A teaser is the first document you see on any opportunity. It is a deliberately short summary — usually one or two pages — designed to give a qualified investor enough to decide whether to look further, without disclosing the sensitive detail that lives in the data room. On this desk a teaser is released under a one-way NDA: you sign first, then the teaser and, if you proceed, the full materials follow.
What a teaser contains
- The opportunity in a sentence: what the business or asset is, and what the capital is for.
- Sector and geography: e.g. minerals, energy, petroleum or trade finance, and where the asset sits.
- The ask: how much is being raised, the instrument (equity, SPV, participation), and the minimum ticket.
- Indicative economics: a target IRR band and an indicative tenor — both illustrative, never a promise (see the IRR & tenor guide).
- Structure: whether you invest directly, through a co-investment SPV, or alongside a lead.
- Status and use of proceeds: what stage the deal is at and where the money goes.
What to take at face value — and what not to
Take the description of the asset, the sector and the ask at face value: these are factual and easy to verify later in diligence. Treat every forward-looking number — target IRR, multiple, tenor, projected cash flows — as indicative only. A teaser is a marketing summary, not a verified financial statement. The real numbers, assumptions and risks are tested in the data room and pinned down in the term sheet and definitive documents.
The questions a good teaser should make you ask
- What exactly am I buying — shares in the operating company, shares in an SPV, or a participation alongside a lead?
- Who is the lead, what are they putting in, and what do they charge co-investors?
- What has to be true for the indicative IRR to be achieved, and what happens if it isn't?
- How and when do I get money out — what is the realistic exit, and how does the tenor map to it?
- What are the country, currency and regulatory risks, and how are they ring-fenced?
A teaser is confidential and is general information only — not an offer of any security or interest, and not investment, legal or tax advice. Nothing in a teaser should be relied on without the data room, definitive documents and your own independent advice.
From teaser to next step
If a teaser holds up, the usual next steps are: sign a one-way NDA (or a mutual NDA if you will share your own information too) to open the data room; then, if you want to proceed, a term sheet records the headline terms before definitive documents are drafted. Each of these is available as a fillable template in the document engine.