Rev1 Ventures, a venture studio that helps entrepreneurs and corporations accelerate innovation, announced it is launching the Future Value Fund II (FVFII), a $6 million pre-seed and seed capital fund to support Central Ohio companies, focusing on tech companies underserved by venture capital. Rev1 Ventures is providing $3 million in private investment, which is being matched by the Ohio Department of Development State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Ohio Early Stage Focus Fund Program.
Crunchbase data revealed that pre-seed funding rounds were down nearly 50% in the last year, and overall funding has been at its lowest since 2018. This decrease in financing makes it harder for early-stage companies to scale and foster innovation. FVFII will be supporting the immediate needs of these startups while contributing to the long-term sustainability of Central Ohio’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, including creating jobs and economic development locally.
This new fund will invest in about 10 startups over a four-year investment period, focusing on enterprise/B2B software and other advanced technology companies. And the fund is projected to deliver significant economic impacts, raising over $100 million in co- and follow-on investment across all portfolio companies over the life of the fund, with companies generating over $10 million of revenue by 2028 and creating 58 high-paying technology industry jobs with an average salary of $90,000+ per year by 2028.
Launched on the heels of Rev1’s Future Value Fund I, the Future Value Fund II is led by a majority woman investment committee that will invest in about ten Ohio-based startups in enterprise, B2B software, and technology-enabled services companies. The fund specifically targets companies in Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) investment areas.
Rev1 is also partnering with many regional entrepreneur support organizations like Aventi Enterprises to provide accelerator programming to more than 125 startups each year, which would expand the pipeline of opportunities to underserved and underrepresented entrepreneurs.
KEY QUOTE:
“The capital gap is a real issue for growing the startup economy – and we have seen that even more so with pre-seed and seed-stage businesses. Rev1 is committed to supporting companies at the earliest stages of growth by giving them access to funding, industry advisors, and connections that help them build successful companies, and we continue to focus on helping spur change and foster innovation in Ohio in all ways possible.”
– Ryan Helon, EVP Investment Funds of Rev1 Ventures
