Quality checks on a startup fundraise, from authority and cash to data security

Use this checklist at readiness, application, diligence, offer and completion. It should not be used as a substitute for legal, financial, regulatory or tax advice.

Printable stage checklist. Print this table for a paper record.

Check	Readiness	Application	Diligence	Offer	Completion
Decision and cash	Approve milestone and budget	Show cash runway	Test base and delayed cases	Confirm net proceeds	Map funds to budget
Company and ownership	Confirm legal name and directors	Check cap table	Reconcile statutory books	Verify authority	File post-completion records
Financial and commercial evidence	Label historic figures	Show forecasts	Trace market and customer claims	Confirm no new claims	Compare actuals
Route fit	Confirm scheme eligibility	Submit grant or loan bid	Check SEIS or EIS limits	Confirm FCA position	Calendar claims
Communications and permissions	Review audience	Draft promotion	Check approvals	Sign off versions	Archive records
Data and security	Map data	Set lawful basis	Test rooms and suppliers	Confirm deletion	Review access
Offer and completion	List conditions	Set owners	Check documents	Confirm clearing	Assign filings
Delivery	Set budget	Start claims log	Track reports	Confirm drawdown	Close temporary access

What to take away

A tick on the checklist means evidence exists and a named reviewer has checked it.
An empty field or unresolved disagreement should stay open rather than become a pass.
Pause release for material inconsistency, missing authority, unreviewed financial promotion or exposed personal data.
Sample checks and headline checks both matter, because a clean cover page proves nothing.
After an error, preserve the version, assess recipients, correct clearly and record the cause.

Decision and cash

The milestone, amount and intended use are approved.
Monthly cash reconciles to the current bank position.
Base, delayed, partial and no-funding cases exist.
Net proceeds include immediate deductions and fees.
A fallback has an owner and trigger date.
Base case shows at least 12 months of cash runway after close, and a delayed case shows at least 9 months.
Fees and deductions are shown as a range of typically 3% to 7% of the round.

Company and ownership

Legal name, number, office and directors match current records.
Statutory books, cap table and filings reconcile.
Options, convertibles and promised interests are included.
Board and shareholder authority has been checked.
Conflicts and related parties are recorded.
Accounts are due 9 months after the accounting reference date for a private company, and a confirmation statement is due every 12 months.

Use Companies House to check public filings while retaining the company's own authoritative transaction and statutory records.

Company and ownership checks

Legal name, number, office, directors match
Statutory books, cap table, filings reconcile
Options, convertibles, promised interests included
Board and shareholder authority checked
Conflicts and related parties recorded

Financial and commercial evidence

Historic, contracted, pipeline and forecast figures are labelled.
Accounts and management information use consistent periods.
Customer logos, quotes and contracts have permission and context.
Market figures show source, date, geography and method.
Risk and dependency statements match the model.
Historic accounts cover at least 12 months and forecasts cover at least 24 months.
Flag any customer above 25% of revenue as a concentration risk, a common underwriting threshold.

Route fit

The grant, lender or investor fits stage, geography and amount.
Current terms and deadlines were reopened.
Grant contribution and payment timing are modelled.
Debt repayment, security and guarantees are recorded.
Equity dilution, rights and later-round effects are modelled.
SEIS relief is capped at £250,000 of investment per company over its lifetime; EIS relief is capped at £5m per year and £12m over the company's lifetime, subject to qualifying conditions.
Innovate UK Smart Grants typically fund 70% of eligible project costs for SMEs, with project costs usually between £100,000 and £2m.
British Business Bank Start Up Loans are up to £25,000 per borrower and £100,000 per business.
FCA authorisation is required for regulated activities; check if the promoter needs authorisation or relies on an exemption under the financial promotion regime.

Communications and permissions

The final deck, advert, email and landing page were reviewed.
Audience, channel, version and approval are archived.
Financial-promotion and regulatory questions have documented advice.
EIS or SEIS wording states actual status and limits.
Affiliates and advisers have withdrawal instructions.
Allow at least 5 business days for reviewer sign-off before any promotion goes live.

The FCA's PERG 8 chapter supports perimeter analysis but does not replace a fact-specific professional decision.

Data and security

Data purpose, lawful basis and roles are recorded.
Rooms use named, staged and expiring access.
Irrelevant personal data is removed or redacted.
Suppliers, transfers, incidents, retention and deletion are covered.
Former participants no longer have access.
Report a personal data breach to the ICO within 72 hours where the threshold is met, and keep a processing record.

The ICO's controller and processor guidance helps test roles through actual activity.

Offer and completion

Every condition and document has an owner.
Net cash and clearing dates are confirmed.
Agreements, articles, disclosure and cap table agree.
Signatories saw the final documents and had authority.
Filings, certificates and records are assigned after completion.
File the return of allotment at Companies House within one month of allotment and allow at least 10 business days for completion conditions.

Delivery

Funds are mapped to the approved budget and milestone.
Grant claims, debt payments and investor reports are calendared.
Temporary rooms and tools have been closed or reviewed.
Actual cost and timing are compared with budget.
Corrections and unresolved obligations remain visible.
Calendar grant claims at least 30 days before each deadline and investor reports within 45 days of quarter end.

How to evidence each tick

Use "not applicable" only with a reason. An empty field, unavailable source or unresolved disagreement should stay open rather than being converted into a pass to meet a deadline.

Name the reviewer, the approver and the informed owner for each section. Use a RACI table where roles overlap.

Sample at least 10% of items or five records, whichever is greater. Recalculate one model output, trace one market figure, open one customer record, test one guest permission and follow one condition through completion.

A clean cover page does not prove the files beneath it agree.

Worked example: paused fundraise

An illustrative seed round reaches offer stage. The cap table shows a promised option grant with no board minute.

That is a missing authority and a material inconsistency, two pause triggers in the takeaways. The named reviewer can reopen the gate only after the board minute and option agreement are in the data room. The round then moves to completion.

Common questions

What does a tick on this checklist actually mean?

It points to the dated record and reviewer named in the evidence log. The checklist is used at readiness, application, diligence, offer and completion, and it should not replace legal, financial, regulatory or tax advice. For each section, link the tick to a dated record and reviewer.

When should a fundraise be paused?

Pause release for a material inconsistency, missing authority, unreviewed financial promotion, exposed personal data or unsupported investment claim. Name the person who can reopen the gate and the evidence required. An empty field or unresolved disagreement should stay open rather than become a pass.

What should happen if an error is found after distribution?

Preserve the version, assess recipients, issue a clear correction and update connected documents. Record the cause and prevention change rather than closing the item when the wording is fixed. Temporary rooms and tools should also be closed or reviewed, and unresolved obligations kept visible.