Start the conversations early.
Send monthly updates even if they have passed on you.
Don’t chase “top‑tier” funds first.
Do reference checks.
I advise founders to raise capital now rather than waiting for a later round, because history shows funding windows close quickly.
In 2000, US venture funding peaked at roughly $100 billion.
By 2002 it had fallen to around $20 billion, a drop of nearly 80%.
Amazon raised about $672 million in convertible bonds in February 2000.
In 2021, Indian startups raised over $40 billion; in 2022 that fell to around $25 billion; in 2023 it collapsed to about $7 billion, a 72% drop in a single year.
Globally, venture funding went from over $600 billion in 2021 to under $300 billion by 2023.