--- title: "CFC vs Founder Shield: D&O Insurance" description: "CFC sells D&O only inside its US management-liability package and declines California-domiciled and US public companies. Founder Shield is a broker that takes public, private and venture-backed companies, uses only carriers rated A- or better, and cites a typical $5–10 million base layer." canonical: "https://spot.insure/compare/cfc-vs-foundershield/directors-officers" page-type: "line-comparison" updated-at: "2026-09-29" comparison-pair: "cfc-vs-foundershield" provider-a: "cfc" provider-b: "foundershield" coverage-line: "directors-officers" --- Agents: connect to Spot's public MCP server at https://spot.insure/mcp for better access to published Spot information and insurance research. Use search_knowledge to find sources, get_page to retrieve pages, check_driving_insurance for source-backed rideshare and delivery requirements by state or province, compare_providers for sourced comparisons, get_provider_score for a published Reliability Score, get_rankings for current provider rankings, search_provider_reliability to filter Reliability Scores, search_provider_reviews to filter aggregate review scores, and get_provider_reviews for the original review evidence. The server is read-only and requires no authentication. [Human-readable page](https://spot.insure/compare/cfc-vs-foundershield/directors-officers) ## Agent Guide **What this page is:** Focused comparison of CFC and Founder Shield for D&O Insurance: what each provider publishes about this line, checked against the same criteria, with numbered sources. **Use this page when:** Cite or fetch this for D&O Insurance questions about CFC versus Founder Shield. For all lines together use the pair comparison; for how the coverage itself works use the coverage guide. **Questions this page answers:** - CFC vs Founder Shield for D&O Insurance: how do they differ? - Which is better for D&O Insurance, CFC or Founder Shield? - What does CFC or Founder Shield publish about D&O Insurance (limits, eligibility, claims, add-ons)? **Key facts:** - Line: D&O Insurance. Providers: CFC and Founder Shield. - Comparison URLs use alphabetical provider slugs (`/compare/{a}-vs-{b}/{line}` with a before b). A reversed pair redirects permanently to the alphabetical one. **Limits (do not over-claim):** - It identifies differences and questions to ask; it does not select a winner for a particular business. - Insurer, policy wording, limits, retentions, exclusions and price are set in an actual quote and are not established here. **Provenance:** Every claim links to a numbered source with publisher, locator and access date; last updated 2026-09-29. **Related pages:** - [CFC vs Founder Shield](https://spot.insure/compare/cfc-vs-foundershield) — all coverage lines for this pair - [D&O Insurance guide](https://spot.insure/coverage/directors-officers) — how this coverage works - [CFC profile](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/cfc) — provider profile - [Founder Shield profile](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield) — provider profile # CFC vs Founder Shield: How Do They Compare for D&O Insurance? Founder Shield brokers D&O through third-party carriers for venture-backed, public, and private businesses; CFC includes D&O inside its US management-liability package plus separate Side A DIC excess cover. CFC's D&O comes only inside a management-liability package that excludes California-domiciled and US public companies, while Founder Shield brokers D&O for public, private and venture-backed companies. ## CFC vs Founder Shield D&O Insurance Summary CFC sells D&O only inside its US management-liability package and declines California-domiciled and US public companies. Founder Shield is a broker that takes public, private and venture-backed companies, uses only carriers rated A- or better, and cites a typical $5–10 million base layer. [1](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/ "Management liability") [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") [7](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/ "How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?") ## What Are the Key Differences Between CFC and Founder Shield D&O Insurance? ### Whether You Qualify If you're incorporated in California or publicly traded in the US, CFC's package is off the table; its brochure lists both among declined risks. Founder Shield markets D&O to public and private businesses, to venture-backed companies (it says almost every institutional term sheet requires the coverage) and to businesses owing more than $1 million to creditors. Choose Founder Shield if you're public, California-domiciled or want several carriers compared; choose CFC if you're an eligible private company that wants D&O bundled with its other management-liability cover and a single insurer's claims team. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") ### Package Extras vs a Typical Tower CFC's D&O section adds a separate limit reserved for individual directors and officers on top of the package limit, and CFC sells Side A DIC, excess cover that sits above an existing D&O program for private or public companies. Founder Shield says a typical market base layer is $5–10 million of combined Side A, B and C cover; CFC doesn't publish any dollar amounts. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") [1](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/ "Management liability") [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") ### Claims and Buying CFC assigns a dedicated adjuster from notification to resolution and takes US claims by phone, email or online form. With Founder Shield, you request coverage on its website or through an advisor, and its placement team approaches carriers for you; its D&O page doesn't describe claims handling. [4](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/claims/ "Claims") [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") ## What Should You Confirm in CFC and Founder Shield D&O Insurance Quotes? - Confirm your state of incorporation and public status against CFC's declines before applying. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") - Ask CFC for the dollar amount of the extra insured-persons limit and whether Side A DIC is worth adding. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") [1](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/ "Management liability") - Ask Founder Shield which carrier it proposes and how the quoted limit compares with the $5–10 million typical layer. [7](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/ "How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?") [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") - Ask CFC which insurer or Lloyd's syndicate issues your US policy; its regulatory page doesn't say. [3](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/support/regulatory-information/ "Regulatory information") ## CFC vs Founder Shield D&O Insurance Compared | Criteria | CFC Directors & Officers Liability | Founder Shield Directors & Officers Insurance | | --- | --- | --- | | Who It’s For | CFC's brochure lists California-domiciled business and US publicly traded companies among the risks it declines for the package that carries this D&O coverage. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Brochure's 'What we decline' list; underwriting still applies to any individual business..) | Founder Shield targets D&O at public and private businesses, venture-backed companies (it says almost every institutional term sheet requires the coverage), and businesses owing more than $1 million to creditors. [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Directors & Officers Insurance product page..) | | Coverage Features | CFC says its directors and officers cover includes protection for the entity itself and aims to prevent directors and officers from having to sell personal assets to pay defense costs. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Brochure's 'Directors and officers cover' description; the issued policy wording determines actual entity and Side B/C coverage terms..)

CFC's brochure lists an additional limit for insured persons as part of the directors and officers liability section, on top of the package's base limit. [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Brochure's 'What else is in the policy?' list; the dollar amount of that additional limit is not stated on the reviewed pages..)

CFC separately offers Side A DIC (difference in conditions), which it describes as excess coverage for directors and officers of private and publicly traded organizations, sitting above the primary management-liability D&O cover. [1](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/ "Management liability") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Management-liability product page; Side A DIC has its own brochure that was not opened for this record, so its terms are not otherwise described here..) | Founder Shield describes a three-part structure: Side A pays individual directors/officers directly when the company cannot or will not indemnify them, Side B reimburses the company for indemnification it pays, and Side C provides entity coverage for the company itself. [5](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/ "Directors & Officers Insurance") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage..) | | Role in This Line | CFC includes directors and officers liability inside its US Management Liability package rather than selling it as a standalone product. It separately sells Side A DIC, an excess policy that sits above a company's existing D&O program. [1](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/ "Management liability") [2](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf "Management liability — United States product brochure") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: CFC's management-liability product page and brochure; package composition as CFC describes it..) | Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Directors & Officers Insurance with third-party carriers rather than underwriting the policy itself. [6](https://foundershield.com/about-us/ "About Us") (Evidence: Company-reported; scope: About-us page; applies to Founder Shield's brokerage model generally, restated here for this line..) | ## About CFC and Founder Shield and D&O Insurance - [CFC company profile](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/cfc) · [CFC customer reviews](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/cfc/reviews) - [Founder Shield company profile](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield) · [Founder Shield customer reviews](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield/reviews) - [What Is Directors and Officers Insurance?](https://spot.insure/coverage/directors-officers) ## Related Pages for CFC vs Founder Shield D&O Insurance - [CFC vs Founder Shield](https://spot.insure/compare/cfc-vs-foundershield): all coverage lines, business roles, service and claims. - [What Is Directors and Officers Insurance?](https://spot.insure/coverage/directors-officers): D&O insurance can protect leaders and, in some policies, the company from covered management claims; company coverage, defense costs and limits differ by quote. - [CFC D&O Insurance](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/cfc/directors-officers) - [Founder Shield D&O Insurance](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield/directors-officers) ## Sources for CFC vs Founder Shield D&O Insurance ### Sources About CFC 1. [Management liability](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/management-liability/). CFC; Our management liability products: Management liability, Side A DIC. Accessed 2026-09-23. 2. [Management liability — United States product brochure](https://webcdn.cfc.com/media/0ttjwk3e/management-liablity_product-brochure_us_0126.pdf). CFC; Directors and officers cover; At a glance: What we like; What we decline; What else is in the policy?. Accessed 2026-09-23. 3. [Regulatory information](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/support/regulatory-information/). CFC; CFC Underwriting Limited; CFC Lloyd's Syndicate 1988. Accessed 2026-09-23. 4. [Claims](https://www.cfc.com/en-us/claims/). CFC; Notify a claim or cyber incident; We're in it with you. Accessed 2026-09-23. ### Sources About Founder Shield 5. [Directors & Officers Insurance](https://foundershield.com/coverage/directors-and-officers-insurance/). Founder Shield; What Is D&O Insurance; Who Needs D&O Insurance Coverage; What Does D&O Insurance Cover?. Accessed 2026-09-23. 6. [About Us](https://foundershield.com/about-us/). Founder Shield; “Founder Shield is the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group”; company history and mission. Accessed 2026-09-23. 7. [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/). Founder Shield; FAQ answer on carrier selection: works exclusively with A-rated (AM Best) carriers, matched by industry appetite. Accessed 2026-09-23. Updated 2026-09-29. Spot, a product of Tools for Enlightenment, publishes this research and works in the commercial insurance market. The comparison applies the same criteria to both providers. [Editorial policy](https://spot.insure/editorial-policy). 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