Recap it! The Founder Buyout. How Founders Can Take Back Control and Investors Get Liquid
Recap It! The Founder Buyout. Taking Back Control and Getting Liquid
For SaaS founders seeking liquidity while maintaining control, a Founder Buyout offers a compelling alternative to traditional exits. This strategy enables founders to reacquire investor stakes using debt financing and internal cash flow, allowing them to drive long-term growth on their terms. In this article, we explore how Founder Buyouts work, key financial considerations, and potential pitfalls to avoid. If you're looking for a way to get liquid while securing your company’s future, this guide is for you.
Platform It! How to Execute a Roll Up Strategy and Unblock the Path to Liquidity
Why a Liquidity-Blocked Company Should Consider the 'Platform It' Strategy
A liquidity-blocked company struggles to exit due to structural challenges, limited buyer interest, or illiquidity in private markets. Instead of selling at a low valuation, the 'Platform It' strategy enables the company to transform into an acquisition platform—rolling up similar businesses to drive scale, efficiency, and valuation uplift.
By acquiring multiple adjacent SaaS companies at low revenue multiples (e.g., 3x) and selling as a larger entity at higher multiples (e.g., 6x), the company unlocks significant upside. Investor-backed financing and operational synergies further enhance returns, making the business more attractive to strategic buyers or private equity firms at exit.
For founders facing limited liquidity options, 'Platform It' offers an alternative to immediate sale, recapitalization, or direct listing—positioning the company for a more lucrative exit in the long term.
When Too Much Capital Becomes a Problem: How SaaS Founders Can Reclaim Their Company
Many SaaS companies that raised venture capital at high valuations in 2021 are now profitable but stuck, growing slowly with a smaller-than-expected TAM and misaligned with investors seeking liquidity. This over-capitalization problem means that companies that raised $20M+ often leave founders with nothing in an exit, while those that raised $5M-$10M still have viable paths forward. To unlock liquidity, founders and investors can sell the company, recapitalize through a founder-led buyout, or shift to a profit-first model with dividend distributions. The key is realigning the cap table with business realities—check out the full model breakdown in the attached post. 🚀
Liquidity-Blocked SaaS Companies: The Opportunity for Founders (and Investors)
Unlocking Liquidity for Stalled but Profitable SaaS Companies
Many SaaS companies find themselves stuck at $10M in revenue, profitable but unable to scale further—not because they’re failing, but because their original venture investors expected hypergrowth and a big exit. These Liquidity-Blocked SaaS Companies face a mismatch between their cap table and their current business reality.
But for founders, this presents a massive opportunity—if they can restructure ownership, they could reclaim near-total control of a profitable business. In this post, we explore four ways to unblock liquidity, including founder-led buyouts, recapitalization strategies, platform plays, and even direct listings. If you're navigating this challenge, this guide breaks down the smartest paths forward.