The founder, the spouse, and their start-up

Investors in start-ups are waking up to the risk posed by marital discord

There is a somewhat known start-up founder. Let’s call him Mr Founder. Mr Founder quit a job in the United States more than a decade ago and moved to India to set up a start-up. One of his co-founders was his wife.

Mr Founder got entangled in legal hassles and quit his operational role. Ms Co-founder took on more responsibilities. The start-up saw some glory days, but later found the going tough.  

In the meantime, Mr Founder and Ms Co-founder’s marriage collapsed, leading to much ill-will that occasionally spilled over into the public domain. The start-up was sold to a