What is a Cap Table?
Cap Table
A Cap Table (Capitalization Table) is a detailed spreadsheet or ledger that outlines a startup's equity ownership structure.
Why It Matters for Startups
Governs the legal rights and ownership distribution of the entity; configuring Cap Table is critical for managing long-term cap table health and alignment during equity allocation and dilution modeling.
Detailed Deep Dive
A Cap Table (Capitalization Table) is a detailed ledger that outlines a startup's equity ownership structure. It lists all shareholders, including founders, employees, angel investors, and venture capitalists, along with the class of shares they own (common vs. preferred), the number of shares, and their corresponding ownership percentages. Cap tables are updated with every funding round, option pool expansion, or stock grant, and are vital for analyzing dilution, payout distributions in an exit, and modeling future rounds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q:What is included in a capitalization table?
It lists all shareholders, their respective share counts, stock classes (common vs. preferred), options outstanding, and total ownership percentages.
Q:When should a cap table be updated?
It must be updated with every equity grant, option exercise, funding round, convert security conversion, or secondary sale.
Quick Facts
- CategoryLegal
- Key ApplicationEquity allocation and dilution modeling
Coverage Trend12 Weeks
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