Short answer: fundraising advisors in Spain charge in three ways: a fee for the work (per project or monthly), a success fee on the money raised, or a mix of both. More than the amount, what matters is the incentive each model creates. At Senda Partners we charge for time and dedication and never take a success fee: whether a round succeeds depends on the founder and the project, and our job is to make the process faster and more efficient.
The three ways advisors charge
| Model | How it works | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee for dedication | You pay for the work and the time your round needs, per project or monthly | You know the cost from the start, and the advisor earns by doing the job well, not by closing at any price | You pay even if the round does not close |
| Success fee | You pay a percentage of the money you raise, usually lower the bigger the round | No round, no fee | It pushes towards closing any round with any investor, and the fee comes out of the money your investors just put in |
| Mixed | A lower fixed fee plus a success fee at closing | It splits the risk | It carries the problems of the success fee, only smaller |
No model is a trick in itself. What you need to look at is what each one pays for: the work or the outcome.
Why Senda never takes a success fee
Whether a round succeeds depends on the founder and the project. An advisor can sharpen the story, order the numbers and choose which funds to approach, but cannot sign for the investor. Anyone who promises to close your round is selling you something they do not control.
What we do change is the speed. Raising money should never be a founder's main job: every week spent pitching is a week not spent selling, hiring or building. Our job is to get you to a yes sooner or, just as valuable, to a no sooner, so you can stop, fix what is not working and get back to running your company.
A success fee comes out of your investors' money. At pre-seed and seed, many investors do not like part of their cheque going to pay an intermediary. We see it from the other side of the table, because we invest too.
We charge for dedication, not counted hours. Part of the work is done with the help of artificial intelligence, so it makes no sense to bill you for hours that are not needed. What you pay for is the time and attention your round needs.
Our measure of success is that you stop needing us. We sit next to you, run the process with you and explain every decision. If we did it well, you will need us less for your next round.
What to ask any advisor before signing
- What exactly does the price include? Story, deck, financial model, data room, investor list, meeting preparation, term sheet review.
- What happens if the round does not close? The answer should be in writing.
- If there is a success fee, what base is it calculated on? Ask whether it includes public money, loans or investors you already had before hiring them.
- Is there exclusivity or a fee on future rounds? Some contracts also charge if you later close with an investor they introduced.
- How long is the commitment and how does it end? A round takes three to six months; be wary of commitments much longer than that.
To compare firms, see the best fundraising advisors in Spain, and for the whole process, the guide to fundraising for startups in Spain in 2026.
Nacho Sánchez is an early-stage investor at Archipélago Next and Suda. At Senda, he helps founders raise their round from the investor's side. Before that he was at Antler, Adara Ventures and Demium.