Why Smart Founders Say No to Billions

As I’ve spoken with founders who have made it to the other side of an IPO or exit, some have said that their biggest mistake has been the very thing they were chasing.   The tech industry has a fetish for exits. IPOs, acquisitions, SPACs—pick your flavor, each one sold as the ultimate validation of success.

All of these are the desired outcomes for venture capitalists. After all, they took the risk and put the first money into the business, and an exit is the much-awaited return for the investment they’ve made.   But what if that exit story is outdated?

What if the smart move for a unicorn founder isn’t to sell or go public, but to simply stay the course? Dream Games just gave us one of the cleanest examples of that mindset. 5B deal combining equity and debt financing.

The headlines screamed "massive exit," but here’s the kicker: the founders didn’t cash out. The investors did. The Exit That Wasn’t Venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) represent two fundamentally different relationships with founders: VCs invest early, take bigger risks, and expect exponential (often unprofitable) growth followed by a clear exit , usually within a decade.

PE firms, by contrast, are more comfortable with mature, profitable companies. They often prioritize operational excellence and long-term cash flow , not just a quick flip. In this case, Dream Games gets a new financial partner without the pressure of a public market or the culture shift of being acquired.

In the case of Dream Games, it looks like everyone won. The early and consistent investors, Makers Fund ( disclosure: they were investors in a company I co-founded ) and Balderton , walked away with one of the biggest VC exits in mobile gaming history. Private equity CVC took over as the sole equity partner.

Proceeds? Used to buy out existing investors. Founders?

Still in control. Still building. I think it’s only fair to compare Dream to King, after all, both have titles of similar size and in the same genre.

9 billion. Financially, it was a windfall. But culturally, things shifted.

IPOs bring structure, scrutiny, and quarterly expectations . Selling brings a boss—sometimes a great one, often a transient one . The DNA of a founder-led company doesn’t always survive the transition.

And in the case of King, the founders are long gone. King’s case isn’t an anomaly.   And according to a study highlighted by MIT Sloan, about 33% of employees from acquired startups leave within the first year 33% of employees from acquired startups leave within the first year , indicating a broader trend of post-acquisition departures.