In 2025, raising equity is no longer just about the “Hockey Stick” growth chart. It is about transparency. Investors—whether VCs or Angels—are demanding a level of data integrity and ESG compliance that most Series A companies simply don’t have.
Richard Spilsbury discusses this shift with Marina Traversari. Having moved from scaling Spherics (a carbon accounting platform) to a Director role at Sage (FTSE 100), Marina knows exactly what sophisticated capital looks for when they open the bonnet.
Richard: Marina, we see founders spend months perfecting the font size on their pitch deck, but then their data room is a mess. From your time at Oracle and scaling Spherics, what is the biggest red flag for investors right now?
Marina: The biggest red flag is a lack of Data Integrity.
Founders often present a “marketing version” of their numbers. But sophisticated investors want to see the “engine room.”
At Spherics, we were dealing with carbon accounting—measuring Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. We learned quickly that you can’t fudge that data. If your non-financial metrics (like churn, usage, or ESG impact) aren’t as robust as your P&L, trust evaporates.
Richard: That’s interesting. In my world of corporate finance, we used to view ESG as a “slide at the back of the deck.” Now, it feels fundamental to the risk profile.
Marina: It is fundamental. I focus on the “Triple Bottom Line”: People, Planet, Profit.
Investors today know that a company with poor governance or high environmental risk is a liability. When I advise scaling businesses now, I tell them: “Build your governance systems before you need the money.”
If you wait until the Term Sheet arrives to figure out your data structures, you will either lose the deal or lose value.
Richard: So, “M&A Readiness” or “Fundraising Readiness” starts on Day 1?
Marina: Absolutely. Whether I was working with startups at the Telecom Infra Project and Oracle, or leading operations at Sage, the winners were always the ones who treated their data as an asset, not an afterthought.
Don’t let a messy data room kill a great story. At Link Stone Advisory, we bridge the gap between your vision and the investor’s due diligence checklist.
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