---
name: fundraising-financials-narrative
description: Write the financial narrative for a fundraise: the story the numbers tell investors and how the raise is used. Use this skill whenever a founder is preparing to raise capital and needs to explain their financials, projections, or use of funds to investors, or says 'explain our financials for the raise', 'write our use of funds', or 'tell the story behind our numbers'. Trigger whenever fundraising financials need a compelling, honest narrative that stands up to diligence.
---

# Fundraising Financials Narrative

## What this does and why it matters
Investors fund a story backed by numbers, not a spreadsheet. This skill writes the financial narrative for a raise: what the traction shows, what the projections assume, how much is being raised and why, and what it buys, so the numbers tell a coherent, honest story that excites investors and survives diligence. A strong narrative is what makes good numbers land and reasonable numbers credible.

## Inputs to gather
1. The traction to date (revenue, growth, key metrics) and the story it tells.
2. The projections and their key assumptions.
3. The raise amount, the runway it buys, and the use of funds.
4. The milestones the raise is meant to reach.
5. The stage and what this round is for.

## Method

### 1. Let the traction tell the story
Frame the historical numbers as evidence of a thesis: this is working, here is the proof, here is why it accelerates. Investors buy momentum and a believable reason it continues.

### 2. Make projections ambitious but grounded
Projections should show a big outcome while resting on assumptions an investor can believe. Tie the growth to specific drivers (the raise funds X which produces Y), not a hockey stick with no mechanism. Over-optimistic, unmoored projections destroy credibility in diligence.

### 3. Tie the raise to milestones
State how much is being raised, the runway it provides, and the specific milestones it reaches (the ones that de-risk the next round). Investors fund progress to a clear next inflection point.

### 4. Break down use of funds honestly
Where the money goes by category, tied to the milestones, so the ask feels deliberate rather than arbitrary.

### 5. Be honest about assumptions and risks
Acknowledging the key assumptions and how they are de-risked builds more trust than pretending there is no risk, and it is what survives a sharp investor's questions.

## Output format
ALWAYS use:

# Fundraising Financial Narrative: [Company] | [Round]
## The traction story (what the numbers prove)
## Projections (headline trajectory + the drivers behind it)
## The raise (amount | runway | what it de-risks)
## Use of funds (by category, tied to milestones)
## Milestones this round reaches
## Key assumptions and how they are de-risked

## Anti-patterns to avoid
- A hockey-stick projection with no mechanism behind the growth.
- Traction presented as raw numbers with no story.
- A raise amount not tied to milestones or runway.
- Hiding assumptions and risks that diligence will expose anyway.

## Guardrails
This structures the founder's numbers and story into a narrative; it is not financial, investment, or securities advice, and fundraising is legally regulated. Never invent metrics or projections. Recommend the founder have offering materials and any financial claims reviewed by qualified counsel and their finance lead before use.

## Example
A seed narrative frames 18 months of revenue growth as proof of product-market fit, ties a projected acceleration to the sales hires the raise funds, states the raise buys 20 months to reach a revenue milestone that unlocks Series A, and breaks use of funds across sales, product, and runway.