Foundations for Funding and the Importance of Understanding Investments

Foundations for Funding and the importance of understanding Investments

 

In this course, we discuss the elements of a right pitch deck, and the importance of making the right impression on the investors.We further explore building a framework around the key pointers to be kept in mind while speaking with an investor.  

Lesson 1 : Telling your story to a Tier – 1 VC


Speaker : Abhilash Inumella the CEO of Samosa Labs, deep dives into funding and investments for your startup.

Video A.  Was the pitch right when you met the investor for the first time ? (:00 – 12:07)

Video B.  What is your first opening conversation about a product or idea ? (12:07 – 25:25)

Quick Read :
Creating a pitch deck

Reading Articles :
Elements  to build a pitch deck
Startup Investors in India


Lesson 2: Credibly communicating tangible biz value

Speaker: Nikunj Thakkar in discussion with CIE on how to communicate the value of your product .Nikunj holds 5+ years of experience building robust & scalable distributed multi-tenant systems along with experience of designing data retention and disclosure platforms serving multiple clients from telecom industry.

Video A.  How do you communicate that value which is able to be seen in your product ? (:00 – 9:10)

Video B.   Setting expectations with your customer (9:10 – 18:59)

Quick Read:
Understanding a business valuation

Reading Articles:

What is the value of your business
Understanding the concept of business valuations


Lesson 3:Understanding Term Sheets

Speaker: Dhiraj Kumar Sinha is a Lawyer and Company Secretary with around 18 years of experience. His expertise lies in Contracts drafting and negotiations Legal Affairs in diversified sectors like aviation, real estate, financial services, renewal energy and consulting.

Video A.   What are the key documents to have in place for an investment process?(:00 sec to 24:54 sec)

Video B.   Who is the ideal advisor for a founder taking structured investment for the first time?(24:55 sec to 41:38 sec)

Quick Read :
Term Sheet Guide

Reading Article:
Understanding Term Sheets
Term sheets and definitive documents


Lesson 4:Understanding startup Valuation and exits.

Speaker: Vineeta Gupta has had a long financial career in Investment banking, working with VCs, Private Equity funds and the like. She is the investment Manager at SucSEED Indovation Fund.

Video A.  What is startup valuation? How does value get translated to valuation?(:00 sec to 18:23 sec)

Video B.  What are the defense mechanisms for startups to defend value? (18:24 sec to 38:19 sec)

Quick reads:
Startup Valuation

Reading Material:
Startup Valuation Methods
How does valuation work


Lesson 5:Investment Process – The legals demystified.

Speaker: Ekta Bahl is a corporate lawyer, actively engaged in the startup ecosystem.

Video A.  What is the legal investment process for each stage of startup funding? (:00 sec to 17:27)

Video B.  What are the things to look out for in relationship contracts and founders agreement? (17:28 sec to 31:42 sec)


Quick Reads:
Asses your Startup

Reading Material:
How investments work
Investing Process


Lesson 6: Financial Processes, Structures and Compliance

Speaker: Krishna is the founder of JSS Pro Services and an active investor with the SucSEED Indovation fund and other channels. He has a strong financial background and has worked with a number of startups as well.

Video A.  Instances of startups being in trouble for their books not being in order. (:00 sec to 15:34 sec)

Video B.  What are the various elements of finance and accounting financial compliances that come into play?(15:35 sec to 31:46 sec)

Quick Read:
Compliance department’s definition

Reading article:

Annual Compliance Checklist for your Startup
Legal and compliances for Startup