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PadSplit · marketplace for affordable rooms

Run near break-even so you can tell any investor you don't need their money

Closed a bank credit line on great terms, then an unsolicited lender facility

Workedfinancing

What they did

After the 2021 Series B took 77 meetings to get one yes, the founder ran the company lean and as close to break-even as possible so it could 'control its own destiny'. With no need for cash, he could negotiate debt from strength: closed a bank line of credit on good terms, then Orix (a relationship built over ~2 years) approached unprompted, reasoning that if the bank could underwrite it, so could they. The Orix facility sits alongside the bank line rather than refinancing it. A strong CFO models scenarios across term sheets. His advice: have more than one option at the table, be willing and able to say no, and pick the lender who has been straight with you.

What happened

Bank line of credit 'with great terms' plus an Orix credit facility that came to them; ~$40M total equity raised
Stage
2021 onward
15:50
“But, yeah, but I mean it certainly colored my thinking on funding for the business uh since then was like we got to get to to break-even as quickly as possible so that we can control our own destiny.”
Atticus LeBlanc
16:28
“But, under no circumstances do I need it." And and and simply being in a position as a company to say, "I don't need this money," uh I think is is by far the most powerful piece of advice I could give.”
Atticus LeBlanc
18:59
“we had been looking for a line of credit previously and we had closed a line of credit with a bank and and got great terms. And we were we were just in a position where ORYX had approached us, we had talked to them previously.”
Atticus LeBlanc
“it was a relationship that that had started been being built 2 years prior.”
Atticus LeBlanc

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