"there was no single transaction where the entire escrow fund was exhausted" -- that's not because no one acquired a startup that turned out to be mostly inflated metrics and bullshit.
For whatever reason, escrow funds are mostly just used for little things like paying bills that came in after the documents closed. When the whole startup is rotten, the acquirer doesn't usually try hard to claw back money because management don't want to admit to themselves or their board that they were suckers.
Also, it's very hard to tell whether a startup was about to collapse before the acquisition, or collapsed as a result of the acquirer making the new employees work in beige cubicles.
Something like half of acquisitions destroy value. The worst case is when the acquired company colonizes and destroys the parent company by filling its management ranks with stooges.
For whatever reason, escrow funds are mostly just used for little things like paying bills that came in after the documents closed. When the whole startup is rotten, the acquirer doesn't usually try hard to claw back money because management don't want to admit to themselves or their board that they were suckers.
Also, it's very hard to tell whether a startup was about to collapse before the acquisition, or collapsed as a result of the acquirer making the new employees work in beige cubicles.
Something like half of acquisitions destroy value. The worst case is when the acquired company colonizes and destroys the parent company by filling its management ranks with stooges.