Why Foursquare's acquisition left its co-founder Dennis Crowley 'heartbroken'
What's the story
Dennis Crowley, the co-founder of location technology company Foursquare, has expressed his disappointment over the company's recent acquisition by Infillion. In a Substack post, he revealed that the deal left him "heartbroken" as it resulted in no financial return for equity holders. Crowley said no money was offered for either preferred or common stock in the acquisition.
Apology issued
Crowley apologizes to former employees
Crowley, who left his CEO position in 2016 but continued to lead Foursquare's R&D lab until 2021 and remained on the board afterward, apologized to the company's former employees.
He wrote, "To our ~1,600 former employees over 17 years, I am sorry the Foursquare story ended in such a way that makes it seem like our collective efforts were worth... nothing?"
Leadership critique
Criticism of Foursquare's leadership
Crowley criticized Foursquare's leadership for failing to preserve or create value during his absence.
He also mentioned that employees had reached out to him with their frustrations about the current management.
This comes as a major criticism of The Raine Group, a private equity firm that invested in Foursquare in 2019 and later appointed Gary Little as CEO.
Accountability
Crowley's acceptance of his role in Foursquare's outcome
Crowley has accepted his part in Foursquare's $0 outcome for equity holders.
He said his decisions as CEO led to the need for a private equity investment and he wished he had been more vocal on the board.
"Maybe the biggest mistake I've made in my career is falling in love with this company," Crowley wrote, noting that he was too loyal to "making it work" and stayed longer than he should have.