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Entrepreneurship & Startups vocabulary · Equity & Valuation

Stake

Meaning in entrepreneurship & startups, with examples

/steɪk/nounCore term

In entrepreneurship & startups, stake means: The share of a company that a person or investor owns, usually given as a percentage, for example a 10 percent stake.

In Turkish: pay, hisse payı, ortaklık payı

How it is used

Common in deal news and negotiations. Investors take, buy, hold, sell or increase a stake. A majority stake is more than 50 percent, a minority stake less. Founders talk about keeping a meaningful stake after several rounds.

Example sentences

  1. The fund took a 15 percent stake in the company for 1.5 million euros.

  2. After three rounds, each founder still holds a stake of about 20 percent.

Common collocations

  • take a stake
  • majority stake
  • minority stake
  • hold a stake
  • acquire a stake
  • equityOwnership in a company, divided into shares. In startups, equity is what founders, employees and investors hold, and its value grows if the company succeeds.
  • cap tableShort for capitalisation table: a list or spreadsheet that shows who owns what share of a company, including founders, investors, employees and options.
  • dilutionThe fall in an existing owner's percentage of a company when new shares are issued, for example to new investors or for an employee option pool.
  • acquisitionThe purchase of one company by another, through buying most or all of its shares or its business. It is the most common exit for startups.

More terms: Equity & Valuation

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