FAQ - Liquid Scenarios Enterprise and 409A Venture Scenarios

Home > Faq

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise		Liquid Scenarios 2007

Expand All | Collapse All

What products do you offer?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise (Vista Certified), 409A Venture Scenarios, Liquid Scenarios 2007 for Windows Mobile, Liquid Scenarios 2007 Desktop Companion (Certified for Vista), DownRound 2006 for Windows Mobile 5.0 and DownRound 2006 Desktop Companion (Certified for Vista).

On what platforms do your products operate on?

The desktop versions of Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 are certified for Microsoft Windows Vista and also run on Windows XP. The mobile versions of Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 run on any Smartphone, PDA, or handheld device running Windows Mobile.

Are your applications essentially calculation devices or calculation program for venture capitalists?

It encompasses a number of areas for everyone involved in a venture capital transaction. Both applications can extract data from a standard capitalization table for a venture funded company and in seconds create an interactive model which can reflect practically all scenarios one would encounter throughout the course of a venture capital transaction, from the first round of funding, to bridge debt, anti-dilution provisions, dividends, option pools, warrants, exit scenarios and much more, all with the click of a few buttons.

Who will be able to put your software to use?

Anyone who participates in a venture capital transaction will find our products to be a valuable tool, including: Venture Capital Fund Partners, Portfolio Company CFOs, Venture Capital CFOs, Portfolio Company Board Members, Target Venture Capitalists, Venture Banks, Portfolio Company Attorneys and Council, Angel Investors, Fund Administrators, Venture Capital Attorneys, Portfolio Company Auditors, Fund Auditors, Underwriters, Acquirers, and Investment Banks.

Why have your software on the Desktop and Handheld?

Depending on the functional area a professional works in, the added mobility may give a professional using our software a competitive advantage in the deal room or on the road. For instance, if a fund has a backroom operation such as a finance or accounting department, then we think the desktop version would be used for the most part. However, if someone is actually involved in doing deals and is on the road a lot or spending a lot of time in meetings, it is not always convenient to open up your computer when you have an idea or if someone has just emailed you a file. Whether it's a prospective investee company you are working with to close the next round of financing or a portfolio company your are putting together an exit strategy for, its more convenient to have that in the palm of your hand whenever and wherever you need it.

What is the architecture of your software? Is it a web-based client? Is a client server needed? Is it compatible with Microsoft Excel?

All versions of our software are installed locally, whether on a Smartphone, PDA, or Desktop. There is no web-based server or client server necessary. The software is not built on or hosted by Excel, however, it is tightly integrated with Excel. The user may import a capitalization table from Excel and after creating their model in Liquid Scenarios 2007 Edition or DownRound 2006 Desktop they can that export that model back into a highly interactive Excel file for review by parties not using our software. Non-Enterprise edition or 409A Venture Scenarios users will have upload their capitalization table on bpCentral’s server to have their Excel file converted to be used in the model.

What does your software cost?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise is $5,999 per user per year, but allows Free limited use licenses of 409A Venture Scenarios to be distributed by licensees to their 409A valuation clients or portfolio companies. Liquid Scenarios 2007 Desktop costs $2,499 per user per year and DownRound 2006 Desktop costs $1,599 per user per year. Liquid Scenarios 2007 for Windows Mobile costs $1,299 per user per year and DownRound 2006 for Windows Mobile costs $899 per user per year.

What features do your products contain? What is the difference between Liquid Scenarios and DownRound?

A comprehensive list of features and differences between products can be found on our comparison chart.

What is the difference between the Desktop and Mobile versions of your software?

The initial model, created after importing a capitalization table, can only be created in the desktop versions of our software. Once that model is created, however, the mobile versions retain all of the analytical ability that the desktop versions possess. The only other difference is that the mobile versions cannot export a model to excel, though the model may be sent via encrypted email to the desktop version for export.

Do the mobile versions of your software hinder the devices performance while completing such complex calculations?

Liquid Scenarios 2007 Mobile and DownRound 2006 Mobile do not strain the Windows Mobile operating system. In fact, you can run a number of programs in the backround, such as mobile Outlook and even a media player and not have to worry about your system’s performance or stability.

Does one have to be familiar with the calculations involved in venture capital transactions before using your software?

Most of the nuances of the software allow people to drill down and prove that something works as well as see how calculations were arrived at so that they can put confidence into the numbers that they calculate.

Does your software only support United States currency and transactional nuances or can it be used overseas?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 (both Desktop and Mobile editions) support foreign currencies as well as nuances that appear in different countries. It also adjusts the way dates, times, and numbers are presented based on a country’s conventions.

Is there anything else on the market that does what Liquid Scenarios does?

We are not aware of another product on the market that compares to Liquid Scenarios.

Once someone is using your software, will they still need to use the old-fashioned spreadsheet?

In case someone does not want to send the entire Liquid Scenarios or DownRound file to an outside party, the user can export the file to Microsoft Excel. It will maintain some of the functionality that allowed the user to interact with the file in Liquid Scenarios or DownRound. However, the ability to change time and see the impact of those changes on every holder, or change values, are not amongst the many spreadsheet features that transfer.

If a CFO or another person who has built a model sends it to someone in the field or another party, how can all of the people using the file know who has made changes and what those changes were?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, 409A Venture Scenarios, Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 (Desktop and Mobile versions) track and log all changes that anybody who has had the file has made so that you can see every component they have adjusted.

Is there a prototypical term sheet that you are using? Does someone have to enter all of the terms in a capitalization table?

We have spent about 30% of our development efforts trying to eliminate the need for manual data entry. For non-Enterprise Edition or 409A users, all the user has to do is log into their bpCentral account, upload an Excel workbook with a capitalization table within it, and enter the number of fully diluted shares, common stock, option pool shares, warrants outstanding, and rounds of financing to date. Our import algorithm will do the rest and product a file for use in the Desktop and Mobile versions of Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 in a matter of seconds. Liquid Scenarios Enterprise Edition and 409A Venture Scenarios contain the import feature within the installed software.

Do you have to have a capitalization table to use your software?

If a company is doing a deal, at some point they have to have a working capitalization table. “Working” entails that the numbers at the bottom add up and that they actually represent the securities outstanding, and that the holders listed are the actual holders. The system can make a number of assumptions and put them in italics. If a party wants to come along and adjust those assumptions it is very easy to do so. The same with pricing – it will assume any pricing information found within the workbook if it correlates to the amounts raised.

How do you see this program working with current fund admin systems?

We see it as addressing the emerging accounting rules with regards to how you value your portfolio, options, common stock and warrants . Since all information contained in Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, 409A Venture Scenarios, Liquid Scenarios 2007 or DownRound 2006 can be exported into Excel, naturally it can be integrated with existing fund management systems.

How long does it take to setup?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, 409A Venture Scenarios, Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 (Desktop and Mobile Versions) can each be set up in under 5 minutes.

How can you make sure that data has been imported into the right place?

Liquid Scenarios Enterprise, 409A Venture Scenarios, Liquid Scenarios 2007 and DownRound 2006 audit the data from capitalization tables as they import it. For the data to be successfully imported it must pass this audit. Reports from both KPMG and PriceWaterhouse have implied that up to 91% of operational Excel spreadsheets used in financial reporting contain material errors that are significant enough to affect decisions . Once the file passes the audit and enters the Liquid Scenarios or DownRound environment, all changes can be tracked simply by viewing the file’s history which tells you who has changed what since the file was created, and all changes can be undone in the history screen, significantly reducing opportunities for human error and fraud.