inside round

Intermediate 🚀 Startup / VC

Definition

A funding round where only existing investors participate, with no new outside investors joining. It's either a vote of confidence from believers or a sign that no one else wanted in.

Example Usage

The struggling startup closed an inside round to extend runway, but the lack of new investors worried employees.

Origin

Venture capital terminology, contrasted with 'outside round' since the 1980s

Fun Fact

Inside rounds can be positive when they're preemptive investments in hot companies, or concerning when they're bridge financing that failed to attract new capital.

Source: Venture capital financing structure terminology

Related Terms

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See “inside round” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.

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