Down Round
topic on 3 shows · 11 statements across 10 episodes
the Official SaaStr Podcast 
Top Founders 
20VC
11 statements about Down Round, every show
Refusing Down Rounds Due to 2020 Valuations Is Irrational
“When I see companies sometimes unwilling to raise a round because it's going to be lower than this, like, fictitious number they have in their own head. I see this with, like, IPOs now, where, like, companies are like, oh, well, I can't go public unless I hit …”
Siroker: Founders should always choose a down round over a structured up round
“If you're a founder listening to this and you're contemplating an up round with a liquidation preference more than one or a down round, do 100% of the time do the down round.”
Fisher: Inflated exit-level valuations are far worse than down rounds
“Down rounds are not problematic. Much more problematic, again, are valuations that that are essentially in exit territory, or far in excess of exit territory. It's really hard to recover from that.”
Fisher: Transparent leadership helps startup CEOs navigate down rounds
“I think being honest as an, as a CEO and speaking to your employees like adults and not children is the way to get past it.”
Kaden: VCs are highly hesitant to lead down rounds and reprice startups
“We are seeing across the board, investors are very hesitant to come in and reprice things, and to do the down round, and deal with the anti-dilution, and navigate the mess.”
Loverro: IVP saw two potential down rounds in a single week
“We're seeing, I would call it a trickle, but like a noticeable uptick from Q-four in deal flow, and we saw two potential down rounds this week.”
Pepper: Down Rounds Are Not Fatal and Founders Should Accept Them
“Down round isn't the end of the world. Look at our public companies. They're all down and they're surviving and it's not ideal, but you can celebrate having raised a prior round at a really low cost to capital. And if you have to do a down round and move forwa…”
Emil Michael predicts tech down rounds in Q4/Q1, shutdowns in Q2/Q3
“I think we're at the end of the beginning, though, not the end of the end. The next phase is structured rounds, down rounds, like true down rounds and then sales were, unfortunately, companies sort of not making it, and I think that'll happen in Q one, you kno…”
Morris: Ignoring unit economics for customer growth leads to disaster
“Now, we have seen fintech companies that have eschewed the whole notion of unit economics. Hey, what does it matter? I've got a net promoter score that's off the scale. I can book customers for five bucks. I have no idea what the attrition rate's going to be, …”
Weinberg: Founders considering preemptive rounds must do realistic bottoms-up milestone planning
“The conversation usually with them is a, what I would call like a private one-on-one of, take your sales hat off, For a second, take your hype person hat off. Cause as a founder, you know, you're selling every single day, whether it's to recruits or customers …”