Founders Stop Ceding Control and Capital to VCs

Founders are no longer handing venture capital firms both their capital and their control, according to a report published by 36kr Europe.

The report's central claim is straightforward: the default startup bargain — founder gives up equity and boardroom power in exchange for VC money — is losing its status as the default. Entrepreneurs are keeping larger ownership stakes and stronger governance rights while still funding growth.

What does the shift actually involve?

The report frames the change along two axes that have historically moved together and now don't: capital and control.

• Capital. Founders are raising money on terms that dilute them less than the traditional venture pattern.
• Control. Founders are retaining decision-making power — voting rights, board composition, strategic direction — rather than trading it away with each round.

That pairing matters. For most of venture capital's history, the two were a package: bigger checks came with bigger governance claims from investors. The report argues founders now negotiate them separately, or refuse the second half of the bargain entirely.

Why are founders pushing back now?

The 36kr Europe report positions this as a structural change in founder behavior, not a temporary market posture. Entrepreneurs have watched earlier generations lose operational control of companies they built, and they're drawing different conclusions about what to sell and what to keep.

The headline makes the point in the founders' own framing: they are "no longer ceding" control. That verb choice signals agency — this is founders acting deliberately, not a market condition imposed on them.

Who does this squeeze?

The obvious pressure point is the traditional venture firm. Its model depends on buying meaningful ownership and influence at an early stage. If founders won't sell control, VCs pay the same price for less leverage.

The report doesn't name specific firms, valuations or deals, so the evidence base here is directional rather than deal-level. But the direction is clear: the balance of negotiating power has shifted toward the founder side of the table, and capital providers are adapting to that reality rather than the reverse.

What comes next?

If the trend holds, the next funding cycle will test whether founders can sustain these terms when capital tightens — or whether control-friendly structures remain a bull-market luxury.