SAN FRANCISCO — Venture capital firm 137 Ventures has announced the closing of 137 Ventures Fund V, a $350 million fund. This is the largest fund in the firm’s 10-year history and brings assets under management to approximately $2 billion.
[Photo above: Partners at 137 Ventures: (L) Alex Jacobson, Justin Fishner-Wolfson, Andy Laszlo, Ching Wu, Nick Procaccini]
Fund V was oversubscribed, with the firm’s existing limited partners contributing the majority of the capital. The firm also welcomed several new limited partners, including one of the world’s largest endowments as well as leading universities, foundations, and family offices. The firm’s prior flagship fund (Fund IV) was closed at $250 million.
With Fund V, 137 plans to use the same investment strategy as it employed for its previous four funds. Namely, most of the fund’s capital will be used to provide custom liquidity solutions to founders, executives, early employees, and other large shareholders of private, high-growth technology companies. Fund V will also make small investments in primary rounds. Over the last ten years, 137 Ventures has invested in more than 75 companies, of which 13 have gone public thus far (including seven companies that have gone public in the last 14 months).
137 Ventures Managing Partner Justin Fishner-Wolfson said, “Our team is happy to have helped founders by providing them hundreds of millions of dollars in liquidity over the years. By doing so, we have been able to invest directly with founders and other large shareholders in some of the industry’s most sought-after companies. Our limited partners support our approach to venture investing, for which we are very grateful. We have spent the last ten years proving the effectiveness of our model and developing a track record that we are proud of. The decades ahead will be focused on scaling the team and continually innovating liquidity solutions for visionary founders and company leaders.”
137’s largest active portfolio companies by fair market value at present are SpaceX, Gusto, Flexport, Workrise, and Curology. The five largest investments by dollars invested since the launch of 137 Ventures Fund IV in 2019 are Workrise, Wonolo, Thirty Madison, Anduril, and Lattice.
“Founders and VCs have a shared goal of delivering outsized venture returns over time. Obtaining liquidity through 137 Ventures aligns incentives and allows founders and executives to more comfortably play the long game,” said David Sacks, co-founder and general partner of Craft Ventures. “137 has built a reputation as a trusted advisor to founders and I look forward to seeing how they expand their services.”