Seattle’s startup lawyers and bankers have long helped founders raise capital. Now they’re pooling some of their own money to invest in promising early stage tech companies across the Pacific Northwest.
A trio of longtime Seattle startup service providers — Minh Le of Stifel Bank and Craig Sherman and David Wickwire of Wilson Sonsini — are teaming up to lead the Pacific Northwest fund for Service Provider Capital (SPC), a national firm that invests region by region.
SPC launched in 2014 out of Colorado with a unique startup investing model. It co-invests in early stage rounds led by institutional venture firms, typically writing smaller checks into those same deals.
The investors — limited partners, or LPs — come from law, banking, accounting, and insurance communities, reflecting an effort to let the professionals who support startups also invest in them. Angel investors and serial entrepreneurs are also part of the mix, using SPC as a way to back more local founders.
“It’s folks that support the ecosystem but oftentimes don’t have access to the asset class,” Le said.
The model aims to “index” a region’s early-stage activity, backing dozens of companies rather than betting on a few. SPC has expanded its model from Boulder into other regions such as New England, Texas, and Chicago. It has raised 11 funds across six regions, investing in about 60 companies per fund.
SPC began exploring a Pacific Northwest fund about a year and a half ago. Jody Shepherd, co-founder of SPC, said the region felt like a “perfect fit” given its strong venture community and deep talent pool around tech giants such as Amazon and Microsoft.
“Once we found a team like Minh, David, and Craig to lead the fund, plus an outstanding crew of well-connected LPs, an SPC Pacific Northwest fund was a no-brainer,” he told GeekWire.
Full story: Seattle startup insiders lead new Service Provider Capital fund investing in PNW tech startups – GeekWire
