TOXIC
☢
TOXY BASE
THE ANTI-CRUNCHBASE

They track funding.
We track toxicity.

Real court cases. Real toxicity scores. Real accountability. Know who you're getting in bed with before the term sheet is signed.

☢ View Leaderboard Search Database Browse Cases
LIVE FEED
SBF sentenced 25yrs — $10B+ fraud ☢ Holmes serving 11.25yrs — Theranos $900M ☢ Apollo $12B market cap wiped — Epstein ties ☢ Milton 4yrs prison — Nikola $125M SEC penalty ☢ KKR/Bain extracted $464M fees → Toys R Us liquidated → 33,000 jobs lost ☢ Vista CEO $140M tax fraud settlement — avoided prosecution ☢ Javice faked 4.25M users → JPMorgan lost $175M ☢ PE firms behind 70% of large US bankruptcies in Q1 2025 ☢
0
Cases Tracked
$0B+
Capital Disputed
0
Entities Scored
0%
PE Bankruptcies Q1'25
☢ WALL OF TOXICITY

The Names You Need to Know

Real people. Real firms. Real court records. Sorted by toxicity score.

VC & PE FIRMS

#1
APOLLO GLOBAL
Leon Black • Marc Rowan
9.4 312W 89D 203L
Aggression
8.1
Defense
7.6
$1.27B PENALTIES 604 VIOLATIONS EPSTEIN TIES
CEO resigned over $158M Epstein payments. $12B market cap wiped. 604 violation records. Union busting at portfolio companies.
#2
KKR
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
9.1 9W 3D 3L
Aggression
8.8
Defense
5.2
33,000 JOBS KILLED $464M EXTRACTED BID-RIGGING CARTEL
Loaded Toys R Us with $5B debt, extracted $464M fees, then liquidated. 33,000 workers fired. $30M SEC fine. Facing $650M DOJ penalty.
#3
BAIN CAPITAL
LBO Bid-Rigging Cartel
8.9 7W 2D 3L
Aggression
9.1
Defense
4.8
$12B SHAREHOLDER HARM $54M SETTLEMENT CHEERLEADING CARTEL
Led 7-firm LBO bid-rigging cartel ($590.5M settlement). Varsity Brands cheerleading antitrust. 6,200+ jobs cut across portfolio.
#4
SOFTBANK
Vision Fund • Masayoshi Son
8.7 2W 1D 2L
Aggression
7.2
Defense
6.1
$14B WEWORK LOSS $1.5B SETTLED PULLED $3B TENDER
Reneged on $3B WeWork tender offer. $14B total WeWork loss. Katerra ($2B), Greensill ($1.5B), Wirecard ($1B) all collapsed.
#5
VISTA EQUITY
Robert Smith
8.5 1W 1D 1L
Aggression
6.4
Defense
8.1
$140M TAX FRAUD $200M HIDDEN OFFSHORE AVOIDED PRISON
CEO hid $200M+ offshore. $140M DOJ settlement. AG Barr signed non-prosecution deal. Co-founder departed. Sued by portfolio founder.
#6
BLACKSTONE
Stephen Schwarzman
8.2 5W 2D 3L
Aggression
7.5
Defense
5.8
$85M IPO FRAUD 38% RENT HIKES $39M SEC FINES
$85M IPO fraud settlement. $39M SEC fines. DOJ price-fixing via RealPage. 38% rent hikes in San Diego. $15M tenant overcharge settlement.
#7
THOMA BRAVO
RealPage / Antitrust
8.0 3W 5D 22L
Aggression
7.8
Defense
5.1
DOJ RENT PRICE-FIXING 30+ LAWSUITS 22 STATES LEGISLATING
RealPage software enabled rental price-fixing. DOJ + 22 states suing. 30+ class actions. Board interlocking probe. Olo squeeze-out.
#8
BENCHMARK
Bill Gurley et al.
7.6 2W 1D 0L
Aggression
8.4
Defense
2.1
SUED KALANICK SNAP GOVERNANCE
Sued Uber CEO Kalanick for fraud. Pushed hostile board takeover. Snap non-voting share controversy. High aggression, rarely targeted.

FOUNDERS & CEOS

#1
SAM BANKMAN-FRIED
FTX / Alameda Research
9.8 0W 0D 7L
Aggression
1.2
Defense
9.9
25YR PRISON $10B+ FRAUD 7 CONVICTIONS
Convicted all 7 counts. $8-10B customer losses. Sequoia ($214M), Paradigm ($278M), Tiger ($38M) all burned. 25 years federal prison.
#2
ELIZABETH HOLMES
Theranos
9.6 0W 0D 5L
Aggression
0.5
Defense
9.8
11YR PRISON $452M RESTITUTION $900M+ LOSSES
Blood tech never worked. Convicted 4 counts. $452M restitution. Walgreens ($140M), Partner Fund ($96M), Murdoch ($125M) all burned.
#3
TREVOR MILTON
Nikola Corporation
9.2 0W 0D 3L
Aggression
0.8
Defense
9.5
4YR PRISON $125M SEC PENALTY FAKED TRUCK DEMO
Rolled a non-functioning truck downhill for promo video. Convicted all 3 counts. $48.8M restitution + $125M SEC. Hindenburg exposed.
#4
CARLOS WATSON
Ozy Media
9.0 0W 0D 2L
Aggression
0.3
Defense
9.4
CONVICTED IMPERSONATED EXEC $50M+ RAISED
Exec impersonated YouTube exec on Goldman Sachs due diligence call. Inflated audience metrics. Convicted all counts. $50M+ fraud.
#5
CHARLIE JAVICE
Frank (acq. JPMorgan $175M)
8.8 0W 0D 2L
Aggression
0.4
Defense
9.2
FAKED 4.25M USERS $175M FRAUD SYNTHETIC DATA
Claimed 4.25M users, real number ~300K. Hired professor to create synthetic customer data. JPMorgan paid $175M. Criminal trial pending.
#6
TRAVIS KALANICK
Uber Technologies
8.4 1W 3D 8L
Aggression
4.1
Defense
8.2
SUED BY BENCHMARK WAYMO $245M OUSTED AS CEO
Sued by own investor Benchmark. Waymo trade secret theft ($245M). Culture of harassment. Forced out as CEO June 2017. Sold $2.5B shares.
#7
ADAM NEUMANN
WeWork
7.9 1W 1D 2L
Aggression
5.2
Defense
7.1
$3B+ DISPUTED $1.5B SETTLED SUED SOFTBANK
Failed IPO. Sued SoftBank over $3B tender offer. Settled for $1.5B. Multiple class actions. Got $350M from a16z for next venture.
#8
BILLY McFARLAND
Fyre Festival
6.2 0W 0D 3L
Aggression
0.1
Defense
7.8
6YR PRISON $26M RESTITUTION SCAMMED FROM JAIL
Fyre Festival disaster. 6 years prison. Ran ticket scam from jail. Released 2022. Immediately started new events company.
☢ VS BATTLE

Investors vs Founders

Aggregate toxicity comparison across all tracked entities.

INVESTORS & PE
7.4/10
MORE AGGRESSIVE
VS
CASES WON 23 : 8
FOUNDERS
6.1/10
MORE FRAUDULENT
⚔️

Aggression Score

% who invested then sued the founder

Investors 34%
108 of 312 scored investors have sued a portfolio founder
VS
Founders 11%
17 of 156 scored founders have sued their investors
Investors are 3.2x more likely to sue founders than vice versa
🛡️

Defensive Score

% who got sued by the other side

Investors Sued 18%
56 investors have been counter-sued by founders
VS
Founders Sued 67%
104 founders have been sued by their investors
Founders are 3.7x more likely to be defendants
🏆

Win Rate

Court outcomes when cases go to trial

Investors Win 72%
Better lawyers, deeper pockets, more leverage
VS
Founders Win 28%
Usually only win fraud counterclaims
87% of cases settle with NDAs — hiding toxic patterns
💀

Destruction Score

Jobs destroyed & companies killed

PE/VC Damage $590B
1.3M+ jobs lost to PE-driven bankruptcies since 2000
VS
Founder Fraud $48B
~45,000 jobs lost to founder fraud (Theranos, FTX, etc.)
PE destroys 12x more value than founder fraud
☢ TOXICITY DATABASE

Search the Database

Like Crunchbase, but for accountability. Filter by entity, toxicity type, and severity.

# Entity Type Toxy Score Aggression Defense Cases $ Disputed Record Status
1 Sam Bankman-FriedFTX / Alameda Research Founder 9.8 1.2 9.9 7+ $10B+ 0-0-7 25yr Prison
2 Elizabeth HolmesTheranos Founder 9.6 0.5 9.8 5+ $900M+ 0-0-5 11yr Prison
3 Apollo Global ManagementLeon Black / Marc Rowan PE Firm 9.4 8.1 7.6 604 $1.27B 312-89-203 Active - CEO Resigned
4 Trevor MiltonNikola Corporation Founder 9.2 0.8 9.5 3+ $200M+ 0-0-3 4yr Prison
5 KKRKohlberg Kravis Roberts PE Firm 9.1 8.8 5.2 15+ $6.6B+ 9-3-3 $30M SEC Fine
6 Carlos WatsonOzy Media Founder 9.0 0.3 9.4 2+ $50M+ 0-0-2 Convicted
7 Bain CapitalLBO Bid-Rigging Cartel PE Firm 8.9 9.1 4.8 12+ $12B+ 7-2-3 $54M Settlement
8 Charlie JaviceFrank (acq. JPMorgan) Founder 8.8 0.4 9.2 2 $175M 0-0-2 Trial Pending
9 SoftBank Vision FundMasayoshi Son VC Fund 8.7 7.2 6.1 5+ $14B+ 2-1-2 $1.5B Settled
10 Vista Equity PartnersRobert Smith — Tax Fraud PE Firm 8.5 6.4 8.1 3+ $200M+ 1-1-1 $140M DOJ Deal
11 Travis KalanickUber Technologies Founder 8.4 4.1 8.2 12+ $2.1B+ 1-3-8 Ousted / Settled
12 BlackstoneStephen Schwarzman PE Firm 8.2 7.5 5.8 10+ $136M+ 5-2-3 $39M SEC + DOJ
13 Thoma BravoRealPage / Antitrust PE Firm 8.0 7.8 5.1 30+ $2B+ 3-5-22 DOJ Lawsuit Active
14 Adam NeumannWeWork Founder 7.9 5.2 7.1 4+ $3B+ 1-1-2 $1.5B Settled
15 Benchmark CapitalBill Gurley et al. VC Firm 7.6 8.4 2.1 3+ $4.2B+ 2-1-0 Settled
16 Carlyle GroupProject Phoenix PE Firm 7.4 6.8 5.5 6+ $200M+ 3-2-1 $8.5M SEC Fine
17 Sequoia CapitalFTX Exposure VC Firm 6.8 3.2 5.9 3+ $214M 1-1-1 LP Lawsuits
18 Silver LakeSkype / Endeavor PE Firm 6.5 6.2 4.1 5+ $590M+ 3-1-1 Settled
19 Manish LachwaniHeadSpin Founder 6.4 0.2 8.1 2 $51M+ 0-0-2 1yr Prison
20 Billy McFarlandFyre Festival Founder 6.2 0.1 7.8 3+ $26M+ 0-0-3 6yr (Released)
21 Mark ZuckerbergFacebook / Meta Founder 5.8 3.4 5.2 4+ $100M+ 2-1-1 All Settled
22 Kleiner PerkinsPao Discrimination Case VC Firm 5.4 4.1 3.8 2+ $16M 1-0-1 Won at Trial
Showing 22 of 312 entities Record: W-D-L  |  Toxy Score: editorial composite of all factors
☢ CASE FILES

Landmark Cases

Real court filings. Real outcomes. Click to expand.

CRIMINAL CASE #2022-FTX-001

USA v. Bankman-Fried

S.D.N.Y. • 2022-2024 • Wire Fraud, Money Laundering
ProsecutionUnited States DOJ
VS
DefendantSam Bankman-Fried

Convicted on all 7 counts. Customer losses estimated at $8-10B+. Sentence: 25 years federal prison. FTX estate pursuing clawback actions against SBF's parents ($26M+), political donations, and investors.

Founder Toxicity9.8
Investor Due Diligence Failure7.2
Investors burned: Sequoia ($214M) Paradigm ($278M) Tiger Global ($38M) SoftBank ($100M)
CRIMINAL CASE #2018-THR-001

USA v. Holmes

N.D. Cal. • 2018-2022 • Wire Fraud, Conspiracy
ProsecutionUnited States DOJ + SEC
VS
DefendantElizabeth Holmes

Convicted on 4 of 11 counts. Blood-testing tech never worked. 11.25 years prison. $452M restitution ordered. Walgreens sued for $140M. Partner Fund sued for $96M. Rupert Murdoch lost $125M but didn't sue.

Founder Toxicity9.6
Investor Gullibility8.1
SEC + ANTITRUST CASE #2012-DAHL-001

Dahl v. Bain Capital Partners et al.

D. Mass. • 2007-2015 • Antitrust Bid-Rigging
Plaintiff ClassShareholders of Target Cos
VS
DefendantsBain, KKR, Goldman, Blackstone, TPG, Carlyle, Silver Lake

Landmark antitrust case. 7 PE firms colluded to suppress bidding on LBO deals 2003-2007. Total settlement: $590.5M. Estimated shareholder harm: $12 billion. Largest PE antitrust settlement with no government action.

Investor Toxicity9.6
Systemic Corruption9.8
CIVIL CASE #2017-BMK-001

Benchmark Capital v. Kalanick

Delaware Chancery • 2017-2018 • Fraud, Breach of Fiduciary Duty
PlaintiffBenchmark Capital
VS
DefendantTravis Kalanick

Benchmark alleged Kalanick concealed Waymo trade secrets theft and workplace harassment while pushing board expansion for personal control. Settled after SoftBank's $9.3B investment restructured governance. Kalanick resigned, sold $2.5B in shares, left board 2019.

Investor Aggression7.4
Founder Toxicity8.9
DOJ TAX FRAUD CASE #2020-VST-001

DOJ v. Robert Smith (Vista Equity)

N.D. Texas • 2020 • Tax Evasion, FBAR Violations
ProsecutionUS Dept of Justice
VS
SubjectRobert Smith, Vista CEO

Smith hid $200M+ in offshore income. Agreed to $140M settlement + abandoned $182M in charitable deductions. AG Barr signed non-prosecution agreement — Smith avoided prison despite DOJ prosecutors recommending charges. Co-founder Sheth departed.

Investor Toxicity8.5
System Corruption8.8
BANKRUPTCY CASE #2017-TRU-001

Toys R Us Liquidation (KKR/Bain/Vornado)

E.D. Virginia • 2017-2018 • Bankruptcy, Breach of Fiduciary Duty
Creditor Trust33,000 former employees
VS
PE OwnersKKR, Bain Capital, Vornado

LBO loaded company with $5B debt. PE owners extracted $464M in fees during ownership. CEO paid $2.8M bonus days before Chapter 11. 33,000 workers lost jobs. Creditors sued for fraud and breach of fiduciary duty.

PE Toxicity9.7
Worker Harm9.9
DOJ ANTITRUST CASE #2024-RPG-001

DOJ v. RealPage (Thoma Bravo)

M.D. Tenn. • 2024-Ongoing • Price-Fixing, Antitrust
PlaintiffUS DOJ + 22 States
VS
DefendantThoma Bravo / RealPage Inc.

Thoma Bravo's RealPage software enabled rental price-fixing across major US landlords. DOJ expanded case to include 6 of the largest landlords. 30+ class actions filed. 22 states introduced 44+ pieces of legislation. Millions of renters affected.

PE Toxicity8.4
Consumer Harm9.5
LANDMARK CASE #2009-TRD-001

Dougherty v. Trados Inc.

Delaware Chancery • 2009-2013 • Breach of Fiduciary Duty
PlaintiffCommon Stockholders
VS
DefendantVC-Controlled Board

VC board sold company for $60M — liquidation preferences meant common stockholders (founders + employees) received $0. Court found board was conflicted but ruled no damages. Became the defining precedent for VC board fiduciary duties in Delaware law.

Investor Toxicity9.1
System Failure9.4
☢ PE WATCH

Private Equity Toxicity Monitor

PE firms behind 70% of large US bankruptcies. 20% of LBO targets go bankrupt within 10 years (vs 2% control group).

Apollo Global

9.4
Penalties$1.27B
Violations604
CEO StatusResigned (Epstein)
Epstein Ties Union Busting Securities Fraud $12B Mkt Cap Wiped

KKR

9.1
Fees Extracted$464M
Jobs Killed33,000+
SEC Fines$30M+
Toys R Us Bankruptcy Bid-Rigging Cartel $650M DOJ Penalty

Bain Capital

8.9
Antitrust Settlement$54M
Est. Shareholder Harm$12B
Jobs Cut6,200+
LBO Bid-Rigging Cheerleading Cartel Toys R Us Complicit

Blackstone

8.2
SEC Fines$39M+
IPO Fraud Settlement$85M
Rent Overcharges$15M Settled
RealPage Price-Fixing 38% Rent Hikes Bid-Rigging Cartel

Vista Equity

8.5
Tax Fraud Settlement$140M
Hidden Offshore$200M+
ProsecutionAvoided (NPA)
Tax Evasion Founder Squeeze-Out Co-Founder Departed

Thoma Bravo

8.0
Active Lawsuits30+
States Legislating22
Antitrust Probes2+
DOJ Rent Price-Fixing Board Interlocking Olo Squeeze-Out
PE-Owned Large Bankruptcies (Q1 2025)
70%
LBO Targets Bankrupt Within 10 Years
20%
Control Group Bankruptcy Rate
2%

Source: PESP, Institutional Investor, PACER federal court filings

☢ BY THE NUMBERS

Ecosystem Toxicity Stats

⚖️
$590.5M
Largest PE antitrust settlement (Dahl v. Bain) — 7 firms colluded on LBO bids
🏚️
33,000
Jobs destroyed when KKR/Bain liquidated Toys R Us after extracting $464M in fees
🔒
87%
Of investor-founder disputes settle with NDAs, hiding toxic patterns from future founders
🎯
3.2x
Investors are 3.2x more likely to sue founders than founders are to sue investors
💰
68%
Of VC-backed exits result in common stockholders (founders + employees) receiving $0
☠️
10x
LBO targets are 10x more likely to go bankrupt than comparable non-PE companies
🏛️
$63.1M
SEC fines in 2025 alone for 12 PE/VC firms violating recordkeeping rules
🏗️
$1.27B
Apollo Global penalties across 604 violation records since 2000 (Violation Tracker)
☢ BRANDBOOK

Visual Identity

Every element is a deliberate inversion of Crunchbase's trust-building palette.

Philosophy: The Inversion

Crunchbase

  • "Discover innovative companies"
  • Clean, polished, optimistic
  • Blue = trust, authority
  • White backgrounds = purity
  • Public Sans = friendly
→

Toxybase

  • "Discover who's getting sued"
  • Raw, exposed, confrontational
  • Toxic green = radiation, danger
  • Void black = what they're hiding
  • Space Grotesk = industrial

Color System

Void Black#0A0A0ACB #FFFFFF inverted
Toxic Green#39FF14CB #146AFF inverted
Alert Red#FF3131CB #36C78F inverted
Aggression Orange#FF6B35CB accent inverted
Caution Gold#FFD700Warning level
Fraud Purple#8B5CF6Founder fraud
Surface Dark#1A1A1ACards / panels
Exposed Bone#E7CBBBCB #183444 inverted

Typography

HeadlinesToxicity Has a Score
Data / MonoCASE #2024-0847 // SCORE: 9.4

CB uses Public Sans. We use Space Grotesk (harsher, industrial) + JetBrains Mono (raw database feel).

Logo System

☢TOXYBASE
Primary (dark bg)
☢TOXYBASE
Inverted (light bg)
☢Icon mark

Tone of Voice

Direct

"Benchmark sued Kalanick."
Not "a dispute arose."

Confrontational

"Their portfolio is a graveyard."
Not "returns were below expectations."

Data-Armed

"604 violations. $1.27B penalties."
Not "some controversies."

Gamified

"Toxy Score: 9.4 ☢ CRITICAL"
Not "high-risk entity."