What do CEE founders ask VCs on first calls?
Ask how the fund decides, what it does after investing, and who you can call. On first calls with BADideas, 56% of founders asked the fund anything at all. Most of those questions were about the process and timing; very few founders asked for references from founders the fund already backs.
The figures
| What founders asked the fund | Share of pitch and diligence calls |
|---|---|
| How the process works and when you decide | 30% |
| What the fund does after investing | 16% |
| Terms | 11% |
| How much the fund invests | 11% |
| Whether the fund leads or follows | 4% |
| References from founders the fund backed | 2% |
| Follow-on investment | 1% |
In BADideas founder calls, the question founders skip most is the one that tells them most: only 2% asked to speak to founders the fund had backed.
What is changing
| First calls where the founder asked the fund anything | 2025 | 2026 (to date) |
|---|---|---|
| Share of first calls | 54% | 58% |
What it means for you
- Ask about the process. Who decides, what the next step is, and by when you will hear.
- Ask what happens after the money. What the fund did for its last few companies, concretely.
- Ask for two founders to call. A fund's portfolio founders tell you how it behaves when things go wrong.
- Ask whether they lead. It decides whether you still need someone to set the terms.
- Ask about follow-on. Whether the fund invests again in later rounds changes your next raise.
Related questions
What happens after a first call with a pre-seed fund?
At most funds, the partner who took the call discusses it with colleagues, and if there is interest a deeper call follows, often with someone from the investment committee. A decision usually comes within days to a couple of weeks of that, and reference checks with customers and earlier investors confirm it. Ask on the first call how long each step takes.
Should I ask a VC questions on the first call?
Yes. Only about half of founders do, so a few sharp questions also show you are choosing your investors, not only being chosen.
How we measured it
- Source: applications founders sent to BADideas, plus public information where we found it.
- Limits: only early-stage companies that applied to a single fund.
- On this page: A question counts when the founder asks the fund about itself: its process, money, terms or help. The process described is general practice for a pre-seed fund, not one fund's internal rules.
- Updated: 13 October 2026.
BADideas.fund, "What do CEE founders ask VCs on first calls?", updated 13 October 2026. https://badideas.fund/answers/questions-to-ask-vc-cee
Read next
- What do CEE VCs ask on a first pitch call?
- How do CEE founders run a first VC call?
- How do CEE founders settle VC concerns?
- What help do pre-seed VCs give CEE founders?
Who we are
We are a pre-seed and seed fund for founders in Central and Eastern Europe. We have built and sold companies ourselves, and since 2022 we have backed more than 40.
We back founders who see something about their market that others do not see yet. They want to change how a whole industry works, and they start small.
Good founders rarely fail on the idea or the product. They fail on selling it. We give your company hands-on help from go-to-market operators who grew Zendesk, Square and Scale AI.