Cap Table
Cap Table Guide for Founders
A capitalisation table, or cap table, records who owns what in a company. It tracks founders, investors, the option pool and any convertible instruments, and it changes every time shares or options are issued.
Cap table guides for founders and finance leads
Cap Table Management
Cap table management means keeping an accurate, current record of ownership as a company grants equity and raises funding. Errors compound over time, so the table needs updating at every event, not just before a round.
Cap Table Template
A usable cap table template lists every holder, their share class, share count and percentage, both on an issued and a fully diluted basis. Below is a worked example for a seed-stage company.
Cap Table Example
This example follows a startup's cap table from founder-only ownership through a seed round, showing exactly how new investor shares and a larger option pool dilute existing holders.
Startup Cap Table
A startup's first cap table is usually simple, just the founders and their share split. It needs to be set up correctly from day one because every later grant and round builds on it.
Fully Diluted Shares
Fully diluted shares means the total share count if every option, warrant and convertible instrument were exercised or converted today. It gives a realistic picture of ownership, unlike issued shares alone.
Ownership Percentage
Ownership percentage is a shareholder's shares divided by the total fully diluted share count. It naturally decreases over time as a company issues new shares to investors and employees, a process called dilution.
See how shares, options and fundraising connect
Subscribe to equity insights for European founders
Get concise updates on employee equity, tax changes and founder decisions.