Investor Targeting & Fund Alignment

How to prepare your investor targeting submission

This stage defines who should fund your company, under what conditions, and within what timeframe.

You are not selecting investors casually.
You are defining a fundraising strategy that must align with your capital structure, performance, and market positioning.

Access to this submission is only provided after your Lions Den outcome.

How the submission works

You will:

  • define the types of investors you are targeting

  • set cheque size expectations

  • define geographic focus

  • disclose current fundraising activity

  • specify investor preferences and constraints

  • define your timeline to close

Your answers must align with your actual raise, valuation, and business stage.

If your answers conflict with your capital structure, valuation inputs, or performance data, the diagnostic cannot produce a reliable output and your submission may be rejected.

What you must prepare

This submission is structured exactly around the sections below.

1. Fundraising Intent

You must clearly define:

  • the types of investors you are targeting:

    • angel investors

    • venture capital

    • family offices

    • corporate investors

    • private equity

This must align with:

  • your stage

  • your raise size

  • your expected valuation

Targeting the wrong investor type slows the process immediately.

2. Cheque Size Expectations

You must define:

  • preferred cheque size

  • minimum cheque size

These inputs determine:

  • how many investors you need

  • whether your round structure is realistic

If this is unclear, your raise becomes difficult to execute.

3. Geography

You must define:

  • preferred investor geography:

    • United States

    • Europe

    • UK

    • Middle East

    • Africa

    • Asia

    • global

This affects:

  • investor availability

  • regulatory complexity

  • deal velocity

Geography is not neutral. It changes the fundraising process.

4. Current Fundraising Activity

You must provide:

  • number of active investor conversations

  • number of investors currently in diligence

  • whether you have received term sheets

This establishes:

  • how far your process has progressed

  • whether your raise is early, active, or advanced

Inflated or inaccurate answers here create downstream misalignment.

5. Investor Fit Preferences

You must define what you actually want from investors:

  • capital only

  • strategic value

  • network access

  • brand signalling

  • follow-on capacity

You must also confirm:

  • whether you are open to investors taking board seats

These decisions directly affect:

  • who you can work with

  • how your company is governed

6. Timeline

You must define:

  • your target timeline to close:

    • under 3 months

    • 3–6 months

    • 6–12 months

    • flexible

This must align with:

  • your runway

  • your current traction

  • your fundraising readiness

Unrealistic timelines create pressure and reduce deal quality.

7. Constraints

You must clearly state:

  • what would prevent you from accepting an investor

This may include:

  • valuation expectations

  • control terms

  • sector conflicts

  • geographic restrictions

  • strategic misalignment

If you do not define constraints early, they surface late and delay closing.

What this stage is actually testing

Investors are assessing:

  • whether your targeting is realistic

  • whether your expectations align with your stage

  • whether your round can actually be constructed

  • whether you understand who should fund your business

  • whether you are ready to engage investors in a structured way

If this is unclear, the process becomes inefficient.

What typically goes wrong

Most companies fail this stage because:

  • they target the wrong investor type

  • cheque size assumptions are unrealistic

  • geography is too broad or undefined

  • they misrepresent fundraising progress

  • they want strategic value but target capital-only investors

  • they are unclear on control and governance expectations

  • timelines do not match runway

This stage exposes whether your fundraising strategy is coherent.

What to do before accessing the form

Before starting this submission:

  • align your investor type with your stage and raise

  • define realistic cheque sizes

  • understand how many investors you need

  • be honest about your current pipeline

  • define what you will and will not accept

You are not choosing investors.
You are defining how your round will be built.

Where this fits in your journey

You will access this submission after:

  • completing Lions Den

  • receiving your outcome

  • receiving your submission links

At that point, your investor targeting is structured and used to guide matching and execution in the Investor Room.

Next step

Return to your onboarding flow and proceed once your Lions Den outcome has been received.

Onoarding Flow