We’re proud to announce that Alice just became the first company to hold its investors legally accountable for their behavior. We are excited to say that we have closed our Series A funding, led by SVB Financial Group, parent company to Silicon Valley Bank, the bank of the world’s most innovative companies.
It took our founders, Elizabeth Gore and Carolyn Rodz, long hours of work on each detail of the raise, but even while they did everything they could do to make the deal successful, they never swayed on their company values.
That’s why the terms of the raise includes a first-of-its-kind #MeToo morality clause. The clause reinforces the commitment of both Alice and SVB Financial Group to ensure that Alice board members and voting stockholders are held accountable for choices that could affect Alice’s workforce and community of business owners. The clause requires stockholders to use corporate governance mechanisms to vote for removal of any board member in the event of a “#MeToo event, racial discrimination, and/or sexual orientation discrimination incident.”
According to Gore, president and chairwoman of Alice, “As a company that sees the monetary value of inclusivity, we firmly believe that a #MeToo-type clause should be included in every funding agreement for every business in the country. Sexual and race discrimination is just plain bad for business.”
Alice and SVB are a perfect pairing. President of SVB Financial Group, John China, says that he and his company are proud to support Alice and its work with helping underrepresented individuals to launch and grow their businesses. “The Alice team is
taking an important step with the introduction of a morality clause and I expect to see other companies follow their lead,” he adds.
We hope so, but for now, we’re honored to be breaking ground.