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  • April 2023
  • Case
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Drive Capital: A New Road for Venture

By: Paul A. Gompers and Alicia Dadlani
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:28
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Abstract

Founded by two former Sequoia Capital partners, Columbus-Ohio-based Drive Capital’s mission was to build a world-class venture capital firm in the middle of the U.S., an area historically overlooked by VCs. Drive faced early challenges of attracting investors, sourcing talent, and building entrepreneurial ecosystems, but by 2022, the firm had invested in over 90 portfolio companies and had assets under management of over $2 billion, making it the largest VC firm outside the coasts. In the Winter of 2022, cofounder and CEO Chris Olsen contemplated an investment into Forge Biologics, an Ohio-based gene therapy contract development and manufacturing company. The partnership weighed the pros and cons in the context of the fund’s overall portfolio and macroeconomic headwinds facing the industry.

Keywords

Venture Capital; Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Business Strategy; Financial Services Industry; Biotechnology Industry; United States; Ohio

Citation

Gompers, Paul A., and Alicia Dadlani. "Drive Capital: A New Road for Venture." Harvard Business School Case 823-056, April 2023.
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About The Author

Paul A. Gompers

Entrepreneurial Management
→More Publications

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More from the Authors
  • Mobvoi's Path Through Market Challenges and Business Reinvention By: Paul A. Gompers and Shu Lin
  • Harvard Students Should Ignore Calls to Boycott Israel Trek By: Jesse M. Fried, Paul A. Gompers, Scott Kominers and Mark C. Poznansky
  • Negotiating a Legacy at Sustainable Harvest (B) By: Jillian Jordan, Julian Zlatev, Alicia Dadlani and Martha Hostetter
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