dilute

Definition

The art of watering down your ownership stake in a company, usually because someone with deeper pockets decided your equity pie needs more slices. In the startup world, this happens when new investors come aboard and everyone's percentage shrinks faster than your enthusiasm during Series D. It's not personal, it's just cap table mathematics.

Example Usage

After the latest funding round, my 5% equity got diluted to 2.3%, but hey, at least 2.3% of something is worth more than 5% of nothing.

Source: Common venture capital terminology

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breaking the syndicate

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unicorn hunting

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redemption rights

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party round

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