Valuation Jumps, Option Strike Doesn't: Three Checks
A new round changes your paper value, the 409A floor for future grants, and the IPO float starting price — not your old strike.
| Newest | Section | Read |
|---|---|---|
| Valuation Jumps, Option Strike Doesn't: Three Checks | Startup Watch | 3 MIN |
| Startup valuation after price moves: the closed round is the mark | Fundraising Mechanics | 3 MIN |
| IPO lock-up is a schedule, not a cliff | Equity | 3 MIN |
| Tender offer sell-or-hold: check price, cap, and eligibility | Startup Watch | 3 MIN |
| Check your tender cap against the 20% median before you sign | Fundraising Mechanics | 3 MIN |
Latest
- How to Read a Below-Mark Exit: Cash, Rollover, Tax Assets
- The 3 Leaver Lines That Decide Your ESOP Cash Out
- Value Vested ESOPs When an IPO Prices Below the Last Round
- Directed Shares Decide Day-One IPO Exit or Lock-Up
- Calculate Your All-Stock Merger Share Range
- Calculate Your Payout in a Fixed-Dollar All-Stock Deal
- Poker Is Solved. Your Biggest Leak Is One Spot — and 5 Seconds to Fix.
- Cash, Stock, Earnout: Three Dates That Pay You
- Below-Range IPO: Mark Vested Equity at Actual Price, Check Strike and 409A
- Before an IPO, Ask 3 Questions About Your Option Settlement
- What a Convertible Note Does to Your Equity Before a Priced Round
- Underwater options in a cash deal: the one-minute payout test
- Inducement Awards After an Acquisition: Strike and Closing Vesting
- Decode an Acquisition 8-K to See Your Equity Payout
Startup valuation after price moves: the closed round is the mark
A private stake is marked by the next priced event that actually closes, not by the valuation a company is trying to raise at.
IPO lock-up is a schedule, not a cliff
Before you plan to sell, map your holder class, release caps, earnings windows, and tax dates instead of waiting for a fixed unlock date.
Tender offer sell-or-hold: check price, cap, and eligibility
A tender offer is a dated, capped, eligibility-limited way to sell; run the three checks before the close date.
Check your tender cap against the 20% median before you sign
Before signing a tender offer, run a three-line check on inclusion, sale cap, and market band.
More
Directed Shares Decide Day-One IPO Exit or Lock-Up
The directed-share paragraph in the underwriting section tells you whether an employee IPO purchase is liquid on day one or locked with the rest of the offering.
Calculate Your All-Stock Merger Share Range
Check the exchange-ratio clause first: a fixed ratio gives one number, while a VWAP collar gives a floor and cap for your converted share count.
Calculate Your Payout in a Fixed-Dollar All-Stock Deal
A fixed-dollar all-stock deal pays you in shares set by a late VWAP, so your payout moves with the acquirer's price.
Poker Is Solved. Your Biggest Leak Is One Spot — and 5 Seconds to Fix.
Every poker player has a leak. You know the one — the "small" mistake you make a hundred times a week that you can't see because you're the one making it. A solver doesn't fix leaks the way a coach does. It finds them in seconds, prices them exactly, and proves the fix. Here's the math of one.
Cash, Stock, Earnout: Three Dates That Pay You
In a mixed-consideration exit, cash-at-close, lock-up end, and earnout target definitions set the real payout clock, not the headline price.
Below-Range IPO: Mark Vested Equity at Actual Price, Check Strike and 409A
When an IPO prices below range, mark vested shares at the actual offer and first-day price, then compare your strike and 409A to see the real delta.
Before an IPO, Ask 3 Questions About Your Option Settlement
Vested options can still shrink at exercise. Check early exercise, settlement type, and tax withholding before you count your shares.
What a Convertible Note Does to Your Equity Before a Priced Round
A convertible note defers ownership until conversion, so model your stake as a range using the conversion price, discount, cap, and trigger.
Underwater options in a cash deal: the one-minute payout test
Underwater options can pay nothing in a cash merger. Compare strike to price, then check cancellation and cashless-exercise terms.
Inducement Awards After an Acquisition: Strike and Closing Vesting
Check the strike price, closing-vesting tranche, remaining schedule, and plan exception in an inducement grant to see what you keep after an acquisition.
Decode an Acquisition 8-K to See Your Equity Payout
The headline purchase price is not your payout; the 8-K retention exhibit sets target, maximum, vesting, and acceleration.
Read the Form D Before You Take a SAFE
A SAFE filing shows money sold, investors, and leftover capacity, but the cap, discount, and conversion terms stay private.
Check the 3 S-1 lines that show the IPO RSU tax bill
Before the price is set, the use-of-proceeds section shows whether the IPO funds the company or pays the tax bill on employee RSUs.
Founder-Funded ESOP: Check Your Grant's Real Value
A founder-funded ESOP can leave your percentage unchanged; the real test is who backs the pool, whether new shares were issued, and what your grant's terms say.
Check if vested UK shares can sell before exit
A PISCES secondary auction can give UK startup employees a way to sell vested shares before an IPO, but only if the company and shares clear the checklist.
Check Pre-IPO Note Dilution Before IPO Pricing
Before an IPO price is set, a convertible note can convert automatically and change the share count, so check the terms that move your percentage.
Zepto ESOP Pool Expansion: Pre-Money or Priced In?
A bigger ESOP pool can dilute you before the round if it is pre-money; the trust's financing shows who the expansion really targets.
Tender Offer: Use the Strike-to-Tender Spread
Compare your strike, latest 409A, and tender price before choosing how much to sell in a company-sponsored tender offer.
Underwater Option Repricing: Check the Six-Month Clause
A lower strike can be a retention test: before accepting a repricing, confirm the price, the service condition, and any reversion trap.
Three numbers decide what your options get in a startup exit
In a down sale, employee options are a residual after debt and preferences, not a slice of the headline exit price.
Wonderful's Series C: Pay You or Dilute You
A primary round adds cash and dilutes you; a secondary can let holders sell at the new price without changing ownership.
Audit Your Equity in Pulley's Carta Migration
Treat the Pulley-to-Carta move as a cap-table audit: verify grants, strike prices, vesting, 409A files, and pricing before the deadline.
Tender Offer Checklist: Numbers to Check Before Selling Vested ESOPs
A tender offer is a capped sale at today’s price, so run the checklist before you sign.
First-Time Startup Equity Grant: Audit It Before You Accept
Treat your first startup equity grant like a new contract: audit option type, strike price, vesting, post-termination window, and size before you celebrate.
OpenAI IPO May Slip to 2027: Plan 2026 Liquidity Before AMT
If the listing moves, your plan should test tenders, secondaries, and the AMT cost of exercising ISOs now.
Angle Health's $2.7B tender: the checks before you sell
A tender offer is a liquidity event, not a new round, so run four checks—price, sellable shares, after-tax cash, upside risk—before selling Angle Health.
Mega-Round Option Check: Strike vs Dilution
A large round resets your option price and dilutes your stake, so check your strike, last tender or secondary price, and ownership before and after the raise.
License Exits: What a Reverse Acquihire Does to Your Payout
A reverse acquihire can look like an exit but pay you like a license. Use this five-question checklist to see what your options, SAFEs, and vesting actually become.