Why Mivien chose Carta over AngelList to prepare for fundraising

Founder Brett Humphrey has owned a company before, had a strong exit, and has served on the selection committee at a startup incubator in California.

But his Series A for Mivien Labs—a stealth startup that plans to introduce new home and vehicle co-ownership opportunities—will be Humphrey’s first time raising funds for his own venture.

Carta helps Humphrey signal to potential investors that Mivien has the tools and partnerships in place to succeed. The company did its first 409A valuation with Carta and uses Carta’s cap table product to manage co-founder and employee options.

Carta as ‘the only option’

At first, Humphrey looked at AngelList for his cap table management. He was interested in its roll-up vehicles, which allow founders to take on hundreds of investors with a single entry on a cap table.

Humphrey thought AngelList might make it easier for him to attract smaller scale investments, but his attorneys didn’t see it that way.

“The attorneys assumed that Carta was the only option—that’s how they approached it. They use Carta. They love it, and that was true across a couple of the firms that we had interviewed,” he said.

“Our primary firm had heard of AngelList and understood what a roll-up vehicle was, but really just kind of assumed that we would have everything in Carta.”

Humphrey was new to managing cap tables, so he was happy to take the recommendation, but he also looked into competing features himself. He chose Carta for its comprehensive tools and customer support.

Knowledgeable, personalized support

“The biggest benefit to me,” he said, “was the ability to have somebody walk me through that process when I had questions that could really steer me in the right direction quickly.”

Humphrey’s prior business had been successful, but it didn’t require raising venture capital. Carta’s online resources helped him expand his understanding of cap tables, valuation, tax requirements, and scenario modeling, but he needed personalized attention for Mivien’s unique situations.

Conversations with Carta customer support filled in the blanks, even when Humphrey’s questions were complex.

“I called support one time for an issue that they didn’t have an immediate answer for. I felt good about it, like ‘I got Carta to consider it,’ and they came back with a really thoughtful answer that addressed my concerns.

“They were able to walk me through the process of getting what I needed implemented. It was something nuanced related to my employee’s vesting schedules, so Carta’s guidance was much appreciated. My experience has been great.”

Customer support was also there when Mivien did its 409A valuation. Humphrey considered Carta’s process straightforward and simple, but he wanted to be clear on all the details.

“Getting the 409A done was important and helped me set up strike prices for early co-founders. Being able to speak to a human was really helpful and overall a very positive experience. And then the valuation was right on the money in terms of what I expected, so that was nice.”

The process made Humphrey feel like he’s equipped to meet expectations at Mivien, too. As he gets ready to raise his Series A, he’s looking forward to using Carta’s advanced cap table and reporting tools.

“I’ve made a lot of promises to my employees that I’m going to be able to go out and raise,” he joked. “Carta is going to obviously help us do that.”