Financial diligence rarely kills a deal. It does slow deals down, and slow deals lose leverage. The fix is preparing the data room before you need it.
What investors ask for first
- Monthly financial statements for the last 24 months, closed and reconciled
- A revenue bridge: new, expansion, contraction and churn by month
- Current cap table that ties to signed documents
- Tax filings and any open notices
- Material contracts, including your largest customers
Where deals get stuck
Revenue recognised on cash instead of accrual, SAFEs missing from the cap table and sales tax nobody registered for. Each one is fixable, but each one takes weeks if you start after the term sheet.
We run a mock diligence review three months before a planned raise. It is the cheapest insurance a founder can buy.
