In Small, Out Big

In Small, Out Big

5.4 Valuation Is A Pretty Little Lie

Rich Ingrassia's avatar
Rich Ingrassia
Jun 11, 2026
∙ Paid

In the “SAFE” deal I described in the previous post, Rent-A-Chicken doesn’t exist so I pulled a $20M company value out of my butt.

Want to know the worst-kept secret in venture capital? Valuations of real startups are calculated in about the same way. And that initial lie is compounded for years, until the company is acquired or goes public.

Because in th…

User's avatar

Continue reading this post for free, courtesy of Rich Ingrassia.

Or purchase a paid subscription.
© 2026 Richard Ingrassia · Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start your SubstackGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture