Every story deserves
a unique solution
We understand that every business is one-of-a-kind, including yours,
and we are here to help you make it a story worth telling.
We’ll clear the path for you, like no lawyers have done before,
so you can focus on reaching new heights.
Let’s craft something extraordinary together.
Follow along our timeline of disruption and
experience the impact of the
KassaiLaw Formula
Forming
your business
your business
Idea
IDEA
You have spotted a problem and found a viable solution – in other words, you have your idea. What’s the next step? You need to make sure that the problem your business is trying to solve is a valid problem for a wide enough group, and that Are you sure that the problem your business is trying to solve is a valid problem for a wide enough group? When you spot a problem and think you have found a viable solution to create a business around, it’s all too easy to get excited and jump straight into ideating a solution. Avoid making something and then hoping people buy it when you could research what people need and then make that. It doesn’t make any sense to make a key and then run around looking for a lock to open. There are many ingredients in the recipe for creating a successful startup, but most certainly whatever you read and wherever you go, one of the first pieces of advice is going to be to do your homework properly regarding the validation. You have to validate both your problem and your solution to be able to define the perfect problem-solution and later on the product-market fit. If you manipulate your future customers into liking your solution or do not reveal all the aspects and layers of a problem you identified, your idea can easily lose its ground and with that the probability of it surviving and actually being turned into a prosperous business. Let us know if we can help at this initial but yet super-important stage.
Validation is the first step in moving towards learning more about the problem you are ultimately looking to solve. Finding your unique value proposition is only possible if you take a thorough glance at your competitors. The world of tech is highly competitive, particularly so when you operate in a field with low entry barriers, you need to carefully examine and regularly update the news and developments of those companies who act in the same field and market. This might lead to several pivots for you if necessary, because you can significantly increase your chances of success if you can offer a—at least in some aspect—unique solution to your customers. The introduction as “we are like Uber/Snapchat/WeWork/Spotify, only better” is hardly sufficient in most cases. Unless you really are so much better, but then you need to know that too, so up the competitive analysis.
Business model
validation
regulatory test
Team structure
and cap table
“Is your team the dream team? How much percentage should each founder get?” One of the core ingredients to success is the right team with complementing skills and personalities: early stage investors (and business partners too, by the way) will invest in the team, not the idea. Our goal is to guide you in building a strong and well-functioning team, as well as help you uncover potential friction points or weaknesses in the team, so that you can address them in the very beginning. When it comes to the fair split with your co-founders, if you need a reference point, or just want reassurance, we have developed our own tool for equity split calculation. Hint: the one answer that’s certainly wrong is a hasty 50-50 split.
Legal landscape analysis
Legal landscape analysis
“What is the best country to start my company in?” This can be a complex question, especially if you have a truly innovative idea, something that’s never been done before. In our legal landscape analysis, we map out your business goals first, then provide you with an overview and a comparison of the company formation, regulatory environment, ease of doing business and other factors of different countries, to facilitate your decision on where to start the company. It’s completely customised: we always have our suggestions of course, but ultimately, you pick the countries and criteria you’d like to include.
Company formation and corporate structure
“How should we regulate dilution? What should I do if I need my co-founders to stay for at least three years otherwise the business is materially endangered?”
A solid and well-functioning corporate structure is the foundation of your company, the bricks to build the castle from. Which is why you will be asking the above questions in the very beginning. If you are not, you should be. Even though, at this moment, everything seems shiny and bright, trust us, hard times are ahead for all of you, and a well-thought out structure and a proper founders’ agreement can save you some serious headaches and valuable months or even years of arguing with your co-founders or investors.
Employment and engagements
Employment and engagements
Management incentive plans, Esop
Management incentive plans, Esop
Finding capital
investment
investment
Funding journey strategy
Funding journey strategy
Did you know that there are many other possibilities for funding your company, beyond VC money? In fact, while this is the preferred option for most entrepreneurs, only about 1% of startups actually fit the VC profile, and the ones that don’t could seriously derail their business life cycle if they still go for it. We guide our clients through the best fitted options for their project or company, taking into account all the individual circumstances that are often not considered when planning funding.
Benchmark study and valuation
Benchmark study and valuation
“What is the value of my startup? How much equity should I give to an investor?” While the valuation of more mature companies is a game of numbers, when it comes to companies or projects that are unable to show a year-long history of operation and historical data of their actual business performance, it becomes a very tricky and complicated process, a combination of art and science. Looking at potential competitors or companies that can be considered similar due to different well-chosen factors can serve as guidance: in that way, a thorough benchmark study can assure you that you are prepared for your investor negotiations, or whenever the ownership structure needs to be determined. If your capital requests and ownership ideas are well-founded by numerous numbers and data, you can increase the chances for successful fundraising dramatically.
Pre-VC due diligence & investor readiness
Pre-VC due diligence & investor readiness
How can you make sure your company is investor-ready? What does that even mean? Your future investors will check every small detail of your business and will run a thorough due diligence before even seriously considering saying yes. With a pre-vc due diligence, you can avoid investors discovering issues that could hinder them in investing in your company: the result is a report that shows you the weaknesses or even red flags so you can fix them before sitting down at the table with investors.
Pitch training
Pitch training
Have you entered countless pitching competitions, presented in front of a number of investors, with little to no success?
Let’s be honest, pitching can be brutal sometimes, but we’re here to help put together the best pitch of your life, and practise together so that you can ace it next time. Even if you think you know everything there is to know about pitching, you might want to consider this: somehow we have not met a single pitch that could not be enhanced. With several award-winning teams in pitching in our portfolio, we can most likely improve yours too.
Preparation for investor negotiations
Preparation for investor negotiations
“How big is the market opportunity? How many pivots have you had before you arrived to the current version? Why is this the right time for your product? What are the weaknesses of your company?” These are just some examples of the 200+ questions from our investor questionnaire, questions we know investors will be asking you. With us, you can prepare, as far as humanly possible you, for whatever comes your way: we model investor negotiations and go through all the questions and answers so that you can save yourself from some potential future surprises.
Term Sheet, Shareholders’ Agreement, Investment agreement
Term Sheet, Shareholders’ Agreement, Investment agreement
Drag-along, tag-along, put option, step in right, liquidation preference, full-ratchet anti-dilution, and so on. What do these terms have in common?
There is a very big chance you will see most of them at some point, when seeking capital. Don’t worry if you don’t understand them at first, with us by your side, you’ll get it quickly. Whether you need us to evaluate a term sheet, review an investment agreement or draft a shareholders agreement, or you are preparing for conversion, we are up for the challenge. What’s more, we’re ready to jump in for you at the negotiating table or even lead the conversation if you want a smoother, more efficient funding process so that you can focus on creating value for our customers.
Warrants
Warrants
Growth
strategy
strategy
Software and product development
Software and product development
Commercial agreements
Commercial agreements
Partnerships, franchising
Partnerships, franchising
Internationalisation
Internationalisation
Conflict resolution
Conflict resolution
Establishing
your business
your business
Branding and IP
Branding and IP
“How can I protect my idea?”
might be the question we have heard most often in the course of our advisor activities. KassaiLaw has a long history of branding and intellectual property strategy making and registering for the relevant protection. Whether you need to understand the major copyright matters, register a trademark, secure your design or decide whether your solution is patentable, we are there to give you guidance on all matters which you need to bear in mind so that your brand becomes a strong and valuable one on the market.
Influencer agreements, marketing cooperations
Influencer agreements, marketing cooperations
Regulatory compliance
Regulatory compliance
Regulatory compliance is quite an unpopular and yet very important part in the life of all business organizations. If you do not have proper licences, permits or policies in place, you can easily face serious financial, reputational and business difficulties, and suffer from the consequences thereof. Understanding the actual requirements of the mostly framework structured tech-related directives and regulations on both EU and national level requires complex analytical, yet abstract and creative problem-solving skills. Furthermore, with the increasing complexity of the regulatory expectations, a deeper understanding of your company is essential if you are to be able to get the relevant licences and draft the policies which provide you with the highest compliance level possible. You just cannot leave this job to a template anymore if you actually wish to mitigate the risks of non-compliance.
Digital transformation, online presence
Digital transformation, online presence
Data protection
Data protection
Data has become the next oil, some say. With it becoming the most valuable resource on Earth, it requires new angles and innovative, yet seemingly conservative ways of protecting the people—yes, data protection is not at all about the data—irresponsibly sharing their personal data all over the internet and the world, making whistleblowers like Edward Snowden famous. Negligence with personal data can lead to unprecedented consequences and crimes, the surface of which we are just about to begin to scratch and comprehend. Identity thefts, customer manipulations or spying are just the tip of the iceberg and no, they do not only happen in sci-fi movies. Consequently, it is important to realize that creating a GDPR-proof data protection documentation and privacy policy cannot be avoided anymore. It is even more interesting that seemingly there is a basic misunderstanding among the companies on how GDPR compliance should be achieved, interpreted and adopted. We are happy to set doubts to rest for our clients.
Exit
M&A
M&A
Nasdaq, IPO
Nasdaq, IPO
other
other
