流动性事件后的财务规划

Business Owners FocusConsiderations for Every Entrepreneur You put time, energy, and passion into growingyour business. Let us help you get to what comes next. At William Blair, we have guided many startup entrepreneurs and executives through liquidity events, bothfrom investment banking and wealth management perspectives. Our wealth advisors can help you identifythe most important questions to ask to determine if you are truly ready for a liquidity event. There are manydifferent personal and financial considerations to keep in mind, and we are here to help you get started. PE R S O N A L CO NS I D E R AT I O NS•Liquidity: Personal Questions to Consider FI N A N C I A L CO NS I D E R AT I O NS•Liquidity: Financial Questions to Consider•Financial Planning Following a Liquidity Event Liquidity: Personal Questions to Consider There are many ways for entrepreneurs and executives togenerate liquidity from the high-growth businesses theyhave built, such as: Do You Have the Right Foundation in Place?Many executives at high-growth companies think about their wealth from a long-term perspective for the firsttime and have not yet established some of the basics of asolid financial plan. From budgeting for cash flows andestate planning to tax-advantaged retirement accountsand insurance and risk management, there is plenty toconsider when it comes to personal wealth. •Recapitalization through venture funding or privateequity investment•Selling the business•Selling private shares on secondary markets As you raise capital and generate liquidity, your financiallife will get more complicated. You need to have a teamof trusted advisors in place to help you navigate thesecomplex decisions, including an accountant, estateplanning attorney, investment banker, and insurance andwealth advisors. You also need to ensure you have someoneto coordinate the team and make sure all the pieces areworking together in unison. Often, a wealth advisor is inthe best position to take on this role. Each of these transactions raises its own set of questions.We believe the biggest question you face is: Are you ready?On the surface, this might seem simple. Of course, youare. You are ready to generate some cash and unlock thewealth you have worked so hard to build. But it can be morecomplicated than that. Having guided many startup entrepreneurs and executivesthrough these events, William Blair has identified the mostimportant considerations to determine whether you areready for a liquidity event. These questions generally fallinto two categories: personal and financial. Here, we startwith the personal questions to consider before entering aliquidity event. Liquidity: Personal Questions to Consider(continued) How Will You Maintain Your Identity Afterthe Transaction? What Are You Looking to Accomplish With Your Wealth?First, identify your short-term and long-term wealth goals and quantify what you will need to accomplish those.From there, you can differentiate between core and excesswealth, and think about new opportunities. Selling a large portion of equity in a company thatyou have helped build can be difficult. Beyond the fearof giving up financial participation in the company'scontinued growth and some level of control in how thebusiness is managed, entrepreneurs and executives oftenstruggle with the prospect of losing something that hasdefined their identity and fueled their passion for years. Often, high-net-worth individuals identify four high-levelareas for the distribution of their wealth: taxes, core wealth(lifetime spending), a wealth transfer, and philanthropy.But for startup executives, there is often a fifth category:funding the next venture. It is important to realize that these feelings are normaland understand that change is a natural part of life. Whenmajor life changes occur, it takes time to work throughthem; you do not need to have all the answers about whatyour next phase will look like right away. Stay focused onyour long-term goals and give yourself time and space towork through the transition. This next venture could be starting another company,becoming an angel or venture investor, or establishing anon-profit or foundation that looks to drive social change.Regardless of what that next chapter looks like, the moreplanning you do on the front end, the more opportunitiesyou will have in the future. Are You Prepared to Deal With the Pressure That ComesWith Your Next Level of Wealth? Do You Have Realistic Expectations?Having realistic expectations about how much your equity is worth is critically important to make the mostout of your opportunities. One of the biggest problemsplaguing executives at private, high-growth companiesis unrealistic expectations. Achieving a new level of wealth opens new opportunitiesand subjects you to new levels of visibility and scrutiny.Many executives are surprised by how much activeinterest they receive once news of the liquidity eventbecomes public. Wealth will also bring