What you need to know about settling employee participation programs in an exit scenario, with a focus on the German market.

As the German VC market becomes increasingly founder-friendly (again), investors and founders alike are rethinking the balance between risk and reward

We are excited to share the initial findings from our comprehensive Founder Equity Study 2025.

Our research analyzed founder teams and equity distributions across almost 2,200 German start-ups established between 2019 and 2024, each having secured external funding through angel investors or (corporate) venture capital. While our dataset focuses on funded start-ups rather than the entire German start-up ecosystem, it provides valuable insights into team composition, gender distribution, and equity allocation patterns. The analysis tracks developments over multiple years and offers both aggregate and sector-specific perspectives.

We are excited to share the initial findings from our comprehensive Founder Equity Study 2025.

Our research analyzed founder teams and equity distributions across almost 2,200 German start-ups established between 2019 and 2024, each having secured external funding through angel investors or (corporate) venture capital. While our dataset focuses on funded start-ups rather than the entire German start-up ecosystem, it provides valuable insights into team composition, gender distribution, and equity allocation patterns. The analysis tracks developments over multiple years and offers both aggregate and sector-specific perspectives.