On the first day. Historical bank statements and older transaction documents come from institutions on their own schedule and frequently determine when everything else can proceed.
The slowest task starts first
Capital must be the investor's own and lawfully obtained, and the evidence is a path rather than a balance: agreements and closing statements for any asset sold, tax filings for income accumulated over years, and statements for every account the money passed through, including those used briefly or since closed. Banks take time to retrieve older records and some require a formal request, which is why this is the first task in the sequence rather than a late one. Where a gap exists because an institution closed or records were not kept, describe it accurately and supply what secondary evidence exists. Discovering an unbridgeable gap early is far better than discovering it after a deposit has gone.
Request records that follow the money rather than only showing the final balance. Sale agreements, tax records, bank statements, loan documents, and escrow instructions each settle a distinct link in the funds trail. The purchase agreement and lease settle which commitments have actually become binding. The decision is whether the file shows lawful ownership, traceable movement, and genuine exposure, or whether another source document is needed. Hypothetical example: a specialty-coffee roaster uses proceeds from a family business sale, so the investor collects the sale closing statement and distribution record before transferring funds to an escrow account.