𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 Starting up is exciting, but many founders ignore the financial and compliance basics that later cost them heavily. Some of the most common mistakes include: 𝐌𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 – no separate bank account leads to messy records and tax confusion. 𝐈𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐏𝐈𝐈𝐓 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 – missing out on tax benefits, easier funding access, and formal recognition. 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 – the scheme has a limited eligibility window, and once missed, the opportunity is lost. 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐒𝐓 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 – resulting in penalties and ineligibility to claim input tax credit. 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐬 – focusing only on revenue without understanding margins and burn rate. 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐟𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐬 – for example, incorrectly treating Capital WIP, which distorts financial reporting. 𝐍𝐨 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 – realizing too late that cash reserves will not last beyond a few months. 𝐍𝐞𝐠𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 – weak vendor, investor, or employee agreements create long-term risks. 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐞𝐬 – leading to liquidity issues at the time of tax payments. A startup’s first year sets the foundation for sustainable growth. Strong financial discipline is just as critical as achieving product-market fit. What other financial oversights have you observed in early-stage startups? #StartupFinance #Entrepreneurship #Founders #StartupIndia #DPIIT #SeedFund