Meaning
Corporate hygiene is the preparatory review of cap tables, corporate minutes, and contractual obligations undertaken before external capital arrives. A pre financing clean up removes ambiguity from governance histories so external legal counsel finds no orphaned share certificates or unrecorded option grants. External investors examine prior board resolutions to verify that founders hold clear title to intellectual property assets.
Unresolved shareholder disputes or missing signature pages halt capital deployment until corporate records match statutory filings.
Cap Table Sanitation
Share ledger reconciliation identifies discrepancies between issued stock certificates and the official shareholder registry maintained by the company secretary. Historical share transfers executed without proper board approval require ratification resolutions signed by all directors before an investment round closes. Option pools authorized in board minutes but omitted from formal schedules undergo retroactive documentation to establish exact dilution figures.
Stock options issued to departed contractors without written vesting schedules create liabilities that demand formal cancellation or accelerated settlement agreements.
Asset Integrity
Intellectual property assignment agreements secure proprietary software code and registered trademarks under corporate ownership rather than individual founder names. Employment contracts containing invention assignment clauses protect corporate assets from subsequent claims raised by former consultants or early contributors. Commercial agreements signed prior to institutional backing undergo review to eliminate change of control penalties or restrictive exclusivity clauses.
Corporate minutes record the formal transfer of assets from founding entities to operating subsidiaries without leaving gaps in the chain of title.
Capital Verification
Tax filings and past regulatory submissions establish a consistent financial baseline that prevents discrepancies during investor due diligence. Historical tax liabilities or unregistered securities issuances discovered during the review demand immediate disclosure and legal remediation. Capital capitalization tables validated through this process provide incoming investors with defensible share counts and voting structures.
Institutional investors rely upon these verified records to execute definitive financing agreements without incurring unforeseen liability risks.