A SAFE is the fastest way to take early money, but small choices on caps, discounts and side letters compound when the SAFEs convert. We prepare standard YC post-money SAFEs, review investor-requested changes and show you what your cap table looks like after conversion. Your SAFE round is handled for a flat fee, quoted before any drafting.
At a glance
- Practice
- Venture & Corporate
- Pricing
- Flat fee, quoted before we start
- Included
- 6 deliverables
- Process
- 3 steps, one named attorney
- Where we work
- Slack, email or a call
When founders call us
The moments that usually bring a company to us for this work.
- 01
An angel has verbally committed and asked you to send over a SAFE.
- 02
You are stacking several SAFEs at different caps and losing track of dilution.
- 03
A lead investor wants a pro rata or MFN side letter alongside the SAFE.
- 04
You are raising from people outside the US and are unsure what securities paperwork applies.
What you get
Scoped in writing before we start. One flat fee for all of it.
- Post-money SAFEs based on the standard Y Combinator form, with cap and discount filled in
- Side letters for pro rata, MFN or information rights where an investor asks
- A conversion model showing founder ownership at an assumed priced round
- Board consent approving the SAFE financing
- Guidance on Form D and state blue sky notice filings, prepared on request
- A closing checklist tracking signatures and wires
How it works
- 1
Terms and investor list
You tell us your cap, discount, target amount and investors, and we flag anything non-standard before drafting.
- 2
Documents and model
We prepare the SAFEs, any side letters and a conversion model so you can see the dilution before you send anything.
- 3
Closing
We manage signatures, confirm board approval and outline any securities filings due after money comes in.
Mistakes we help you avoid
The ones we see most often, and catch before they cost you.
- Avoided
Mixing pre-money and post-money SAFEs without realizing how differently they dilute founders.
- Avoided
Granting MFN rights loosely, so a later SAFE with better terms automatically reprices earlier ones.
- Avoided
Missing the Form D filing deadline of 15 days after the first sale of securities in a Rule 506 offering.
- Avoided
Editing the standard form in ways that make future investors or their counsel slow down to re-review it.
SAFEs: questions founders ask
In a post-money SAFE, the valuation cap includes all SAFE money, so each investor's ownership is fixed when they sign and founders absorb the dilution from additional SAFEs. In a pre-money SAFE, SAFE holders dilute each other, which makes ownership harder to predict. Y Combinator moved its standard form to post-money in 2018, and it is now the common default.
A SAFE is not a loan: it has no interest rate or maturity date and does not need to be repaid. It is a contract right to receive equity in a future priced round or a payout in a sale. How it is treated for tax and accounting purposes can depend on the facts, so check with your accountant.
SAFEs are securities, so you need an exemption from registration, typically Rule 506(b) of Regulation D. Companies relying on Regulation D generally file a Form D within 15 days of the first sale, and some states require notice filings as well. Which exemption fits depends on who your investors are and how you find them.
A side letter is a separate agreement that gives a specific investor extra rights, such as pro rata participation in the next round or most-favored-nation treatment. It is common for larger or lead SAFE investors. Side letter terms should be tracked carefully because they carry into your priced round.
Get a flat-fee quote for SAFEs.
A short call with an attorney. You leave with a written scope and one fixed price.
Book a call