TE
TechEcho
Home24h TopNewestBestAskShowJobs
GitHubTwitter
Home

TechEcho

A tech news platform built with Next.js, providing global tech news and discussions.

GitHubTwitter

Home

HomeNewestBestAskShowJobs

Resources

HackerNews APIOriginal HackerNewsNext.js

© 2025 TechEcho. All rights reserved.

Ask HN: Seed investor wants 15% plus 15% esop for $2m. Thoughts?

6 pointsby bloniacalmost 4 years ago
Does this sound ok as a seed deal?<p>They also want single trigger acceleration.<p>I’m assuming there’s really no scope to negotiate any of this with the investor.

6 comments

orbzalmost 4 years ago
10-15% carve out for ESOP is pretty standard from what I’ve seen. 15% for $2MM also is giving you a $13.3MM (repeating of course) valuation which no one can really speak to without further knowledge of your metrics.
评论 #27877589 未加载
TechBro8615almost 4 years ago
The 15% ESOP is likely negotiable – have they included a side letter so they&#x27;re undiluted by this pool? If so, it&#x27;s in their interest to make it as big as possible now, so that they don&#x27;t get diluted by you growing it later.<p>(Also, everything is negotiable if you get another offer – I would recommend focusing on that.)
rogerkirknessalmost 4 years ago
ESOP is often at least loosely correlated with round size. You can always increase it, but there&#x27;s some dilution benefits to pushing for a smaller obligation. I would probably go back (given the target ownership) asking for higher cap and 10% esop. Everything is negotiable.
abarrettwilsdonalmost 4 years ago
All of these are standard terms.<p>Establishing a (standard sized) ESOP is good for the company long term.<p>If you would like better&#x2F;different terms, you&#x27;ll need at least one other firm to offer you a term sheet as leverage.
neximo64almost 4 years ago
What does 15% esop mean that you carve out an esop, who takes the esop, you and your team?
评论 #27877490 未加载
muzanialmost 4 years ago
$2m for seed seems like a good deal for any amount of equity. At least for software.
评论 #27888514 未加载