Raising Capital for Your Business [PODCAST]

In a recent episode of The Transaction Abstract今天，乔·赫尔曼(Joe Hellman)与中端市场主管托马斯·德米尼科(Thomas DeMinico)坐了下来&A Advisory Group with Bank of Montreal (BMO). Tom has more than 12 years of experience advising clients on M&A 和 capital raise transactions. 他和乔一起分享了他对融资的见解，包括融资的最佳方式和需要注意的潜在障碍. Listen to the episode below. 

Tom referred to raising capital as an art, “the art of bringing third-party financial resources to your business.“在大多数情况下，筹集资金是为了支持一项具体的业务或战略努力.g., growth-, operational-, or shareholder-related motives). Tom identified three “buckets” most capital raising activity falls into:

1. Operating Expenses 和 Working Capital
   募集的资金可用于满足基本的经营需求，如市场营销, 工资, talent acquisition 和 retention, 和 new inventory purchases. 这些都是有助于维持公司当前业绩的费用的例子.
2. Property 和 Equipment
   Manufacturing firms, in particular, will often raise capital to perform necessary equipment maintenance. 高度以设备为导向的行业也可能利用第三方资本来扩大生产和推动增长.
3. 金融
   资本可以用来为希望离开企业的商业伙伴或其他大股东的成功退出奠定基础. This often involves performing debt recapitalization.

In the simplest terms, 筹集资金意味着向企业注入现金，但这样做是为了特定的目的，旨在使企业及其股东受益. As with any transaction, 投资者对投资回报率的期望必须纳入公司使用资金的战略.

Types of Capital You Can Raise

有许多不同的方式来筹集资金，但都将分为两类: debt capital 和 equity capital. 无论是哪种形式的融资，最常见的方式都是“私人配售”, raising capital from private investors. 

早期阶段的公司更倾向于从个人天使投资人那里筹集资金.

大, 已成立的公司可以选择通过首次公开募股(IPO)筹集资金。. If a company is already publicly traded, 可能会通过后续或二次发行来增加资本机会. 特殊目的收购公司(SPAC)在某些情况下可以完成IPO. SPAC可能更可取，因为它的执行时间是完成标准IPO所需时间的一小部分. 监管机构正在审查SPACs，这可能会导致流程和时间表的变化. 

最后，众筹已经成为一些小企业获得资金的一种流行方式.

What’s Behind the Scenes When Raising Capital

Most listeners of The Transaction Abstract are probably familiar with the popular reality show Shark Tank 和 the outsized personalities it features as its investors. While this is somewhat dramatized, it provides a sense of the way pitches are carefully constructed, 和 complex negotiations take place.

你的时间线会根据你选择的融资途径而有所不同. 这些差异不仅反映了谈判的过程，而且反映了各种过程, 程序, 和 regulations that different investors follow. 所有投资者在提供资金之前都会详细评估一个机会.

The typical time period for an individual transaction is 3-10 months, but outcomes are highly variable.

优化时间框架对早期创业者来说尤为重要, who often find themselves in a cycle of “Always Be Raising (Capital).“根据生命周期阶段的不同，早期业务的流程可能更长或更短, technology offering, disruptiveness, 和 growth potential. 如果有明确的动机促使投资者通过这样做来优化增长，那么投资者可能会被诱使更快地完成交易.

并非所有企业都对投资者资本有兴趣，但大多数企业都有潜力

企业不一定要进入短期高增长的“热门”行业，才能吸引投资者的资金. However, many businesses do not actively seek these opportunities. Whether a first-time or serial entrepreneur, it is important to ask the following questions about a transaction:

• Is the plan right?
• How much capital will be raised?
• In what time period will the capital be available?
• How much will be 稀释 versus non-稀释?

所有这些都归结为一个问题:“我能负担得起吗?我是否愿意采取必要的措施来完成这个计划??” Although the calculus can be complex, 企业所有者可以获得各种融资方式，他们可以组合使用，以达到他们想要的退出.

One critical concept to underst和 in capital raising is 稀释, which most often relates to equity capital. 股权稀释指的是外部投资者因投资而获得的股权水平. 其他形式的股权稀释也存在，包括高级管理团队的期权.

In general, entrepreneurs seek agreements that minimize 稀释. A better valuation provides for less 稀释 overall. If there are clear reasons to believe valuation will soon increase, it may make a strong argument to delay your capital raising activities.

Right 和 Wrong Ways to Go About Capital Raising

There are pitfalls business owners can encounter when they raise capital, especially for the first time. Tom highlighted two specific issues they can prepare for in advance:

• 时机
  时机 is tricky since it is impossible to ever time anything “perfectly.然而，这是企业主最常问的问题之一:“我应该什么时候筹集这笔资金??答案高度依赖于内部和外部因素，包括:
  • When do you actually need the funds to be available?
  • What is the trajectory of the business?
  • What emerging market factors may influence the rise?
• Preparation
  Before raising capital, 一个组织必须配备一个老练的投资者所需要的尽职调查的文件和合理化. 财务文件、合同和法律文件都必须可用. This smooths the process 和 can significantly improve the outcome. 相反，准备不足往往会导致重大的时间和估值影响.

Raising Capital as an Early Stage Business

For independent entrepreneurs 和 family-owned businesses, strategic transactions can be complex 和 time-consuming. They also require challenging “game-time” decisions. 在交易过程中，早期企业往往被要求比成熟企业付出更多.

In addition to equity stake, this can take the form of consent rights, 股息, liquidation preference, 和更多的. Optimizing these terms often dem和s the expertise of an outside M&A advisor, especially among small businesses with lean internal teams.

一般的法律和金融专家在任何交易中都有一席之地&A advisor makes a key strategic difference. Raising capital functions as a full-time job on top of running the business; it is best overseen by a specialist with complete visibility into the process.

一个M&顾问不仅支持所有必要的交易准备，还可以帮助企业主接触合适的投资者. 因为顾问对投资者标准和你的退出要求都很了解, they ensure you do not waste time reaching out to the wrong audience. 

The advisor’s role also includes day-to-day outreach activities, which may free business owners from many hours of work. 广阔的视野使顾问能够与投资者建立联系，这些投资者相信企业的故事和目标，并将长期发挥作用, supportive partners.