{
  "id": 15800389,
  "title": "Foursquare cofounder says acquisition gave $0 to equity holders, leaving him 'heartbroken'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/foursquare-cofounder-says-acquisition-gave-0-to-equity-holders",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-20T20:38:25.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Insider",
    "slug": "business-insider",
    "url": "https://www.businessinsider.com/foursquare-cofounder-heartbroken-acquisition-equity-payouts-2026-10"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Dennis Crowley, co-founder of Foursquare, expressed deep regret over the company's acquisition and the resulting $0 payout to its equity holders. Crowley wrote in a Substack post that the acquisition of Foursquare by Infillion in 2019 left him heartbroken, as it resulted in no financial benefit for the company's investors. The founder stated that the company had decayed following a private equity investment in 2019 and that leadership was unable to preserve or create new value during the subsequent six years. Crowley took responsibility for his role in the company's predicament, citing his own decisions as CEO that led to the need for a private equity investment. He admitted to not being vocal enough on the board and wished he had left sooner. Crowley advised founders to seek closure even if their company hasn't experienced an exit or ending yet.",
  "summary": "Foursquare cofounder Dennis Crowley said the company's acquisition paid $0 to equity holders. He wrote an apology to employees.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}