Why Your Exit Strategy is Your Best Fundraising Tactic: Charlie Fletcher, Mischon De Reya

What Does It Take to Turn Your Exit Strategy Into Your Strongest Fundraising Advantage?

The venture world sells a sexy dream: raise capital, scale fast, exit big. But only 30% of companies that raised Series A in 2021 made it to Series B within four years. That means 70% either shut down or became zombies.

Charlie Fletcher, Partner and Head of Corporate Technology at Mishcon de Reya, has advised on over 100 M&A and fundraising transactions in 2025 alone. He sits at the intersection of fundraising and exits in Cambridge's innovation ecosystem—and he sees what kills deals that won't make the press release.

In this episode, we discuss the state of venture in the UK, why founders should run dual-track processes (fundraising AND exit conversations simultaneously), and the legal mistakes that cost founders dearly.

GUEST BIO

Charlie Fletcher is Partner and Head of Corporate Technology at Mishcon de Reya, based in Cambridge. He's been immersed in the venture capital ecosystem since qualifying as a solicitor in 2004.

Charlie and his team advised on over 100 M&A and fundraising transactions in 2025 alone. He specializes in complex sell-side M&A deals in Cambridge's innovation ecosystem and what Legal 500 calls "unusual situations that require creative solutions."

Chambers describes him as "sophisticated and highly intelligent." One client told Legal 500: "Charlie Fletcher was instrumental in leading two major M&A negotiations."

Before joining Mishcon, Charlie was with Taylor Vinters, which merged with Mishcon in 2023—giving him firsthand experience of going through an M&A process after years of advising on them.

Agenda:

• Introduction: The 70% failure rate from Series A to Series B

• State of UK venture: AI boom vs capital-intensive sectors

• Charlie's path into venture law

• Living through the Taylor Vinters merger: M&A from the inside

• AI's impact on legal careers and founder advice

• The capital crunch: what changed after 2021

• How founders adapted: doing more with less

• Dual-track strategy: running fundraising and exits simultaneously

• When boards resist dual-track planning

• How VCs respond when things aren't going well

• Exit engineering: why exits don't just happen

• Should founders run their own exit process?

• Legal mistakes that kill deals in due diligence

• Exit waterfalls: modeling what's in it for stakeholders

• Mishcon's Mission to US program

• Delaware flips and raising US capital

• UK vs US: the venture gap and why London still works

• "London Maxing" and ecosystem optimism

• Venture debt: double-edged sword

• What types of companies should take venture debt

• Myth-busting: Ideas vs execution

• Running a full marathon together
  

  
  KEY TAKEAWAYS

  1. The best time to sell is when you don't need to. Just like fundraising, you need the ability to walk away and say "this isn't right."

  2. Dual-track isn't Plan B—it's strategic optionality. Running exit conversations while fundraising creates leverage with VCs, not desperation.

  3. Exit preparation starts at Seed. Model your exit waterfall at every fundraising round. Understand what's in it for all stakeholders at different valuations.

  4. Legal debt kills exits. Missing IP assignments, disputes with ex-founders, dysfunctional cap tables—these make companies "un-buyable" even when the business is strong.

  5. Ideas don't determine success—execution does. It's about really hard work, resilience, and getting stuff done. No one tests you on that at school.

  6. Shareholder relations matter. Keep everyone informed. Help people feel invested. It makes exit conversations much easier than relying on drag-along rights.

  7. Venture debt works for the right companies. You need stable, predictable cash flows (strong ARR). Deep tech startups where all value is in unproven IP? Debt doesn't make sense.

  8. Network with potential acquirers now. There's a fair chance some people you meet networking might be potential acquirers. Curate that network.

Memorable Quotes

On dual-track strategy:

"Sometimes people were struggling to raise bridge finance, but they didn't want to bridge to nothing. There needed to be some certainty around what they were bridging to."

On exit preparation:

"When an exit is on the cards and you have to go and deliver it, it's almost like a history of the company. All the people who left on bad terms or thought 'I've got a claim but I can't be bothered'—they all come back when they sniff cash."

On M&A experience:

"Just in case as a lawyer you're in any danger of thinking a successful deal is all about contract negotiation—there's way more to it than that. Like an organ transplant, it can be incredibly good done for all the right reasons, but it's not an easy thing to get right."

On VC fundraising:

"When you get external investment in the venture space, you are committing to an exit target timeline so they can get a return. You need to think about where that return is going to come from when you do your very first deck."

On founder mistakes:

"We get brought in as lawyers once heads of terms have been agreed. We've actually got a bunch to add in terms of deal terms. Founders might have done five exits. We do more than that in half a year."

On ideas vs execution:

"The biggest myth is probably that what's behind a great startup is a great idea and inspiration. Fundamentally it's about really hard work and resilience and getting stuff done."

Resources Mentioned

• Mishcon de Reya Mission to US Program: Supporting UK/European founders expanding to US markets

• Cambridge Innovation Ecosystem: 38% of Cambridge population born outside UK, global research hub

• Delaware Flip: Switching from UK limited company to Delaware C-Corp for US fundraising