SpiffyTerm, Inc. January 2000

SpiffyTerm, Inc. is a fictional case that is meant to teach students about the term sheets commonly used in venture capital deals. At the time of the case, the three company founders concentrate on understanding the term sheet just received from a Silicon Valley venture capital firm (included in the case) and, considering the current and anticipated future financing rounds, collaborate to determine what valuation and other terms they should bargain for. The case consists of six sections: (1) basic valuation, (2) valuation with alternative scenarios, (3) vesting and founder replacement, (4) preferred stock, (5) pricing of follow-up rounds and the right of first refusal, and (6) anti-dilution. The teaching note to this case is a spreadsheet that contains all the formulas used to solve the problems.