One of the main reasons we have yet to see a meaningful recovery in late-stage deal activity is the lack of consensus around how startups should be valued. No one wants to pay 2021 prices, but gauging what startups are worth now isn’t easy.
However, there are signs that folks are coming to an agreement.
Last week, Forge Global, a private securities marketplace, released data that shows the average difference between what secondary sellers were looking to sell for and what buyers were looking to buy shares for — also known as the bid/ask spread — had decreased to 17%. This is the lowest percentage in a year, showing that buyers and sellers are starting to get on the same page regarding price.