[richardv]

Am I missing something but I always assumed that valuations at this stage of a company is to do with huge/vast sums of money being removed from the table by the founders and they've done this by selling a good stake of their equity/voting rights in their company.

The founders are now rich.. but the company isn't.. and if they raise a next round, their true valuation will shine through...

[harryh]

Anytime stock changes hands in exchange for money it's reasonable to use that transaction to value the company. It doesn't matter if it's the company selling a piece of itself or employees selling stock to an investor. Someone is still paying money for ownership.

If anything, employees selling shares probably makes it easier because it's common instead of preferred shares being sold.