BVP Forge raises $780 million inaugural fund

In December, we announced a new initiative for Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP) with the introduction of BVP Forge, which expands BVP’s ability to partner with exceptional companies at any stage. Today, we are proud to announce that we have raised $780 million for our inaugural Forge fund that is designed for growing software and technology-enabled services businesses looking for liquidity in the form of a majority or significant minority investment.

We believe that BVP Forge takes a one-of-a-kind approach to support growing, self-sustaining technology companies, combining a dedicated private equity fund crafted to their bespoke needs with the resources of one of the most preeminent venture investment platforms.

Building a growing and self-sustaining business is no small feat. The talented management teams behind these businesses have achieved impressive success prior to our investment. We built BVP Forge with a vision to pair our unique advantages as an investing platform with these exceptional teams to further amplify their success.

Built on top of the Bessemer platform, BVP Forge offers all the benefits of a standalone tech-focused investment firm that specializes in supporting the scaling journey for self-sustaining companies:

• Tailored expertise and focus: A team who focuses exclusively on the specific opportunities and challenges native to capital efficient software and tech-enabled businesses.
• Alignment and independence: An entire firm, investment committee, and fund aligned to the unique needs of these businesses, independent of BVP’s venture platform.
• ForgeEdge™ operational program: A systematic, proactive program designed and led by a highly successful former CEO, as well as proprietary resources to help companies seize opportunities and unlock a knowledge transfer from Bessemer wins at massive scale across all operating functions.

BVP Forge innovates on the private equity investment model by combining these benefits with the energizing growth assets of BVP’s global venture capital platform:

• Iconic executive network: Enabling our management teams to huddle with some of the most influential technology leaders of our time.
• Renowned growth IP: Equipping our companies with proprietary insights, programs and resources from BVP’s decades of investing experience, enhanced by ForgeEdge™
• Frontline industry insights: Helping our companies stay one step ahead of the competition with BVP’s unique front row seat to technology and industry transformations of the next decade informed by 40+ active industry roadmaps.
• Recruiting advantage: Creating a unique advantage in talent acquisition for our companies through a coveted network, strong brand, and decades of experience.

Beyond new capital, we believe the foundation of any successful investment partnership is its people. In that spirit, we are thrilled to introduce our expanding team of BVP Forge investors who bring decades of investing and business building experience, specifically focused on growing and self-sustaining companies. Our team is led by Partners Rob Arditi and Navid Oreizy, along with Operating Partner Brian Cramer, and Principal Maren Hopkins. We are also privileged to welcome a talented team of investors, including Neil Tapiavala (Senior Associate), Samantha Tutelman (Senior Associate), Lina Gaydarova (Senior Director), Megan Meadows (Director), Kathryn Scott (Associate), and Min Zhong (Associate). We are excited to see our team continue to grow in the coming months.

Along with our core Forge investment team, we also welcome a trusted group of BVP Forge Strategic Advisors to support our companies. They include Richard Becker, Ron Kasner, Ryan Magee, Laurie Schultz, Jim Triandiflou, and Mark Wallace. Each brings a wealth of scaling experience from an operator’s seat and will partner with our portfolio companies on specific growth initiatives.

BVP Forge will focus on majority and significant minority investments primarily to facilitate liquidity to existing shareholders in growing software and tech-enabled services companies with revenue between $10-$50 million. Our companies are led by CEOs who seek a mission-driven and active business-building partner to navigate the path to $100 million-plus in revenue, and beyond. We are confident BVP Forge is the most well-equipped investor for that journey, and we are eager to earn the partnership of CEOs and leadership teams in the years ahead.

To the revolutionaries we already know—and those we have yet to meet, forge ahead!