Q1 Venture Financing Report Shows Deal Volumes Slow as Terms Move Toward the Investor

Palo Alto – May 4, 2017 – Cooley’s Q1 2017 Venture Financing Report finds both deal volumes and aggregate dollars raised decreased from prior quarters. Median pre-money valuations increased slightly in seed deals while decreasing in Series A and D+ transactions. Deal terms during the quarter slightly favored the investor and there were increases in deals with full participating liquidation preferences, as well as increases in deals utilizing pay-to-play and drag-along provisions.

“There is a lot of excitement and conviction about what the future will look like but a lot of uncertainty about what the timing of that will be,” said Adam Valkin, managing director at General Catalyst, a Cooley client. Valkin participated in an exclusive Q&A with Cooley to discuss the report and share his views on the state of the market. He added, “A question on people’s minds is: What is the right timing to invest in new platforms?”

The report is based on disclosed transactions during the first calendar quarter of 2017, in which Cooley served as counsel to either the company or the investor. Visit Cooley GO to view the interactive data visualization and to read the full Q&A with Valkin.

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