$17 billion in VC funding has poured into the Denver area over the past five years, according to CB Insights. The exodus of startups from California and Silicon Valley (catalyzed by the COVID-19 pandemic) has led to Denver’s startup ecosystem growing considerably in recent years. Several notable startups and unicorns were founded in Boston, such as Ibotta and Quantum Metric.
As part of our going series of free fundraising resources and investor lists for founders, this article explores the top 15 active VC firms and investors based in Denver, including details regarding their fund size and history:
1. Stout Street Capital
Stout Street prides itself on investing intelligently. Their investments are driven by extensive data analysis, market analysis, and due diligence. Stout Street invests in early-stage technology companies innovating in the software, fin tech, advanced materials, robotics, and artificial intelligence. They aim to invest in under-served markets, especially in the middle of the country with an emphasis on the Rocky Mountain area.
Stout Street Capital is an seed-stage fund that seeks to invest in early-stage companies focused on improving efficiency and generating bottom-line value in large established sectors in the market. Stout Street’s Value Fund 1 is focused on post-revenue, seed-to-series-A investments in companies valued at less than $10 million, with an average check size of $100k.
- Founded: 2016
- Fund Size: $20M
- Website: stoutstreetcapital.com
2. Ibex Investors
Ibex Investors is an investment firm that proactively seeks out markets and opportunities commonly dismissed as too difficult or too different. The firm focuses on areas that include International (Israel), Quantitative (Behavioral Finance), Thematic (Driverless Cars), and Segmented (Microcaps) strategies. Ibex Investors was founded in 2003 and is head quartered in Denver, Colorado.
- Founded: 2003
- Fund Size: $264M
- Website: ibexinvestors.com
3. Sopris Capital Associates
Sopris Capital is a venture capital investment firm focused on providing growth capital to exceptional technology-enabled service and healthcare businesses.
- Founded: 2002
- Fund Size: $3M – $10M
- Website: sopriscapital.com
4. Meritage Funds
Meritage Funds is a growth equity firm that invests exclusively in technology-enabled services and other recurring-revenue businesses. They partner with entrepreneurs to help them accelerate growth in their businesses. Meritage works with entrepreneurs whose businesses require between $5 and $15 million of capital to achieve full potential. Entrepreneurs they back have already established a track record of financial performance, typically including: annualized revenue run-rate between $3 and $20 million, the majority of which is recurring in nature EBITDA positive or a clear path to EBITDA positive status. Growth stage businesses, like those in their portfolio, use their capital to accelerate growth through scaling the rate of new customer acquisition, fortifying service delivery capabilities and expanding or enhancing their service offerings.
- Founded: 1998
- Fund Size: $5M
- Website: meritagefunds.com
5. Altira Group
Altira is a private equity and venture capital firm that invests in advantaged oil and gas service and technology companies. Its Fund VI partners include a select group of the U.S. super-independent oil and gas companies that provide resources in the investment decision process and help accelerate the growth of the firm’s portfolio companies by serving as large customers. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Altira was founded in 1996 by Dirk McDermott.
- Founded: 1996
- Fund Size: $1B
- Website: altiragroup.com
6. SpringTime Ventures
SpringTime Ventures seeds high-growth startups in healthcare, fintech, logistics, and marketplace businesses. They look for founders with domain expertise, forging a path with a truly transformative technology, and only invest in software-based businesses in the USA. SpringTIme Ventures brings a people-focused approach, work quickly, and reach conviction independently. Typical initial check size is $400k to $600k.
- Founded: 2017
- Fund Size: $25M
- Website: springtimeventures.com
7. GAN Ventures
GAN Ventures is the investment arm of GAN. They invest in who you are and what you’re building, regardless of where you are. GAN believes that economic and social prosperity occur in cities large and small around the world because founders are able to make a lasting, positive impact in their communities through creating jobs, revenue, and companies that become local institutions.
- Founded: 2002
- Fund Size: $20.7B
- Website: gan.co
8. Zoma Capital
Zoma Capital invests in a wide range of market-based sustainable solutions addressing environmental and social challenge. It invests in a broad range of market-based sustainable solutions advancing energy, water, and regional economic resiliency in Chile and Colorado. Its global investment portfolio spans multiple asset classes and sectors with an emphasis on addressing environmental and social challenges.
- Founded: 2004
- Fund Size: $36M
- Website: zomalab.com
9. Edovate Capital
Edovate Capital partners with social entrepreneurs to scale companies solving education’s hardest challenges.
- Founded: 2013
- Fund Size: $2M
- Website: edovatecapital.com
Raising funding for your startup? Create the perfect pitch deck:
Are you interested in learning how to write and design a winning pitch deck for your startup? You may be interested in our Turnkey Pitch Deck template — created by experts who have raised millions themselves, and helped hundreds of startups collectively raise billions form top investors. If not, you’ll probably at least want to read through our comprehensive guide to the perfect pitch deck.
