INSIGHTS
Author: The Odyssey Team
Date: February 18, 2026
What Actually Happens During an IPO
A Timeline Without the Jargon:
When a company like BitGo makes the leap toward the public markets, it pulls back the curtain on how IPOs actually work.
BitGo’s path underscores a reality many teams only discover too late: the IPO isn’t a moment in time, but the outcome of years of operational and data-driven decisions.
For many founders, CFOs and internal counsel, the IPO process can feel like a black box.
Everyone knows the big milestones. Hire bankers. File the S-1. Ring the bell.
But what actually happens between those moments is often poorly understood until a company is already deep in the process.
That lack of clarity creates risk. The IPO is not a single event. It is a sequence of operational, legal and data-driven steps that build on one another. When early foundations are shaky, problems tend to surface at the worst possible time.
So what actually happens during an IPO? Here is a clear, plain-English look – and where cap table discipline and transfer agent readiness truly matter.
Phase 1: Years Before the IPO (Whether You Know It or Not)
The IPO timeline starts much earlier than most teams realize. From the first institutional round onward, decisions are being made that will eventually be scrutinized in public markets.
This is where cap table discipline matters most.
Every equity grant, option exercise, SAFE conversion and secondary transaction becomes part of the permanent record. Clean data here means accurate ownership, clear audit trails, and fewer surprises later.
Equity management platforms like Carta, the largest software platform for private companies with over 45,000 customers, play a critical role at this stage by helping companies establish structure early, and by not just tracking ownership but enforcing consistency and governance as complexity grows.
At BitGo, years of equity activity (including multiple funding rounds, employee equity grants, and secondary transactions) were already centralized, standardized, and documented on Carta well before IPO planning formally began. That early structure meant the company entered the IPO process with confidence in its historical ownership data and transaction ledger rather than needing to reconstruct it under pressure.
Founders often think of this phase as “business as usual.” In reality, it is the groundwork for everything that follows.
“By the time we entered IPO preparation, we had a clear and well-maintained view of our ownership structure.” says Jody Mettler, COO, BitGo. “Having that data consistently managed meant our team could stay focused on execution rather than reconciliation.”
Companies can’t go back and fix structural decisions easily. That’s why the work of IPO readiness really starts the day a company takes its first institutional capital.
Phase 2: IPO Readiness and Internal Cleanup
Once a company starts seriously considering an IPO, the focus shifts to readiness. This is when internal teams begin stress-testing their data.
Finance teams review capitalization history. Legal teams validate shareholder rights and agreements. Auditors begin asking detailed questions about equity events that may have occurred years earlier.
This is where issues surface if data has lived in spreadsheets, email threads or disconnected systems. Fixing problems here is possible, but it is time-consuming and distracting.
Companies that maintained strong equity management hygiene from the beginning move through this phase faster and with far less friction.
For BitGo, IPO readiness involved validating years of equity activity across employees, investors, and secondary holders — but because that data was already governed and auditable, the process was about verification rather than remediation. Internal teams could respond quickly to auditor and legal requests without pulling resources away from day-to-day operations.
“Maintaining our cap table in Carta provided a reliable, scalable foundation as we approached the public markets,” says Ed Reginelli, CFO, BitGo. “It ensured the information we needed was readily available and aligned across stakeholders.”
Phase 3: Selecting Advisors and Service Providers
As bankers, auditors, and legal counsel are formally engaged, another critical decision comes into play: selecting a transfer agent.
The transfer agent is responsible for maintaining the official shareholder register once the company is public. That role requires precise, validated data at the moment of transition from private to public.
This is where early planning matters. Transfer agent readiness is not something to think about after the S-1 is filed. Shareholder data must be structured, reconciled and prepared well in advance.
Odyssey focuses on this part of the lifecycle by supporting companies as they move from private ownership records into public company operations. When this handoff is planned early, the transition is far smoother.
For BitGo, the transition from private to public shareholder records wasn’t a manual handoff. Through a direct integration between Carta and Odyssey, shareholder data was securely lifted and transferred in a single, seamless move — preserving accuracy, eliminating rework, and reducing risk at one of the most sensitive moments in the IPO timeline.
“We see the same pattern over and over: when transfer agent planning starts early, IPOs are calmer and cleaner,” says Jenna Kaye, CEO, Odyssey Trust Company. “When it starts late, the handoff can become one of the most stressful parts of the entire process.”
Phase 4: S-1 Drafting and SEC Review
By the time the S-1 is drafted, the room for error narrows significantly. Ownership disclosures, dilution tables, and shareholder information must be exact.
Any inconsistencies between internal records, legal documents, and transfer agent data can slow the SEC review process. Corrections at this stage often ripple outward, creating more work for already stretched teams.
This phase rewards companies that treated equity data as infrastructure, not paperwork.
Because BitGo entered S-1 drafting with aligned data across Carta, legal counsel, and Odyssey, ownership disclosures and dilution tables could be finalized with confidence — minimizing revisions and follow-up questions during SEC review.
Phase 5: Pricing, Closing and the First Day of Trading
As pricing approaches, shareholder records are finalized. Shares are issued. Restrictions are enforced. Communication with shareholders increases.
This is where the transfer agent becomes operationally central. Public company processes begin immediately, not after the bell rings.
When the underlying data is clean and systems are aligned, this phase feels controlled. When it is not, it feels chaotic.
“Odyssey was a strong partner during a complex and time-sensitive phase of our journey,” says Mike Belshe, CEO, BitGo. “Their team was responsive, thoughtful, and execution-focused, helping ensure everything stayed on track through the IPO process.”
Phase 6: Life as a Public Company
The IPO does not end the work. It changes it.
For BitGo, continuity across the private-to-public transition meant there was no reset after listing — public company shareholder operations were already in motion on day one.
Ongoing shareholder servicing, reporting, corporate actions and compliance all depend on accurate, well-maintained records. The companies that fare best in public markets are the ones that built for this reality early.
This is the full shareholder lifecycle. From the first option grant to ongoing public company operations, continuity matters.
Making the IPO Less Opaque
The IPO process becomes far less intimidating when it is understood as a timeline rather than a mystery. Each phase builds on the one before it. Most issues that surface late in the process are rooted in decisions made early.
Carta helps companies establish discipline in their cap tables from the beginning. Odyssey supports the transition into public company shareholder operations. Together, they reflect a broader shift in how companies approach going public.
BitGo’s IPO journey illustrates what’s possible when equity data, governance, and transfer agent planning are treated as core infrastructure rather than last-minute tasks.
The key takeaway is simple: IPO success is not just about timing the market. It is about having clean, accurate data and the right operational foundations long before the roadshow begins.
For founders, CFOs, and general counsel, clarity is power. Understanding what actually happens during an IPO is the first step toward navigating it with confidence.
simplifying the path to ipo
A company’s journey from private to public is one of the most important transitions it will ever make. Odyssey and Carta’s partnership gives issuers the confidence and peace of mind they need by aligning world-class cap table management and IPO readiness with public transfer agent services and shareholder solutions. Our established API integration ensures a smooth “lift and shift” of records, reducing risk, minimizing manual work, and avoiding disruptions.
