Series A, B, C (funding rounds)

Beginner 🚀 Startup / VC

Definition

Sequential funding rounds named alphabetically—each one supposedly the 'final' round until you need Series D.

Example Usage

We're targeting a $15M Series B to expand our sales team and enter three new markets.

Origin

Emerged in the 1970s-80s as venture capital formalized investment stages.

Fun Fact

Some companies now go to Series F, G, or beyond, making the alphabet inadequate for their ambitions.

Source: Standard venture capital investment structure

Related Terms

Intermediate

capital efficiency

The art of building a valuable company while raising as little outside funding as possible, preserving founder ownership and bragging rights. It's increasingly rare in an era of mega-rounds and bloated valuations.

🚀 Startup / VC
Advanced

spray and delay

A strategy where investors make many small bets, then heavily support only the winners in subsequent rounds. The venture capital version of throwing spaghetti at the wall, then only cooking the pieces that stuck.

🚀 Startup / VC
Advanced

SAFT

Simple Agreement for Future Tokens—a legal instrument for investing in future cryptocurrency tokens, for when you want equity but make it crypto.

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Intermediate

Churn Rate

The percentage of customers who cancel your service each month, also known as the number that keeps founders awake at 3 AM. A high churn rate means your product is a revolving door; a low one means customers haven't figured out how to find the cancel button yet.

🚀 Startup / VC
Intermediate

Networking Effect (Network Effect)

When a product becomes more valuable as more people use it, creating a virtuous cycle of growth. It's the holy grail of startups because it creates defensibility that's hard to compete against.

🚀 Startup / VC
Beginner

Traction

Evidence that people actually use your product, which is the startup world's version of proof of life. Investors ask about traction the way parents ask about grades -- they already suspect the answer is disappointing but want to hear you say it.

🚀 Startup / VC

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