How to Fundraise as a Startup Founder Without Surrendering Leverage

Fundraising is not solved by a polished pitch alone; the real determinant is whether you approach investors from a position of leverage when you do not desperately need their money. Henri Suhardja, Co-founder and CEO of Titipku (YC S21), argues that many early founders confuse storytelling with the mechanics of raising capital and end up surrendering control.

Why a good pitch does not guarantee funding

What misconception do junior founders have about pitching?

Many new founders believe that if they speak well, sell well, and deliver a flashy deck, capital will follow automatically. Suhardja recalls meeting numerous junior founders who treat pitching as the single key that unlocks investment.

The number one mistake is thinking that everything is solved if the pitch is good, if we are clever at talking and selling, the investor will immediately give money.

He stresses this is false because they do not understand the actual progression of a fundraising process. A founder may be brilliant at presenting, but if the underlying business stage, leverage, and need are wrong, the outcome collapses.

What did Y Combinator teach about the process?

Suhardja spent three months at Y Combinator in 2021 and describes its doctrine as building a startup the correct way and then fundraising. The environment in 2023–2024 showed why this matters: he notes a wave of layoffs, closed startups, and even venture capital professionals resigning. He defines a "zombie unicorn" as a startup with jumbo valuation but shaky foundations that survives only by feeding off new investor money.

The lesson is that a pitch is only the final layer. Underneath it sit business health, founder position, and investor alignment. A founder who ignores those and trusts only their speaking skill will, in his words, "end up in chaos or a bad ending."

Who to approach for startup funding

Which investor types exist for early-stage founders?

Suhardja lists the parties a founder can target when raising outside capital:

• Angel investor: an individual putting personal funds
• Venture Capital: institutional firms such as Skystar Ventures
• Syndicate Angels: grouped individuals like those led by Natali Ardianto and friends
• Family and Friends: capital from personal network

Each type reacts differently to leverage. An angel may engage a founder with no track record; a VC will expect stronger proof. Knowing the type shapes how you present your position.

What roles does an investor take beyond providing capital?

When someone funds you, they rarely stay silent. Suhardja outlines the positions an investor may claim:

• Shareholder: recorded in cap table
• Adviser: gives counsel
• Commissioner or board member: for large tickets above hundreds of thousands of dollars
• Connector: opens doors to other parties
• Support system: stands behind the team

If we are lucky, we will have investors who can help us in these five ways, not just give money and get their name recorded.

He adds that Titipku benefited from shareholders and advisers like Natali Ardianto and Nuni Tirta from the earliest years. A careful investor protects their own reputation, so they select startups strictly; they will not randomly back a founder who breaks laws because the scandal pulls them in too.

How to create leverage before fundraising

What does leverage mean in the investor relationship?

Leverage is the bargaining height you hold above the investor. Suhardja explains it plainly:

Leverage means our position is above the investor, our bargaining power is above theirs. If reversed, we are below, our selling power is below, that means we are the ones asking for money, we are weak, we have no higher value to sell, so we must beg.

He identifies three sources of leverage a business can show:

1. Founder experience and name — for example, an experienced founder like Natali Ardianto who built and exited Tiket.com carries immediate credibility.
2. The current condition of the business itself.
3. The future prospect of the business.

If all three are poor, the founder naturally falls to begging, usually to angel investors.

Why should you raise only when you do not need the money?

The second keyword Suhardja heard on day one at YC was timing: raise when you do not need it.

The first keyword is leverage. The second keyword is when you do not need it.

The reasoning is that desperate need flips the power dynamic. If the founder says "if we are not funded we die," the investor can dictate terms. He recalls young campus founders who accepted an angel's offer of Rp50 million for 50% of the company because they did not know better. That is a clear sign of zero leverage: the investor exploits the weakness.

When we violate this, we lose. The investor may still give money but they squeeze us.

How does a founder keep from being squeezed?

Build leverage first. Show traction, a clear path, or personal founder wins. Only then walk in. If you cannot, prefer not to raise at all rather than hand over control.

What agendas do investors bring

What are the five agendas behind an investment?

Money never lands without a purpose. Suhardja lists what an investor expects back:

• Vision: they want to see you fulfill a dream they hold
• Program: they run an activity and expect you to help realize it
• Return on investment: the rate and multiple they calculate
• Return on equity: the value of their stake in the company
• Impact: social or mission effect, especially for the super-wealthy

He notes impact is still rare among Indonesian VCs and angels, but for the ultra-rich it is the first question.

If someone is super rich, they no longer think about money, they want to help youth, but they ask: is there impact? If no impact, they will not give.

Thus a founder must map which agenda matches the investor across the table. An angel with a vision needs a different story than a VC counting ROI.

How to know if you should fundraise at all

What alternative ways exist to get capital without giving equity?

Suhardja urges founders to ask "do I truly need this?" before chasing investors. He lays out non-dilutive routes:

1. Own capital: rotate from personal savings; he met young founders doing billions in monthly sales who started from home with no external money.
2. Loan: borrow with interest, keep full equity; equity is control, and losing 51% means losing the company.
3. Franchise: for space-based businesses, let others fund locations under your brand.
4. Cooperation: share revenue with a partner for new branches instead of raising.

Equity or shares is our control over the company. Once we lose 51%, it is no longer our company.

Example of a founder who misjudged the needed amount

A Jogja-based founder with an FNB business operating several branches and billions in monthly traction messaged Suhardja asking for help to raise funds. When asked how much, the founder said "around 500 billion." Suhardja questioned why such a sum was necessary. The founder admitted he did not really know; he had read news that Kopi Kenangan raised a large dollar amount and copied the ambition.

The case shows the error of fundraising by headline. The founder had real traction yet no plan for the capital. Suhardja uses it to prove you must calculate the exact need from your business model, not from media stories.

What do seasoned unicorn founders advise?

Suhardja shares that several Indonesian and foreign unicorn founders who are shareholders in Titipku told him the same regret:

I regret raising too much money from venture capital.

They now advise him: if you do not need it, do not take it. Independent founders keeping 100% equity retain freedom. Fundraising is a choice, not a mandatory rite of passage.

Key Takeaways

• A pitch alone does not raise money; leverage and timing decide the outcome.
• Raise only when you do not desperately need capital, or investors will dictate exploitative terms.
• Investors act as shareholders, advisers, connectors, and more — pick them by the agenda they bring, not just the cheque.
• Before fundraising, exhaust alternatives like loans, franchises, or revenue-share deals to protect your equity and control.