08/10/2026
Most raises fail before they launch. The reasons are boring, and that's the point.
When CB Insights analyzed 111 startup failure post-mortems in 2021, the single most-cited reason was running out of cash and failing to raise the next round. Second, in about 35% of cases, it was building something with no real market need.
Neither of those is a fundraising problem you fix with a better deck. They're readiness problems. A raise doesn't create demand or extend runway โ it exposes whether you had them.
Before you launch, the honest questions:
- Do your financials tell a story a stranger can follow and diligence?
- Is your cap table clean enough to survive a close read?
- Do your corporate documents actually exist and agree with each other?
- Is there a real market pulling, or are you hoping the raise proves there is?
A specialist broker-dealer runs those questions with you before the offering goes out โ because the diligence a BD does isn't a hurdle at the end, it's what should have shaped the raise from the start.
The unglamorous work is the work.
Questions about getting raise-ready? follacapital.com
Securities offered through Folla Capital, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC.
