How to Clean Up Your Contracts Before Fundraising

Investors don’t just fund vision — they fund structure.

During fundraising due diligence, your contracts can either signal maturity… or chaos. From hidden liabilities to missing approvals, a messy contract trail can lead to delays, reduced valuation, or worse — lost deals.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to clean up your contracts before fundraising with actionable steps and smart tools like Contract Box.

‍

1. Centralize Everything in One Place

Start by gathering all contracts: NDAs, vendor agreements, leases, offer letters, MSAs, equity documents — everything.

Use a contract repository system like Contract Box to:

• Upload in bulk

• Auto-extract key details (parties, dates, values)

• Organize by type, status, and counterparty

• Make contracts searchable for fast due diligence
  ‍

This alone removes the #1 diligence red flag: “We couldn’t find the signed copy.”

‍

2. Confirm Status & Ownership

Review every contract’s current state:

• Is it signed?

• Is it still active?

• Has it expired or auto-renewed?

• Who owns the relationship?
  ‍

Contract tracking dashboards give you visibility across the contract lifecycle, so you’re not guessing what’s still in force when an investor asks.

‍

3. Eliminate Redundancies and Expired Agreements

Ditch the dead weight.

Go through old contracts and:

• Archive expired ones

• Flag duplicates or abandoned versions

• Remove outdated or unsigned drafts

‍

Pro Tip: Use filters in a CLM software for startups like Contract Box to instantly identify contracts by expiration date or status.

‍

4. Standardize Templates and Clauses

If you’ve used 4 different NDAs in the last 6 months, that’s a problem.

Standardize:

• NDAs

• MSAs

• Employment agreements

• Advisor/consultant contracts

‍

Contract Box offers smart contract templates with clause suggestions so every agreement you send reflects your legal position and brand consistency.

‍

5. Set Up Alerts for Renewals & Obligations

VCs don’t want to find out your AWS agreement auto-renewed at double the price... last week.

With Contract Box, you can automate:

• Renewal reminders

• Payment obligations

• Key dates and milestones

‍

This is the kind of contract automation investors expect — and respect — during diligence.

‍

6. Add Audit Trails & Access Controls

Contracts should show who did what, when — not just what was signed.

Contract Box tracks:

• User activity

• Approvals

• Version history

• Role-based access

‍

Being audit-ready builds confidence that you’re operating like a company worth investing in.

‍

Final Checklist

Before you share your data room:

• Centralized repository

• Active/inactive status confirmed

• Duplicate/expired contracts archived

• Templates standardized

• Alerts in place for renewals

• Audit trails active

‍

If you can’t check these off confidently, you’re not ready.