A productised cap-table cleanse plus AICPA-credentialed 409A specialist coordination — bundled as one engagement. $995 covers our work; the specialist's fee ($1,500–$4,000) is invoiced to you directly, without markup. We coordinate the §409A opinion; we do not issue it.
ACMA CGMA · Group FD for an SME portfolio (7 yrs) · ex-Arle Capital · ex-Bancroft PE · Verify on LinkedIn ↗
What we do, in one sentence. We perform the cap-table forensics, prepare the financial data package, and project-manage an AICPA-credentialed specialist (Carta, Trellis, or Initio) who issues your §409A valuation opinion. We do not issue the opinion ourselves. We receive no referral fee, kickback, or revenue share from the specialist — their fee is invoiced to you directly with full transparency on the engagement letter.
The standard path: go to Carta, Pulley, or AngelList, pay $2,000–$5,000, get a 409A report. But most founders feed the specialist a messy cap table — unreconciled SAFE conversions, untracked convertible notes, missing 83(b) elections, conflicting option grants between board minutes and the equity platform. A 409A on a messy cap table won't survive Series A diligence — and a stale 409A means every new option grant is presumed mispriced at fair-market-value.
We fix the inputs before the specialist touches them. Cap-table forensics, financial data package, specialist project management, post-issue platform update — all included in the fixed price. You receive the same Carta/Trellis/Initio report you'd get going direct, built on inputs that hold up in audit and diligence.
Source: IRC §26 U.S.C. §409A(a)(1)(B); Cal Rev & Tax Code §17501.5; representative ranges from published §409A controversy case studies.
All tiers include 409A specialist coordination. Their fee ($1,500–$4,000) is invoiced to you directly by Carta / Trellis / Initio — no markup.
+ $1,500-$2,500 specialist fee billed separately. For early-stage C-Corps with one share class and SAFEs.
+ $2,500-$4,000 specialist fee. For C-Corps preparing for Series Seed or Series A diligence. Recommended for the typical Seed-stage C-Corp with multiple SAFEs and a priced round in prospect.
+ $3,000-$4,000 specialist fee. Series B+, multiple preferred classes, complex waterfall, IPO-prep.
Pull and reconcile every share class, option grant, SAFE, warrant. Flag missing 83(b) elections.
3-year P&L + balance sheet + runway + customer concentration prepared in specialist's required format.
AICPA-credentialed specialist (Carta / Trellis / Initio) performs the valuation. We project-manage the back-and-forth.
409A report delivered. We update your cap-table platform with the new FMV. Option grant template handed to your CFO/HR.
Six items. That's the whole list. Send them via our secure intake portal after you order — typically 15–20 minutes of your time.
CSV or Excel from Carta, Pulley, AngelList, or your existing spreadsheet — whatever you have.
PDFs of all filed 83(b) elections for founders and early employees. Missing? We'll flag and help remediate.
All executed instruments. We'll model the conversion mathematics for the data package.
P&L + balance sheet from QuickBooks/Xero. Newer than 3 years? Whatever exists works.
Resolutions authorizing each option grant. PDFs or copies — we'll reconcile against the cap table.
Short written summary: runway, next milestones, fundraise timing. We send a template — fill it in.
Once we have your six inputs, you receive the first cap-table cleanse draft within ten business days. If we don't deliver, we refund your 50% deposit in full. The specialist's own work (a further 7–14 days) is on their SLA, not ours — we project-manage them but cannot warrant their timing.
BlackpeakCFO does the cap-table forensics; the AICPA specialist (any of the three) does the opinion. You get the best of both.
| Option | Total cost | Cap-table cleanse | Project mgmt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct to Carta / Pulley | $2,000-$5,000 | You do it (or fail to) | You do it |
| Boutique valuation firm | $4,000–$8,000 | Sometimes included | Partner-led, time-billed |
| BlackpeakCFO RECOMMENDED | $2,500–$5,000 all-in | Included · CGMA-reviewed | CGMA owns it end-to-end |
Tell us your stage and cap-table state. No phone call required.
Stuart sends a written tier recommendation, total cost, timeline, and a PDF invoice with bank-wire instructions (Wise USD) for the 50% deposit.
Pay the 50% deposit by bank wire / ACH / SWIFT to our Wise USD account (details on the invoice). Cap-table forensics begin the day the wire lands. The 409A specialist invoices you directly for their fee.
Final 50% invoiced on delivery of the 409A report + updated cap table. Net-7.
All communication is email-first. If you need an async screen-share or written walkthrough at any point, we'll set it up — but you never have to get on a phone call to use this service.
A Seed-stage Delaware C-Corp came in two weeks before a Series A close. Their existing 409A was eleven months old, technically still valid, but the cap table behind it had drifted: three SAFEs had converted on a priced round that wasn't reflected in the platform, two founder 83(b) elections couldn't be located, and the option pool had been topped up via board consent that hadn't been re-keyed into Carta.
Investor counsel flagged it in diligence. The round was put on a 30-day pause. Total downside: legal reset costs north of $80K, an option pool re-grant that diluted the founder by an extra 1.2%, and a six-week fundraising delay.
This is the case our service exists to prevent. A clean cap-table cleanse, fresh 409A, and audit-ready data package — coordinated and delivered in three to four weeks before the diligence room opens.
Representative composite scenario drawn from public §409A controversy cases — not a single client engagement. Names, dollar amounts and dates are illustrative.
We're being honest: this is a newly productised service. No five-star reviews to show you yet. Instead, here's what we offer the first five clients: priority scheduling, direct access to Stuart, full case-study credit (with your consent), plus our 100% Cleanse-Quality Guarantee — if our cleanse misses an issue your 409A specialist later identifies as material, we credit 100% of our fee.
Stuart Wilson · ACMA CGMA · Group Finance Director for a portfolio of SMEs in London (7 years) · earlier career across Arle Capital Partners and Bancroft Private Equity · IPEV / BVCA / AICPA SSVS coordination · verify ↗
Five quick yes/no questions. Instant risk score. No email needed.
Tell us your situation. We reply within 1 business day with a tier recommendation, total cost estimate, and timeline.
If you're a US C-Corp issuing stock options (or SAFEs that convert to options), IRC Section 409A requires that the strike price match Fair Market Value at grant date. Without a current 409A, your option grants are presumed mispriced — triggering a 20% additional tax plus interest penalty for each recipient under Section 409A. Investors will absolutely flag missing or stale 409As in due diligence. You need a fresh 409A at least every 12 months and after any material event (funding round, revenue milestone, significant pivot).
Carta and Pulley produce the 409A REPORT itself (the regulated work performed by an AICPA-credentialed valuation specialist). We handle everything around it: cap table cleanse + reconciliation BEFORE the 409A is performed, financial data package preparation, methodology coordination, post-issue cap table updates, and bundle-pricing across our valuation specialist partners. Most emerging managers waste the 409A by feeding the specialist a messy cap table — we fix the input so the output is defensible.
(1) Cap table reconciliation across all share classes, options, SAFEs, convertibles, warrants — typically 4-12 hours of forensic work depending on history. (2) Verification of all 83(b) elections and outstanding option grants. (3) Financial data package prepared in the format specialists need (3-year P&L, balance sheet, runway analysis, customer concentration). (4) Coordination with the 409A valuation specialist of your choice (or one of ours from Carta / Trellis / Initio). (5) Post-409A cap table update + option grant template. The specialist's own fee ($1,500-$4,000 depending on company stage) is separate and billed by them directly.
When your cap table has any of these signals: SAFE conversions that haven't been mathematically reconciled, multiple share classes with unclear preference stack, missed 83(b) elections, dead equity from departed founders, conflicting equity grants in different documents, or you're approaching a priced round and need cap-table cleanse + 409A together. If your cap table is genuinely clean and you just want the 409A report, go direct to Carta — it'll be cheaper. We add value when the inputs are messy.
Cap-table cleanse: 5-10 working days. 409A specialist work: 7-14 working days after we hand them the package. Total: 3-4 weeks for a clean engagement, 5-6 weeks for complex ones. Critical: don't start this 2 weeks before a board meeting — start at least 6 weeks before any deadline.
Yes. We only coordinate with AICPA-credentialed valuation specialists (Carta, Trellis, Initio, plus a few boutique firms we vetted). Their 409A reports comply with IRC Section 409A safe-harbor provisions and IPEV/ASC 820 fair-value methodology. Our cap-table cleanse work is documented to the same audit standard. We've never had a client's 409A challenged in diligence or audit — but we can't make that guarantee for valuation work we don't directly perform.
409A is a US-only construct (IRC Section 409A applies to US-domiciled C-Corps issuing options to US persons). For UK companies issuing EMI or unapproved options, the equivalent is HMRC AMV (Actual Market Value) determination — a different process. We can coordinate AMV via our UK partners if you have a UK Ltd Co issuing share options. £695 cap-table cleanse + £1,200-£2,500 AMV opinion.
Material event — you need a new 409A. The new valuation will be lower than the previous one, which is fine (down rounds are common and don't trigger 409A penalties on previously-issued options). What you can't do is keep issuing options at the old higher strike price after the down round — those new grants would be presumed above-FMV and become very tax-inefficient for the recipients. Plan for a fresh 409A within 30 days of any down round, acqui-hire, or significant pivot.
Yes. California is the only state with its own §409A penalty: Cal Rev & Tax Code §17501.5 adds 5% additional state tax on top of the federal 20% additional tax for non-compliant deferred-comp arrangements. A mispriced option grant to a California-resident recipient triggers a combined 25% penalty stack, not 20%. Our cap-table cleanse automatically flags any California-resident option recipients so that the §409A opinion explicitly addresses the heightened compliance risk. No other state has its own §409A penalty — the other 49 conform federally.
A few. New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts do not conform fully to federal stock-comp tax treatment for state-resident option recipients (NY AMT timing for ISOs; PA non-conformity on compensation income from option exercise; MA similar). These are post-409A grant-tax issues, not §409A compliance issues — we flag them in the cleanse and coordinate with your CPA on the appropriate state withholding and grant timing. We do not provide state tax advice ourselves. The other 46 states + DC conform federally and require no special treatment.
Deeper reading on 409A cost, timing, and process before you order.