Venture Capital for 2024: Soaring High, Above $200M Valuations!

In an article on SaaStr, Jason Lemkin discusses the current state of venture capital and the challenges of raising funds for SaaS companies. He notes that while seed investments are still high, it becomes increasingly difficult to make significant returns at later stages, particularly above $200 million valuations. This is due to the fact that the average public SaaS company is trading at around $2 billion, making it mathematically challenging to achieve 8-10x returns on higher valuations. Lemkin emphasizes the importance of proving that a company is an outlier in order to raise funds at a $200 million valuation. He also highlights the decrease in seed rounds and series D funding, indicating the increasing difficulty of raising capital at later stages. Lemkin advises founders to be realistic about the challenges of raising funds and suggests extending their existing cash runway to ensure sustainability.