Raise Millions by Hustle Fund VC Page 37 investment AND you have to create a 10% option pool in the same transaction, you are actually being diluted down by 30%. If a departing team member doesn't use their vested options, the unvested and unused options will be forfeited and added back to the ESOP. But still, this is more dilution than most founders realize when they go to raise money. Cap tables have been traditionally hard to organize just using spreadsheets, especially when you have many SAFEs and shareholders. It’s rare to see founders do accurate cap table math at each fundraising round. Even our team of VCs can miscalculate data. This is why we recommend using a cap table management tool so you can have an accurate view on your current cap table, as well as compute different scenarios quickly and easily. Be aware of the current market conditions At the time of publishing this book, it’s the start of 2024. Fundraising right now is tough, especially for series A and beyond. The truth is that VCs aren’t investing as much in the later stages. Why the sudden change? Well, there are a lot of factors. hustlefund.vc / @hustlefundvc