Audit Existing Material and Set Cap Table Baseline
The founder gathers all existing equity agreements, preliminary share split notes, cap table spreadsheets, and incorporation filings. They import these raw data points into the standardised Bertie cap table model to establish an accurate baseline of current company ownership.
Establishing a single source of truth for historical and current equity allocations eliminates conflicting ownership records. This grounds the capitalization strategy in verifiable baseline data, preventing costly legal renegotiations during future fundraising rounds.
A populated baseline template detailing initial share issuance, share classes, nominal values, and official company register details. The founder must provide supporting legal documentation or signed founder agreements for every recorded share allocation.
Five questions an expert would ask when reviewing your output
Use these to challenge assumptions, pressure-test your logic, and check the quality of this action's output in the context of the parent task and wider venture development.
- 1
What official legal documentation verifies the exact share counts and nominal values recorded in this initial baseline?
- 2
Why have you chosen this specific share structure and class distinction at incorporation rather than a simple ordinary share model?
- 3
How have you accounted for pre-incorporation IP transfers or sweat equity contributions in this initial ownership breakdown?
- 4
Where are the discrepancies between informal founder verbal agreements and the formal filings made at Companies House?
- 5
How does this starting baseline reflect the true economic contribution of each co-founder relative to their ongoing operational commitments?