Dash Fund Research
Investment Thesis
Dash Fund backs the next wave of category-defining FinTech founders and companies. Founded in May 2020 by Ryan Sells (former VP of Operations at Pipe, Second Measure, and Clearco) and Tom Seo (former Citi Ventures investor), the fund combines deep domain expertise in financial services with operational experience building and scaling fintech companies. Their thesis centers on identifying exceptional founders who are creating transformative financial technology solutions with clear market demand and significant scaling potential.
Sector and Market Focus
Dash Fund's portfolio is heavily concentrated in FinTech (19 out of 25 investments) and Enterprise Applications (16 investments), reflecting their primary thesis around category-defining financial services and business software. The fund also has emerging interests in Artificial Intelligence applications (3 investments) and Enterprise Infrastructure (3 investments).
Key investment themes include:
- High-ticket payments and B2B payments infrastructure (Clerq, Palla Financial)
- Compliance and regulatory technology (Thoropass, KarmaCheck)
- Financial advisory and wealth management (Uprise, Pave)
- Cybersecurity and risk management (Jericho Security)
- Marketplace financial infrastructure (Makers Hub, Revenew)
Stage and Check Size
Dash Fund is a seed and early Series A investor:
- Seed stage: 16 investments (average round size $4.43M)
- Series A stage: 8 investments (average round size $12.2M)
- Series B stage: 1 investment (average round size $35M)
Minimum check size is approximately $100K, with maximum checks reaching $1M+ in seed rounds. The fund typically participates in Series A rounds in the $5M-$15M range.
Fund Size and Deployment
Dash Fund has raised two funds:
- Fund I: Raised in 2020, early fund
- Fund II: $22M, closed in 2022 (one year after Fund I, indicating strong initial performance)
- Total deployment: ~$25M+ across 25 companies (as of November 2025)
The fund is actively deploying, with 4 new investments in 2025 (Clerq, Palla Financial, Jericho Security, Outmarket) and steady deployment patterns averaging 4-5 new investments per year.
Recent Activity and Momentum
Dash Fund has demonstrated strong momentum in 2025:
- January 2025: Caribou acquired (portfolio exit)
- March 2025: Outmarket AI seed funding ($4.7M)
- April 2025: Jericho Security Series A ($5M)
- May 2025: Palla Financial Series A ($6M)
- August 2025: Clerq Series A ($6.4M)
- December 2024: Makers Hub seed funding ($1.8M)
Portfolio companies have achieved strong valuations: Clerq raised $21M+ across rounds, Palla completed $14.5M Series A, and recent exits include Caribou (January 2025), Teal (September 2024), and Power (January 2023).
Portfolio Quality and Track Record
Unicorn Portfolio: Pave (valuation >$1B) - the fund's flagship investment
Exits: 3 portfolio acquisitions
- Caribou (acquired by Move Health, January 2025)
- Teal (acquired, September 2024)
- Power (acquired, January 2023)
Top Portfolio Companies:
- Pave - Cloud-based payroll and compensation management (Series C, $175M funded)
- Thoropass - Compliance management platform (Series C, $98M funded)
- KarmaCheck - Background check and compliance platform (Series B, $60M funded)
- Jericho Security - AI-powered cybersecurity training (Series A, $18M funded)
- Uprise - AI-powered financial advisory (Seed, $4.7M funded)
- Clerq - High-ticket payments infrastructure (Series A, $12M+)
- Palla Financial - Cross-border payments (Series A, $14.5M+)
- Caribou - Wealth management API (acquired January 2025)
Decision Process and Investment Approach
Partnership Model: Dash Fund operates as a partnership of 7 general partners, suggesting collaborative decision-making and shared conviction on investments. No partners currently sit on boards, indicating a non-control, supportive investor approach.
Co-investor Network: The fund co-invests with quality investors including:
- Y Combinator (predecessor investor)
- Fin Capital (3 co-investments)
- Contrary Ventures
- Bezos Expeditions
- Insight Partners
- Bain Capital Ventures
- Index Ventures
- LocalGlobe
- Craft Ventures
Geographic Focus
Primarily United States-focused (96% of investments):
- San Francisco Bay Area - largest concentration (offices in SF)
- New York City - secondary hub (Brooklyn headquarters mentioned, multiple partners based there)
- Other US locations - Park City, Nashville (distributed team)
- Canada - 1 investment (emerging international interest)
Founder and Company Preferences
Founder Profile: Dash Fund seeks founders with:
- Deep fintech or financial services expertise
- Experience at scale-ups or hyper-scale companies (Citi, PayPal, etc.)
- Track record building and scaling financial products
- Clear understanding of regulatory landscape and compliance requirements
- Domain expertise in specific financial services verticals
Company Stage: Prefers post-product-market-fit signals at seed stage or companies with clear product-market fit entering Series A. Heavy focus on companies with existing customers and revenue traction.
Warm Introductions
Not explicitly required, but the fund actively participates in warm intro networks through Y Combinator, angel investor communities, and fintech-focused accelerators.
Investment Timing and Decision Speed
Data suggests relatively efficient decision-making with multiple Series A closings in 2025. Average time from first investment to Series A raise appears to be 12-24 months.
Notable Co-investors and Syndication
Frequent co-investors suggest the fund is comfortable in:
- Follow-on rounds with larger institutional investors
- Syndicated seed rounds with other early-stage specialists
- Lead or co-lead positions depending on company stage and fund deployment
Fin Capital is a particularly strong signal - co-investing in 3+ Dash Fund portfolio companies indicates alignment on investment theses.
Fund Maturity and Evolution
As of 2025:
- Established track record: 5 years of operation, clear investing patterns
- Proven exits: 3 acquisitions and 1 unicorn provide investor returns visibility
- Active deployment: Consistent investment pace indicates healthy fund lifecycle
- Team expansion: 7 partners suggests the fund has grown beyond founders
Competitive Advantages
- Domain expertise: Two founders with deep fintech operations experience
- Network: Strong co-investor relationships and fintech ecosystem connections
- Operational support: Track record suggests hands-on partnership with founders
- Conviction: Concentrated portfolio (~25 companies) suggests selective approach
- Stage focus: Clear specialization in seed-to-Series A transitions