Founder Treatment
How VCs treat founders - down rounds, board coups, forced removals
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Supported
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Opposed
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Mixed
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Silent
All Stances (4)
Notorious for aggressive deal-making then abandoning founders in downturn. 2022-2023: marked down $33B in portfolio value. Ghost-invested with no board seats, left founders without guidance. "Spray and pray" strategy hurt many startups.
Lost $213.5M on FTX investment. Marked to zero after SBF fraud conviction. Published glowing profile of SBF. Claimed "rigorous due diligence" but missed $8B customer fund theft. Loss offset by $7.5B fund gains.
Forced Adam Neumann out as CEO in September 2019 after failed IPO. Despite ouster, gave him $1.7B exit package including $970M stock sale, $500M loan repayment, and controversial $185M "consulting fee." Minority shareholders sued.
Sued co-founder Travis Kalanick in 2017 for fraud and breach of fiduciary duty after leading effort to force him out as Uber CEO. Sought to remove him from board and rescind his 3 board seats. Kalanick called it "public and personal attack."