Upfront Ventures Raises Massive New $280 Million Fund
It's the largest early-stage fund raised in Los Angeles since the year 2000.
The new fund will focus on early-stage technology investments beginning activities in early 2015, on a 3-year regular cycle.
Upfront plans to continue its tradition of investing about half its dollars in the Los Angeles market and half nationally on companies spread across America.
Los Angeles has no shortage of technology companies worth investing in. Recent successful Upfront Ventures investments include stakes in Maker Studios, TrueCar, Gravity and Burstly. And companies such as Oculus, Beats, Nasty Gal, Tinder, Whisper, and Snapchat all call LA home.
"LA is the 3rd largest tech market in the US and now the fastest growing." said Mark Suster, a partner in Upfront, in a press release announcing the fund. "Having been on the road talking to many LPs - it's clear that others outside our region now see the momentum."
"When I started the firm in 1996 there was no technology startup industry at all in LA," Upfront founding partner Yves Sisteron added. "To see this now become the major source of economic growth in our city over the past 20 years is spectacular."
Outside of LA, Upfront investments include MakeSpace, Grove Labs, DataSift, Thredup, and others.
Upfront began investing its last fund, Upfront IV, in April 2012.