Do you need fund raising? A business decision guide

Fundraising readiness begins with reliable numbers and a realistic capital-use plan.

This service is offered to startups and SMEs raising capital. That audience description is not a legal eligibility test. Identify your actual objective, such as a suitable business structure, reliable reporting, a specific registration or a response to a notice.

Prepare financials, forecasts, cap table, customer evidence and a clear use-of-funds schedule.

Explain your entity, activities, locations, relevant period and any planned changes. Also disclose existing applications, filings or advisers so duplicated work and conflicting instructions can be avoided.

Ask whether a narrower engagement, a different structure or better internal records would meet the same objective. Compare ongoing obligations as well as the first task. If a requirement is statutory, ask the adviser to identify the applicable official rule and relevant exceptions.

A growth story unsupported by collections or contracts can lose credibility during due diligence.

Assess readiness, build an evidenced model and organise diligence before investor discussions.

Separate items you can resolve internally from those needing professional judgement or external approval. Record the dependencies and consider whether your team has enough capacity to maintain the resulting process.

Which assumptions are supported by evidence and what gaps will investors question?

Specify model, deck, data-room and transaction support; no engagement can guarantee investment.

Request a written recommendation that explains assumptions and the proposed scope. Where current eligibility or regulatory interpretation is uncertain, obtain case-specific advice before spending money or acting.