Free business document templates

At Vestd, we remove the cost and complexity of share schemes with our guided digital platform. But we don’t stop there, because there are many more costly and complex things founders like yourself have to navigate through, which takes your attention away from growing your business.

So we’ve created a range of essential document templates to help you understand and overcome the various challenges that crop up when running a business, with the aim to make the journey a little smoother.

There are examples of everything from employment contracts to IP assignment agreements to advanced subscription agreements, complete with brief explanations of each document and how you can benefit from them. Enjoy!

Note: all documents will open in Google Docs. Please go to ‘File’ and ‘Download’ in your preferred format and then edit once opened in the word processing tool of your choice.

SEIS/EIS

• Guidebook to all things SEIS/EIS - an overview of the SEIS/EIS process, including the benefits, eligibility criteria, advance assurance and practical steps to implement including all necessary forms.

Investment documents

• Share Subscription Letter and Agreement - can be used when a company is receiving an investment from an individual or company.
• Short Form Shareholders’ Agreement - regulates the relationship between shareholders.
• Subscription and Shareholders’ Agreement - combines a subscription letter and shareholders’ agreement into a single document and contains more robust terms than the basic shareholders’ agreement.
• Deed of Adherence - binds new shareholders to an existing shareholders’ agreement.
• Advance Subscription Agreement - enables companies to take on funds quickly and results in the company issuing shares in return at a later date.
• Convertible Loan Note - enables companies to take on funds quickly and will be repaid in shares or cash at a later date.
• Investment Agreement - legally binding both parties to the investment, subject to the terms contained within.
• Term Sheet - the first step to indicate serious intent to proceed with an investment.

Business documents

• Intellectual Property Assignment - ensures that any intellectual property created by a third party belongs to the company.
• Non-disclosure Agreement - protects information about the company from being disclosed by third parties.
• Power of Attorney - allows another person to act on someone’s behalf for certain matters.
• Agreement for the Surrender of Options - documents the cancellation of some or all options held by an option holder.

Employment related documents

• Employment Contract - sets out the terms of employment for individuals.
• Consultancy Agreement - sets out the terms of engagement for a consultant.
• Directors’ Service Agreement - sets out the terms of engagement for a director.
• Non-executive Director Appointment Letter - a letter that details the appointment of a non-executive director to the board.

Governance related documents

• Investor Consent Template - may be needed where certain investors have specific consent rights over and above those set out in the statute.
• Notice of Willingness to be Appointed a Director - used as a record of a director consenting to be appointed.
• Founders’ Agreement - this governs the relationship between co-founders and their respective responsibilities within the company.