AWP Seed Round Plan

How the funding can help us achieve super fast growth

Item

Goal

Raise target

1M, for angle round

Valuation

10M

Deal structure

10%

Expected Investor

Who can help us establish strong TRUST relationship in Taiwan or Internationally

Reference

Goal:

$20M TVL, $0.4M in revenue
Prove the business model is profitable and we can find an effective expansion approach
Find Powerful A round Investor - those can bring strong trust internationally

Sub-goal:

Conquer the early majority market at Taiwan

Investment Plan

Need 30M NTD, 1M USD in seed round.
Use 2Y to achieve 20M USD AUM, and break even
- Product Plan
- Market Plan

Budget Allocation

People (20M)
- Engineering Team: 3 engineer + 1 PM + 1 part-time financial advisor
- BD and Marketing: 1 marketing + 1 BD
Marketing (5M)
Others (2M)
Buffer (3M)

Team Investment ($20M NTD)

Raise $1M USD and build a 6-member team (including founders) with a two-year target. The team composition includes 3 developers, 1 Project Manager (PM), and 1 each for Business Development (BD) and Marketing.
Plan to convert the current part-time team members David, Adrian, and Chris to full-time employees, and recruit an additional 3 members within one quarter.
Although we operate in a fixed-income market with lower risks, we require a part-time financial advisor to analyze the current financial models used by the team and provide recommendations on diversified allocation and risk management.
The remaining team expenses are controlled by a factor of 1.5, which includes the 13th-month salary (x1.083), labor and health insurance (x1.1), and the remaining x1.3 covers employee benefits and miscellaneous expenses such as health benefits, work equipment, office supplies, team-building costs, etc.
Although initial employees are expected to be individuals with prior collaborative experience, it is still necessary to maintain competitive team benefits beyond salaries to ensure the acquisition of talented personnel.
During this period, employees are expected to be granted 0.1~0.3% equity. The equity plan is included in this BP but is expected to be implemented within one year after the team stabilizes (and if an overseas structure is established later, an equity exchange option will be provided).

Other Cost ($2M NTD)

Plan to upgrade the current information services used, such as APIs, and hire a professional external team for cybersecurity testing. The estimated expenditure over two years is approximately NT$500,000 and above.
Initially, the team is expected to adopt a semi-remote work model, using co-working spaces like JustCo as the primary office source. The estimated expenditure over two years is NT$600,000.
Legal and accounting services are expected to cost approximately NT$200,000 annually, primarily focusing on the Taiwan-based company. The next funding round plans to expand these services to an overseas structure.
Although AWP starts in Taiwan, it aims to operate globally in the blockchain business. An estimated NT$300,000 per year is reserved for potential travel expenses, primarily to Thailand or Japan. Round-trip airfare is approximately NT$10,000, supporting 20~30 trips annually.

Marketing Investment ($5M NTD)

Currently, effective marketing plans are yet to be explored. However, it is planned to reserve $5M NTD as available funds over two years, with expected expenditures directed towards KOLs, advertising, or account opening subsidies.
Generally, wealth management clients in Taiwan have an AUM of up to $100,000 USD. Currently, our figure is $5,000 USD, and we plan to effectively increase this to $10,000 USD. This requires acquiring 2,000 effective clients to reach a total AUM of $20M USD.
Based on current marketing allocations, the customer acquisition cost per client is reserved at $88 USD, which is somewhat tight compared to the industry standard, such as the cost of opening a securities account at NT$2,000~3,000.
As needed, a principal-protected plan may be offered. Additionally, the cost of providing a principal-protected plan will be calculated and included in the BP. Based on current estimates, if AWP can achieve active diversification, control risks, and maintain around 20%, the cost of the principal-protected plan should not be high.

Revenue

Currently, a straightforward linear model is used to estimate revenue growth. Under this approach, once slightly on track, the requirement is to acquire 100 additional effective clients each month, bringing an AUM growth of $1M USD. Sustaining the growth in effective clients is crucial for the long term.
AWP investment income is the highlight of this BP, as AWP itself is a stable investment service. In the early stages, when the team’s funds are maturing and not yet spent, investing in AWP can provide effective returns and support initial expenditures.
AWP is expected to achieve a stable annual return of up to 20%, with a fiat currency transaction fee of 1% per transaction. By maintaining a cash level around $5M NTD and investing the rest in AWP to enjoy compound interest, approximately $8.5M NTD in investment income can be generated over two years to support company operations, significantly reducing operational risks.

Other Notes

In this round, we aim to identify the correct expansion strategies and achieve rapid break-even with high profitability, thereby accumulating stronger proof for the next round of rapid expansion. This will help attract participation from top international funds, effectively increasing the company’s valuation and raising substantial capital to compete internationally.
In this plan, we adopt a conservative approach to burning cash, maintaining a higher cash level to allow for scaling marketing investments or accelerating into the next phase as needed.
In terms of downside risk, this plan provides ample contingency. For example, the current burn rate can support expanding the marketing budget up to four times, with a customer acquisition cost exceeding $10K NTD per user, or even hiring an additional 3-4 team members while still maintaining the ability to achieve goals before the budget is exhausted.

Last updated 3 months ago

Investment Plan

Need 30M NTD, 1M USD in seed round.

Use 2Y to achieve 20M USD AUM, and break even

Budget Allocation

People (20M)

Engineering Team: 3 engineer + 1 PM + 1 part-time financial advisor
BD and Marketing: 1 marketing + 1 BD

Marketing (5M)

Others (2M)

Buffer (3M)

Team Investment ($20M NTD)

Raise $1M USD and build a 6-member team (including founders) with a two-year target. The team composition includes 3 developers, 1 Project Manager (PM), and 1 each for Business Development (BD) and Marketing.

Plan to convert the current part-time team members David, Adrian, and Chris to full-time employees, and recruit an additional 3 members within one quarter.

Although we operate in a fixed-income market with lower risks, we require a part-time financial advisor to analyze the current financial models used by the team and provide recommendations on diversified allocation and risk management.

The remaining team expenses are controlled by a factor of 1.5, which includes the 13th-month salary (x1.083), labor and health insurance (x1.1), and the remaining x1.3 covers employee benefits and miscellaneous expenses such as health benefits, work equipment, office supplies, team-building costs, etc.

Although initial employees are expected to be individuals with prior collaborative experience, it is still necessary to maintain competitive team benefits beyond salaries to ensure the acquisition of talented personnel.

During this period, employees are expected to be granted 0.1~0.3% equity. The equity plan is included in this BP but is expected to be implemented within one year after the team stabilizes (and if an overseas structure is established later, an equity exchange option will be provided).

Other Cost ($2M NTD)

Plan to upgrade the current information services used, such as APIs, and hire a professional external team for cybersecurity testing. The estimated expenditure over two years is approximately NT$500,000 and above.

Initially, the team is expected to adopt a semi-remote work model, using co-working spaces like JustCo as the primary office source. The estimated expenditure over two years is NT$600,000.

Legal and accounting services are expected to cost approximately NT$200,000 annually, primarily focusing on the Taiwan-based company. The next funding round plans to expand these services to an overseas structure.

Although AWP starts in Taiwan, it aims to operate globally in the blockchain business. An estimated NT$300,000 per year is reserved for potential travel expenses, primarily to Thailand or Japan. Round-trip airfare is approximately NT$10,000, supporting 20~30 trips annually.

Marketing Investment ($5M NTD)

Currently, effective marketing plans are yet to be explored. However, it is planned to reserve $5M NTD as available funds over two years, with expected expenditures directed towards KOLs, advertising, or account opening subsidies.

Generally, wealth management clients in Taiwan have an AUM of up to $100,000 USD. Currently, our figure is $5,000 USD, and we plan to effectively increase this to $10,000 USD. This requires acquiring 2,000 effective clients to reach a total AUM of $20M USD.

Based on current marketing allocations, the customer acquisition cost per client is reserved at $88 USD, which is somewhat tight compared to the industry standard, such as the cost of opening a securities account at NT$2,000~3,000.

As needed, a principal-protected plan may be offered. Additionally, the cost of providing a principal-protected plan will be calculated and included in the BP. Based on current estimates, if AWP can achieve active diversification, control risks, and maintain around 20%, the cost of the principal-protected plan should not be high.

Revenue

Currently, a straightforward linear model is used to estimate revenue growth. Under this approach, once slightly on track, the requirement is to acquire 100 additional effective clients each month, bringing an AUM growth of $1M USD. Sustaining the growth in effective clients is crucial for the long term.

AWP investment income is the highlight of this BP, as AWP itself is a stable investment service. In the early stages, when the team’s funds are maturing and not yet spent, investing in AWP can provide effective returns and support initial expenditures.

AWP is expected to achieve a stable annual return of up to 20%, with a fiat currency transaction fee of 1% per transaction. By maintaining a cash level around $5M NTD and investing the rest in AWP to enjoy compound interest, approximately $8.5M NTD in investment income can be generated over two years to support company operations, significantly reducing operational risks.

Other Notes

In this round, we aim to identify the correct expansion strategies and achieve rapid break-even with high profitability, thereby accumulating stronger proof for the next round of rapid expansion. This will help attract participation from top international funds, effectively increasing the company’s valuation and raising substantial capital to compete internationally.

In this plan, we adopt a conservative approach to burning cash, maintaining a higher cash level to allow for scaling marketing investments or accelerating into the next phase as needed.

In terms of downside risk, this plan provides ample contingency. For example, the current burn rate can support expanding the marketing budget up to four times, with a customer acquisition cost exceeding $10K NTD per user, or even hiring an additional 3-4 team members while still maintaining the ability to achieve goals before the budget is exhausted.