size", "fundraising.founder_dilution", "fundraising.convertible_outstanding" ] }, { "rogueId": "fundraising.total_round_size", "slug": "total_round_size", "domain": "fundraising", "defaultLabel": "Total Round Size", "description": "Total new capital being raised in the current round across all participants — the lead, follow-on investors, employee/strategic allocations, and any side-letter pieces. This is the figure that goes into the post-money math. Common pitfall: companies sometimes confuse `total_round_size` with `target_raise` — the round size is final and used in valuation math, while the target is what management is aiming for and can move during the raise. Boards should expect a specific breakdown by investor when this number is reported.", "fieldType": "currency", "unit": null, "maturity": "general", "suggestedForStages": [ "preSeed", "seed", "seriesA", "seriesB", "seriesC" ], "defaultOwningFunctions": [ "Finance" ], "stageRelevance": { "preSeed": "core", "seed": "core", "seriesA": "core", "seriesB": "core", "seriesC": "core" }, "definitionSource": { "tier": "published", "sourceName": "NVCA Model Legal Documents (2024 revision)", "sourceUrl": "https://nvca.org/model-legal-documents/", "sectionRef": "Series A Stock Purchase Agreement — Aggregate Investment", "publicationDate": "2024-01-01", "attributionNotice": null }, "formula": "Sum of all new-money allocations in the round (lead + follow-on + strategic + employee + side letters). Distinct from `target_raise` (intent) and `committed_amount` (in-progress signal).", "whyItMatters": "Determines the round's post-money valuation and dilution math. Also signals investor concentration risk — a round with 80% from one investor differs structurally from a round with 5 equal participants.", "interpretationGuidance": "Round size noticeably below target typically signals investor demand weakness (consider repricing or scope cut). Round size meaningfully above target signals oversubscription — a healthy signal but raises governance questions on how allocations are decided.", "relatedKpiIds": [ "fundraising.target_raise", "fundraising.committed_amount", "fundraising.pre_money_valuation", "fundraising.post_money_valuation", "fundraising.founder_dilution" ] } ]