It’s rare that we get two trusted sources who have directly conflicting stories, but it happened today.
On the one hand, rumors have been flying through Silicon Valley saying that widget startup Slide is out pitching for another round of financing, and asking for a $200 million valuation.
The rumors make sense for a few reasons. Slide has 60 employees and is therefore spending $600k or more per month just on salaries – total burn rate may be nearer to $1 million/month. Their size of their last round, which was almost a year ago, was never disclosed. But speculation put it in the $20 million range with a valuation as high as $100 million. So while Slide probably still has some money in the bank, it is about time they’d start looking for new capital so they don’t cut it too close.
And we have a trusted source which says Slide did in fact pitch them for capital recently, asking for at least a $200 million pre-money valuation.
But on the other hand, Slide founder and CEO Max Levchin has gone on the record with us saying they have pitched no one for capital since their last round in 2006. He says they haven’t even updated their pitch deck.
What’s the real story? Perhaps it’s somewhere in the middle. Levchin says people have inquired about investing in the company. “I think this is a misunderstanding,” he said. Certainly he would have no reason to go on the record with us if the rumors were strictly true.
It sounds like it probably is. But those rumors persist, nonetheless. And one thing is certain – they don’t hurt Slide. Anyone thinking of acquiring the company may move sooner rather than later to get their hands on the company before that next round of financing.