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Complete Due Diligence Research: From Companies House to Market Signals

Build a comprehensive investment thesis using Companies House filings, founder track records, and market signals—all from free public data.

Complete Due Diligence Research: From Companies House to Market Signals

Before committing capital to an early-stage startup, you need a complete picture—from the founding team's track record to the company's financial health to early market traction signals. Many investors piece together information across Companies House, LinkedIn, Crunchbase, and Google, spending hours for partial clarity. This guide provides a structured workflow for comprehensive due diligence using free resources, giving you the confidence to move forward or spot risks early.

Step 1: Founder & Team Due Diligence at Companies House

Companies House reveals your founding team—the most critical variable in early-stage investment.

  • Director history search: Look up each founder's Companies House profile. Have they started multiple companies? Successfully exited previous ventures?
  • Director conflicts: Are they running multiple companies simultaneously? More than 2-3 concurrent directorships suggests divided focus.
  • Director age & experience: How long have they been company directors? First-time founders vs serial entrepreneurs signal different risk profiles.
  • Previous company outcomes: Search for dissolved or struck-off companies they've led. Did ventures fail or did they exit successfully?
  • PSC (Person of Significant Control) register: Who are the actual beneficial owners? Look for misalignment between stated founders and PSC records.

Red flags: Founders with multiple failed ventures, rapid director turnover, or mismatch between claimed founders and official records.

Green lights: Serial founders with successful exits, stable co-founder team (3+ months), clear beneficial ownership.

Step 2: Company Financial & Legal Health

After team assessment, evaluate the company's structure and financial position.

  • Incorporation date: Recently incorporated (under 3 months) = pre-launch. 3-12 months = product/launch stage. Over 12 months = traction/growth stage.
  • Share structure: Simple structure (founder + employee share options pool) = healthy. Complex structures with multiple classes = potential red flags.
  • Charges register: Any secured debt or director loans? Heavy reliance on director debt signals cash flow stress.
  • Recent filings: Are accounts and confirmations up-to-date? Late filings indicate potential cash flow or operational issues.
  • Accounts (if filed): Do early accounts show revenue? Burn rate? Path to profitability?

Red flags: Complex share structures, late/missing filings, heavy director loans, severe cash burn without revenue.

Green lights: Clean share structure, up-to-date filings, early revenue traction, reasonable burn rate.

Step 3: Team Credibility from LinkedIn

LinkedIn validates founder claims and reveals team composition.

  • Founder LinkedIn profiles: Do their stated background match reality? Education, previous roles, industry experience?
  • Company page analysis: Employee count, recent hires, team depth. Is the team growing sustainably?
  • Hiring patterns: What roles are they hiring for? Sales/marketing before product = potential risk. Engineering/product first = disciplined execution.
  • Advisor/board members: Are respected industry figures involved? This signals both credibility and potential network value.
  • Founder endorsements & recommendations: Peer validation from industry figures and previous colleagues.

Red flags: Unverifiable background claims, rapid hiring on non-core roles, no advisor credibility.

Green lights: Founder history matches LinkedIn claims, disciplined product-focused hiring, credible advisors/board.

Step 4: Market Position & Product-Market Signals

Assess whether the startup has identified real customer demand.

  • Google search: News mentions, press releases, product reviews, industry awards? Any earned media?
  • Employee reviews (Glassdoor): Do existing employees view the company positively? Do they see market traction?
  • Trustpilot/TrustRadius: If B2C or B2B SaaS, are there customer reviews? Sentiment signals?
  • Crunchbase (free tier): Funding announcements, investor profile, previous rounds. Does the funding progression make sense?
  • Website/product: Polished product page vs bare MVP? Signals about investment stage and team focus.

Red flags: No earned media, poor employee reviews, lack of customer feedback, unclear product positioning.

Green lights: Positive press mentions, strong employee sentiment, authentic customer reviews, clear value proposition.

Step 5: Cross-Reference for Consistency

Verify that claims and data across sources align.

  • Founder claims vs LinkedIn: Does their pitch deck story match their actual work history?
  • Announced headcount vs LinkedIn employee count: Do numbers align or signal embellishment?
  • Funding claims vs Crunchbase: Are announced raises accurate and recent?
  • Growth metrics vs hiring: Does team size align with claimed traction/revenue?

The Complete Due Diligence Checklist

Before advancing a startup to deeper diligence:

Founder Team

  • ✅ Each founder has LinkedIn profile with relevant industry experience
  • ✅ No misalignment between claimed founders and Companies House records
  • ✅ Track record of execution (previous exits or substantial completed roles)
  • ✅ Stable team (no rapid director changes or departures)
  • ✅ Co-founder equity roughly equal (50/50, 33/33/33 typical)

Company Structure & Health

  • ✅ Clean share structure (founder + ESOP pool, no complex layers)
  • ✅ Clear beneficial ownership (PSC register matches stated founders)
  • ✅ Up-to-date Companies House filings
  • ✅ Reasonable equity raise structure (pre-seed/seed sizes)
  • ✅ No excessive director loans or secured debt

Team & Traction

  • ✅ Early product/engineering hires (discipline in hiring)
  • ✅ Credible advisors or board members from industry
  • ✅ Employee sentiment positive (if >5 employees)
  • ✅ Early revenue or strong user/customer signals
  • ✅ Clear market positioning and value proposition

Market Signals

  • ✅ Some earned media or industry recognition
  • ✅ Authentic customer feedback (not pure hype)
  • ✅ Founder presence in relevant communities/networks
  • ✅ Product and positioning feel genuine vs manufactured

Manual vs. Automated Research Workflow

Manual research involves visiting Companies House, LinkedIn, Crunchbase, Google, and Glassdoor—often taking 60-90 minutes per company. Tools like Ventur automate this by:

  • Aggregating founder/director history from Companies House in one view
  • Tracking hiring patterns and team changes in real-time
  • Cross-referencing founder claims vs public records
  • Flagging red flags (late filings, PSC changes, rapid director turnover)
  • Providing investment readiness scores based on public signals

This reduces research time from hours to 15-20 minutes while catching inconsistencies you'd likely miss manually.

Why This Framework Matters for Investors

Comprehensive research helps you:

  • Build conviction in founder team track records
  • Identify hidden red flags before committing time to deeper diligence
  • Avoid deals with structural risks (complex share structures, undisclosed stakeholders)
  • Shortlist investment-ready companies from larger pipelines
  • Make data-backed investment decisions, not hype-based ones

By using free tools strategically, you can achieve institutional-quality due diligence without expensive data platforms.

Remember, the goal is informed investment decisions that protect capital and back genuine founding teams. Start with this framework, and use it to filter your deal flow confidently.

Ready to accelerate your due diligence process? Run a free comprehensive startup profile at hello@venturhq.co.uk

Happy investing!
The Ventur Research Team