New Delhi, Jun 29 (TIWN): Public spats have marred investor-founder relationships in 2022. Take the case of Amsterdam-based investor Gergely Orosz versus Invact CEO Manish Maheshwari in May 2022. Or Trell, where the founders claimed that investors have looked to bully them. The controversies at Zilingo and BharatPe have been public too. This begs the question -- what makes the founder -- investor equation click?

What is the role of a Venture Capitalist (VC)? Finding the right startup to invest in, riding its growth, and making huge returns for the limited partners? Not really. The VC community has often unfairly been dubbed as Vulture Capitalists; many criticise that the main strategy of VCs seems to be to invest in many ventures, so that at least one of them will lead to a goldmine.

Seasoned investors know that this couldn't be farther from the truth. It is more than just about picking the right horses. It is also about backing them till they succeed.

Take the case of Prajit Nanu, co-founder of NIUM, one of the biggest founder-investor success stories. Back in 2020, Nanu and his investor, Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia (VVSEAI) were engaged in a back and forth regarding NIUM's intentions to apply for a digital banking licence in Singapore.

VVSEAI wanted Nanu to forgo the licence in favour of a greater focus on its global B2B payment business. This was a 'constructive disagreement.' However, Nanu gave in and now refers to this as a watershed moment that eventually paved the way for NIUM's success as a global leader in the money movement.