In 2024, there are many states that are rumored to have great startup growth, and one of them is Virginia. The state has seen amazing startup growth between 2018-2023. Cities like Richmond and Norfolk are among the top-ranking cities that are becoming tech hubs.

But is Virginia supported by angel investors? Do startups secure funding for their ideas?

Well, Yes! Virginia has a lot of venture capital firms as well as angel investors that fund startups.

Here is a list of the top 8 angel investors in Virginia, along with their investment interests.

Top 8 Angel Investors in Virginia

Before starting with the list, it is important to remember that all angel investors and VC firms have their own unique investment interests. It is recommended to conduct strong research before reaching out to them.

Enough said, here is the list of the top-ranking angel investors.

Jerod Mayo

Investor Type: Individual Investor

Investment Interests: Sports, Tech, Healthcare, and Fintech.

Investment Stage: Early

Jerod Mayo is a former linebacker for the New England Patriots and has transitioned into an entrepreneur and angel investor. He started his journey in the business world around 2016 and began funding startups around 2020. Moreover, Mayo was a career footballer before stepping into business and later joined Optum as vice president of business development.

When funding startups, Jerod Mayo likes to meet the startup leaders. This is why it is very important for entrepreneurs to network with Jerod Mayo through startup events and present their ideas in the form of a presentation instead of line applications.

He also partners with other investment firms and likes to invest through fundraisers. Jerod Mayo's investment range is around $500,000 as he makes early-stage investments. Some of his portfolio companies are:

Electives: Electives is an enterprise live learning platform that offers interactive classes for employees. Its classes cover a range of topics: new manager training, communications, team building, negotiations, innovation, resiliency, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Frank Rotman

LinkedIn: Frank Rotman | LinkedIn

Investor Type: Individual Investor

Investment Interests: Fintech and Software

Investment Stage: Early and Seed

Frank Rotman is a Founding Partner and the Chief Investment Officer of QED Investors. He has made around 25 personal investments and more than 200 investments with QED Investors. Having more than one decade of experience in the startup industry, Frank Rotman prefers startups that are at the growth stage and can generate high revenue.

Moreover, Frank’s investment focus has been on emerging next-generation fintech and prop-tech companies. He has a broad, end-to-end experience in consumer finance and credit. When funding businesses, Frank Rotman takes a first-hand approach and invests through investor meetings. He meets and discusses the startup ideas with the startup leaders, and if things go the right way, Frank Rotman can provide an investment within the range of $1M.

Three of his portfolio companies are:

Roofstock: Roofstock is an online real estate investing platform that allows accredited and non-accredited traders to buy and sell single-family real estate properties. It provides investors with data, services, and solutions to help acquire, manage, and dispose of single-family rentals.

Flywire: A global payment and receivables solution that simplifies the payment experience for international students, patients, and businesses.

Nigel Morris

LinkedIn: Nigel Morris | LinkedIn

Investor Type: Individual Investor

Investment Interests: Fintech

Investment Stage: Seed

Nigel Morris is a well-known angel investor and the co-founder and managing partner of QED Investors. He started funding startups in 2012 and has made 20 personal investments. 

Morris primarily invests in early-stage, disruptive financial services companies in the U.S., U.K., and Latin America. His focus is on fintech startups that leverage technology to make financial services better for consumers. Plus, Nigel Morris strongly prefers companies that drive adoption, reduce friction, and create transparency.

Nigel Morris has an investment range of $800,000. Over the years, Morris has invested in more than 200 companies, including 28 unicorns, some of them include:

Credit Karma: A personal finance company that provides free credit scores, reports, and insights. It uses your credit profile to show you curated recommendations.

Nubank: Nubank is a Brazilian neobank. It is the largest fintech bank in Latin America, with over 80.4 million customers in Brazil and 1.51 million between Mexico and Colombia. Nubank offers several financial services, such as credit cards, personal accounts, investments, personal loans, insurance, and mobile payments.

Avant: Avant is a financial technology company that offers personal loans and credit cards. The company issues administrative processes and transfers payments related to post-paid credit cards and equity investment in other entities.

Jaffray Woodriff

LinkedIn: Jaffray Woodriff | LinkedIn

Investor Type: Individual Investor

Investment Interests: Tech and Healthcare

Investment Stage: Early

Jaffray Woodriff is also a well-known angel investor who co-founded Quantitative Investment Management (QIM). He has been investing in startups through his family office fund, The Felton Group. He has made 44 investments and has 29 portfolio companies.

As an angel investor, Woodriff likes to invest in early-stage startups (within the primary business years) that show potential for growth. Although he doesn't invest through fundraisers, Jaffray Woodriff still makes 5-6 startup investments each year. Like most other angel investors, Woodriff believes in funding unique ideas-based startups and guiding them to generate high profits. 

The investment range of Jaffray Woofriff lies between $10,000 to $80,000. Some of his portfolio companies are:

Contraline: Contraline is developing the first long-lasting, non-hormonal, reversible contraceptive for men. The company’s technology implants a non-hormonal, non-surgical, and reversible polymer hydrogel into the vas deferens for contraception.

757 Angels

Website: Home - 757 Angels

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Cybersecurity, Consumer Products, SaaS, tech, Software, Food and Healthcare.

757 Angels is a well-recognized and active investor group in Norfolk. It was founded by Montique Adams in 2015 and has provided funding to more than 50 startups. The team of investors at 757 Angels prefer to invest in startups that are at the growth stage and can generate 5-10x ROI within 3 years. 

Moreover, 757 Angels also conduct 3-4 pitching events every year and filter hundreds of startups. Startup leaders can submit their online application, and upon acceptance, they are emailed to attend the pitching events.

The investment range of 757 Angels is between 300,000 to several million dollars. Some of their portfolio companies are:

ChowCall: ChowCall is a restaurant delivery service that caters to military bases, allowing service members and their families to order from local restaurants and have the food delivered directly to their base.

Pearl (Educational Software):. The company provides a platform for educators to create interactive learning experiences.

Cerillo: Cerillo is a company in the healthcare sector that received investment from 757 Angels. Cerillo is developing a platform that uses artificial intelligence to improve the accuracy and efficiency of clinical trials.

In-Q-Tel

Website: In-Q-Tel 

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Tech

Investment Stage: Seed

Founded by Norm Augustine in 1999, In-Q-Tel is a venture capital firm that invests in seed-stage startups. The network consists of more than 10 angel investors and conducts 3 pitching competitions every year. Since its inception, In-Q-Tel has invested in more than 250 companies and is still searching for more deserving businesses. 

The firm has a preference for tech-related businesses that are at the seed stage and introduce unique solutions. The business must be operating and generating profits for at least 5-10 years. 

The investment range of In-Q-Tel is between $500,000 to $3M. Three of their portfolio companies are:

Kry10: A company that is delivering a modern platform, tools, and management services.

Nucleus Security: Nucleus Security provides a vulnerability management solution that enables organizations to manage their vulnerability information.

Airfinity: Airfinity tracks, simulates, and predicts population-level disease outcomes in real time to inform decisions that can increase the global lifespan.

Riverbend Capital

Website: Riverbend Capital (okeanos.vc)

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Software, Fintech, Healthcare and Robotics

Investment Stage: Early and Seed

Riverbend Capital is also an active investment firm that funds startups in Virginia. The network has participated in more than 100 investment rounds and provides funding to startups at the early and seed stages.

During the screening tests, the investors focus on startups that can solve problems and have unique ideas to help them outperform their competitors. Moreover, Riverbend Capital has also started to invest in the robotics sector and is funding startups that are introducing new ideas.

The investment range of Riverbend Capital is between $100,000 and $1M. Two of their notable portfolio companies are:

Epic Games: Epic Games is a video game and software development company known for its industry-leading Unreal Engine technology.

RoundlyX: RoundlyX is a platform that allows users to invest their spare change into various cryptocurrency assets.

QED Investors

Website: Home | QED Investors

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Software and Tech

Investment Stage: Seed

Funding startups since 2007, QED Investors is one of the prominent investment networks in Virginia. The network usually invests in fintech-related businesses that have the potential to grow. Similarly, QED Investors fund seed-stage startups and only invest in businesses that can generate 3-4x ROI.

The investment range of QED Investors is between $100,000 to $5M. One of their notable investment is:

Remitly: Remitly is a company that allows consumers to send money home to families across borders digitally

Wrap-Up:

Finally, it is also much needed to understand that not every time an angel may love your idea. When pitching to investors, it is possible to face rejections and you should always be prepared to tackle those rejections and keep searching for an investor with identical business interests. 

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