Series A
/ˈsɪəriːz eɪ/
CommonThe first significant round of venture capital funding, typically raised after a startup has shown early traction.
Used both as a neutral funding milestone and as a signal of legitimacy. 'They just closed their Series A' usually means things are going well. Failing to raise a Series A after seed is sometimes called 'the Series A crunch'.
Real-world examples3 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | they closed a $12m series a. now comes the real pressure to grow. | Funding is secured, but with money comes expectations from investors. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | spent two years trying to raise a series a. seed didn't stretch far enough and we ran out of time. | The company couldn't raise the next round and burned through its seed funding. | linkedin, 2023 |
| 03 | you don't need a series a to have a real business. some of the best companies never took one. | Series A is one path, not the only one. A business without VC can still succeed. | x, 2023 |
Use it when
- A startup announces its first major venture capital funding round.
- Discussing what stage a company is at in its funding lifecycle.
- Describing the hurdle between seed funding and growth-stage investment.
Do not use it when
- You mean any fundraise, regardless of structure.
- The company raised a seed round, not Series A.Use “seed round” instead.
Variations and related forms
Origin and context
Series A comes from the naming convention of preferred stock classes in VC deals. The letter 'A' marks it as the first formal institutional round. The structure is standard across US venture capital.
- First seen
- mid-20th century
- Confidence
- high
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https://slang.fyi/series-aUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0