Academy — guides, playbooks and country briefs

GVRN Academy.

How onboarding works, and how Web3 and crypto are regulated country by country. Written by the counsel who files the paperwork.

ARTICLES

JURISDICTIONS COVERED

Guides Articles Case studies

Guide

Is Your Data Room Killing Deals?

That email isn't encouragement, it's a polite exit. In 2026, fewer investors are writing bigger checks, and they're choosing the deal that makes them do the least work. Clean docs, tight token warrants, and a real closing system are what separate founders who close from founders who almost did.

Read · 7 min →

Article

Evaluating Automated Corporate Counsel: Auditing AI Hallucinations in Protocol Structuring

Read · 8 min →

Article

The Hidden Costs Of Using Generative Chatbots For Startup Corporate Strategy

Read · 7 min →

01 - Guides

Guide

Fundraising 101: How to Raise Money for Your Web3 Startup

Raising funds for a Web3 startup involves five key steps: crafting a compelling pitch deck that clearly explains your problem, solution, market opportunity, tokenomics, team, and financials; identifying aligned investors such as VCs, digital funds, DAOs, or angels; delivering a confident, well-practiced pitch that highlights your project’s unique value; negotiating a term sheet covering valuation, investment amount, token rights, and governance; and executing legal agreements like SAFEs, SAFTs, or token warrants while managing the fundraising round. With the right preparation, investor alignment, and tools to track commitments and legal terms, founders can streamline the process and focus on building their vision.

Read · 5 min →

Guide

How to Incorporate Your Web3 Startup: Founder’s Step-by-Step Guide

Incorporating a Web3 startup in the early stages isn’t optional. It is a strategic necessity for setting up a clean entity that is legal, operational and investor-ready. Yet the checklist: entity type, jurisdiction, token rights, banking, etc. can feel overwhelming. Here’s a concise step-by-step guide to walk you through choosing a suitable structure, deciding the right jurisdiction, nailing the documentation, and opening a bank account.

Read · 8 min →

Guide

Protect Your Web3 Startup: The Benefits of Setting Up a DevCo

A Development Company (DevCo) is a centralised entity that drives the early stages of a Web3 project, handling tasks like hiring, holding IP, contracting partners, and raising funds. While not mandatory, incorporating a DevCo helps limit founders’ personal liability and enables smoother operations. Jurisdiction choice depends on banking access, founder/investor location, tax implications, and regulatory environment, with common options including Delaware, Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Cayman Islands.

Read · 5 min →

Guide

What Is a Term Sheet? A Complete Startup Founder’s Guide

Term sheets are the first handshake in a deal, not the deal itself. But ignore them, and you could sign away more than equity. This guide helps Web3 founders decode what’s standard, what’s risky, and how to stay in control.

Read · 11 min →

02 - Articles

Article

A Beginner’s Guide To SAFEs: Understanding The Basics

A SAFE, or Simple Agreement for Future Equity, is a quick and simple fundraising tool that lets investors give money to a startup now in exchange for future shares, avoiding the immediate costs and complexity of issuing equity. Popularized by Y Combinator, SAFEs in the Web3 space often include token warrants, giving investors both company equity and stable tokens tied to the project. This approach offers speed, flexibility, and added incentives, making it a preferred method for early-stage Web3 fundraising.

Read · 3 min →

Article

Three Deliverables to Build Before You Announce Your Token Launch

Your taxonomy update shifted risk when you thought it removed it. Here's what a defensible token launch actually requires: two parallel analyses, an auditable distribution design, and a structure built to contain liability.

Read · 10 min →

Article

APAC Crypto Licensing Is the New Singaporean Institutional Moat

90% of firms failed the Singapore DTSP deadline. Is your portfolio at risk? Here is a definitive guide to 2026 APAC licensing requirements for fund managers and ecosystem leads.

Read · 8 min →

Article

LOI vs Term Sheet: Which One Do You Actually Need?

At the center of most deals, you’ll find two familiar documents: the Letter of Intent (LOI) and the Term Sheet. They look similar, but not the same. And choosing the wrong one can mean weeks of lost time or unexpected legal consequences. Here’s how to identify and choose between the two documents especially if you are raising funds or expecting to make a huge deal in Web3.

Read · 7 min →

Article

Reducing The Legal Burden For Web3 Founders: GVRN's Vision

Founders in the Web3 space face a far more complex and costly legal environment than traditional startups, where early legal needs are minimal and affordable. In Web3, a project can go from casual coding to multimillion-dollar investment offers almost overnight, triggering urgent questions about incorporation, funding documents, token legality, global hiring, and compliance—often in unfamiliar jurisdictions like the Cayman Islands or Seychelles. Resources are scarce, peer advice is inconsistent, and lawyers—whether large firms or niche Web3 specialists—can be slow, expensive, and contradictory, with some recommending multiple costly entities. This leaves founders spending significant time and money just to navigate the legal maze instead of building their projects. GVRN was created to remove these frictions and bridge the gap between Web3 founders and the traditional legal system.

Read · 2 min →

03 - Case studies

Case study

Winning Before You Launch: Lessons from Initia’s TGE Prep

In Web3, TGE success starts long before launch. Initia partnered early with GVRN to set up the right legal structure, craft airtight T&Cs, and secure trademarks—ensuring a smooth, compliant launch that let the team focus on growth, not last-minute fixes.

Read · 3 min →

Regulation changes. We'll tell you.

One monthly brief on filings, licences and deadlines across the nine jurisdictions we cover.