Captable: Shareholder book
What is a cap table for a startup?
A cap table is short for 'capitalisation table'. It is a chart, table or spreadsheet that shows the ownership stakes of anyone with equity in a startup. It lists stocks, warrants and options, and shows how much each investor paid for them and their percentage ownership of the startup.
SAFEs and convertible debt
Other equity elements, such as SAFEs and convertible debt, are part of the cap table, but not included in its central section. The reason is that the value of these instruments is not yet significant, as they only convert into equity during the startup's next funding round or upon another agreed-upon event.
Therefore, that is open in a separate section of the cap table, along with other relevant details. This information includes the investor, the date of issuance, any interest rate on the notes, their maturity date and the terms for converting the convertible debts and SAFEs into equity.
It is a comprehensive record of the various types of shares issued and their respective shareholders. Order of shareholder listings in a basic cap table starts as follows and you extend it after your own specific step and needs:
