There are two moments in an investor’s calendar when legal can either accelerate everything or derail it completely: when you’re raising a fund and when you’re exiting a position. These are the highest-stakes, most time-sensitive transactions in the cycle – and they’re also when legal bottlenecks tend to appear without warning. The problem isn’t that […]
Great companies get discounted – or delayed- because ownership is unclear. If your cap table is a patchwork of SAFEs, convertibles, side letters, and undocumented promises, buyers assume pain and price for it. A cap table detox is the cheapest way to protect value before an LOI. 1) Collect every instrument—no exceptionsPull term sheets, signed
Cap Table Detox: The 10 Moves That Save Your Deal Before Diligence Starts Read More »
South African deals don’t become difficult because valuations are ambitious or because the parties can’t agree on price. They become difficult because the transaction runs into execution realities that were visible from the start but never properly resolved – and by the time they surface formally, the investor has leverage they didn’t have at signing
The SA Deal Reality Check: What Separates Transactions That Close From Those That Don’t Read More »
Most founders begin preparing for a sale at the wrong moment. The LOI is signed, the buyer’s advisors are engaged, and suddenly every gap in the business becomes a negotiating point – because the buyer now controls the clock and every issue discovered after LOI is leverage they didn’t have before. The founders who achieve
The Pre-LOI Window: What to Fix Before Buyers Start Asking Questions Read More »
Investors doing regular deals in South Africa and across the region know the pattern: once the acquisition closes, the legal workload doesn’t reduce — it multiplies. And unlike the transaction legal work, which is scoped, budgeted, and managed, the post-close portfolio legal work tends to be reactive, unstructured, and expensive in ways that are difficult
The Portfolio Legal Pack: How Funds Reduce Legal Firefighting Across Portfolio Companies Read More »
Founders preparing for an exit tend to focus on the same thing: valuation. What the business is worth, what multiple is achievable, what comparable transactions look like. But the founders who consistently achieve the valuations they believe their businesses deserve understand something that takes most people one deal to learn. Buyers don’t just pay for
The Clarity Premium: Why Some Founders Get Full Price and Others Don’t Read More »
Investors who do regular deals know something that first-time buyers learn the hard way: the legal work doesn’t stop at signing – it often starts there. But the legal complexity in a well-run fund operates at two levels that require different thinking. There’s the fund level – formation, LP relationships, carry structures, regulatory compliance, and
The Portfolio Legal Work Nobody Plans For – and How Smart Funds Make It Repeatable Read More »
Founders often assume the exit process is about one thing: valuation. But buyers rarely discount because they dislike the product or the market. They discount when they can’t see the business clearly enough to trust what they’re buying – and when they find surprises mid-diligence, they don’t just adjust the price. They slow down, add
The Deal Gets Discounted When Buyers Can’t See the Business Clearly Read More »
We’ve seen it happen – even the most carefully planned M&A deals can be derailed as the finish line comes into sight. Seasoned investors and serial entrepreneurs alike can be caught off guard by a single oversight in a cap table. What seems like a promising funding round turns into a negotiation quagmire when multiple
Tangled Equity: Navigating the Minefield of Complex Cap Tables Read More »
When a founder sells their company, the headline price often feels like the culmination of years of hard work. There’s the euphoria of seeing the finish line at last. But that headline figure is not the same as cash in hand. Deals can, and often do, falter in the long stretch between signing and completion.We’ve
From Headline Price to Cash in Hand: Navigating the Final Stretch of your Business Sale Read More »
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Caveat's ai attorney,
Ask our AI a question about this topic, and one of our specialist lawyers will review the response and email you within 24 hours, free of charge.
KAI is free for Caveat friends and clients. To use KAI, complete the form below and look out for the AI’s answer, reviewed by a specialist lawyer, in your inbox. For the most accurate and helpful response, be as specific and detailed as possible. Provide all relevant facts and clearly state what you’d like answered.
Disclaimer: Kai is provided by Caveat in a bona fide attempt to make legal services more accessible to you. Caveat will not be liable for any damage, loss or expense arising from the use of this offering.
Feedback Welcome: Your experience matters to us. Please share feedback on this offering at info@caveatlegal.com to help us improve its efficacy.
