Venture Deals

Venture Deals is the definitive plain-English guide to how venture capital transactions are structured. Feld and Mendelson, both experienced VCs and lawyers, walk through every component of a term sheet: valuation, liquidation preferences, anti-dilution provisions, board composition, protective provisions, and drag-along rights. The book exists specifically to close the information asymmetry between investors who do dozens of deals and founders who do one or two in a lifetime.

For Goodrich's work, structuring capital raises, reviewing term sheets, and advising on fund vehicles, this is the reference manual. It is the book we would hand to any client entering a funding round before they sit across from an investor. Understanding the difference between participating and non-participating preferred, or between weighted average and full ratchet anti-dilution, is not academic. These clauses directly determine who gets paid and how much at exit.

The fourth edition is the one to read. It includes material on convertible notes, SAFEs, and venture debt that reflects how most early-stage deals are now structured. Not a book you read for pleasure. One you read because the alternative is leaving money on the table.