I read a stack of papers on startup exits, and the numbers changed how I think about selling. Only 26% of 27,619 US venture-backed startups exited within 10 years, 82% of exits were acquisitions priced 15% to 30% below a comparable IPO, and 84% of founders got zero.
If you sell, offer to stay with your team, because deals where founders stay after a merger deliver higher returns. If you keep going, judge the company on what is ahead of you, since founders tend to overweight what they already put in.
Would you sell or keep building?
Watch full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/JtQapnQP6eg
Listen to episode at: https://rss.com/podcasts/twofounderspodcast/3246685
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