Sixty8 Capital Research
Investment Thesis
Sixty8 Capital is a mission-driven seed-stage venture capital firm deliberately positioned to invest in founders historically overlooked by coastal venture capital. Founded in 2020 by Kelli Jones and Paul Ehlinger, Sixty8 Capital operates from Indianapolis with a stated mission to back Black, Brown, women, LGBTQ+, and disabled founders across the Midwest and South. The firm believes that "the talent is here" in underrepresented regions and that systematic coastal VC bias has created significant untapped opportunity in emerging tech hubs between the coasts.
Sixty8 Capital is built on years of grassroots work. Kelli Jones previously ran Black tech incubators and pitch competitions through the Be Nimble Foundation (established 2017), creating a pipeline of trained, diverse founders. This ecosystem integration—combining workforce development, accelerators, and capital—differentiates Sixty8 from traditional VCs and creates a flywheel of founder support extending beyond capital deployment.
Stage Focus
Sixty8 Capital is explicitly a seed-stage fund, focusing on pre-seed and seed-stage investments:
- Pre-Seed: $250K-$500K checks for early teams with ideas and initial traction
- Seed: Up to check sizes supporting companies with early product and initial customers
- Reserve Policy: Fund reserves 50% of capital for follow-on investments in successful portfolio companies
The fund deliberately avoids later-stage (Series A+) rounds to maintain focus on early-stage founder support.
Check Size & Investment Capacity
Sixty8 Capital writes initial checks in the $250K-$500K range, with Fund I ($20M closed 2021) targeting 25-30 total investments. Fund II ($40M, closed December 2024) represents a 2x growth enabling larger check sizes and more portfolio companies while maintaining the pre-seed/seed focus.
Based on portfolio size (8+ companies documented through PitchBook) and fund sizing, Sixty8 is selectiveeven within the seed stage—investing roughly $1-2M per company across capital raised plus reserves.
Lead Tendency
Sixty8 Capital leads seed rounds, positioning itself as the primary institutional investor for portfolio companies. The firm's role is to serve as first institutional capital for founders, establishing the reference customers and metrics that enable follow-on rounds. Limited data suggests a "leads most" or "co-leads" tendency given the fund size and stage focus.
Lead tendency: leads
Recent Activity & Fund Status
Fund I ($20M): Closed October 2021, fully deployed across 25-30 portfolio companies.
Fund II ($40M): Closed December 2024 with formal announcement "Sixty8 Capital raises $40 million for a second fund." This fund is currently in early deployment phase with 2025 being an active investment year.
Recent portfolio activity includes (from web research and LinkedIn):
- Afterschool HQ (education/skill development)
- Bump (fintech/creator tools)
- Nopalera (consumer products)
- Sunny (solar/climate tech)
- PredictionStrike (gaming/finance)
- Bloomi (e-commerce/vertical SaaS)
The fund status is actively_deploying with Fund II fresh capital and a proven track record from Fund I.
Geographic Focus
Sixty8 Capital explicitly targets the Midwest and South, reversing the coastal VC paradigm. Primary focus:
- Indiana (home base, Indianapolis)
- Midwest: Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota
- South: Texas, Georgia, Florida, Carolinas, Tennessee
- Secondary: Select national founders with Midwest/South connections or remote-first models aligned with mission
Geographic focus is a mission constraint, not a limitation. The fund actively seeks to fund founders between the coasts who would not access traditional Bay Area/NYC capital.
Sector & Model Focus
Sixty8 Capital is industry-agnostic by design, explicitly stated in founding materials. However, portfolio analysis reveals clusters in:
Consumer & Creator Economy:
- Direct-to-consumer (Nopalera)
- Creator tools and platforms
- Fintech for creators and underbanked (Bump)
Education & Workforce:
- EdTech and skill development (Afterschool HQ)
- Workforce training and upskilling
Climate & Sustainability:
- Clean energy solutions (Sunny)
- Sustainability-focused commerce
E-Commerce & Marketplace:
- Vertical marketplaces and platforms
- Bloomi (e-commerce vertical)
Gaming & Entertainment:
- PredictionStrike (gaming/prediction markets)
- Content and entertainment tech
The diversity of sectors reflects the fund's mission: support founders with ideas regardless of sector, not concentrate in trendy verticals. This contrasts with sector-specialist VCs and reflects trust in founder quality over market timing.
Portfolio Highlights
Documented portfolio companies (Fund I):
- Nopalera - Latinx-founded direct-to-consumer beauty brand
- Afterschool HQ - Educational software and skill development
- Bump - Creator and small business fintech platform (raised $3M seed with multiple co-investors)
- Sunny - Climate tech / solar products
- PredictionStrike - Gaming and prediction markets
- Bloomi - E-commerce vertical SaaS
- ZeroCarb Lyfe - Health/nutrition e-commerce
- NICKLpass - Community/gathering space infrastructure
Notable exits: None yet documented publicly (Fund I still maturing, typical 5-7 year horizon).
Decision Process & Timeline
Based on early-stage fund structure:
- Decision Process: Partnership model (Kelli Jones, Paul Ehlinger, Nassir Criss as principals)
- Decision Timeline: Likely 2-4 weeks for initial meetings and signals; 4-8 weeks for terms (typical seed)
- Warm Intro: Strongly preferred given mission to work with founder ecosystems; Be Nimble Foundation relationships often pre-qualify founders
Investment Committee & Governance
Sixty8 Capital operates as a partnership with advisory support. Founding team includes:
- Kelli Jones (general partner, Be Nimble Foundation co-founder)
- Paul Ehlinger (co-founder)
- Nassir Criss (principal)
- Julie Whitehead (CFO)
- Kilandra Bass (investment team)
Be Nimble Foundation provides operational and founder pipeline support, creating integrated ecosystem vs. standalone VC.
Founder Preferences & Thesis Specifics
Ideal Founder Profile:
- Black, Latinx, women, LGBTQ+, or disabled entrepreneur
- Addressing markets or communities underserved by traditional tech
- Midwest or South based (or strong connection to the region)
- Teachable, mission-aligned founders building sustainable businesses
- Strong execution track record even without prior venture experience
Anti-Thesis:
- Coastal-only founders (geographic distribution is core mission)
- Founders who require extensive mentorship (Sixty8 provides support, not remedial training)
- Misaligned values—founder diversity is not "ESG box-checking" but core to investment theses
Competitive Advantages & Moat
- Be Nimble Pipeline: Direct access to trained, pre-vetted founders from accelerators and fellowships (80+ founded/trained)
- Regional Density: First-mover advantage as Indiana-based seed investor for Midwest; network effects growing
- Mission Alignment: Attracts founders and limited partners aligned with diversity outcomes, not just returns
- Operational Support: Integration with Be Nimble enables workforce development, customer access, and network effects beyond capital
- Proven Track Record: Fund I fully deployed in 4 years with follow-on reserves, demonstrating execution
Recent Press & Recognition
- 2024: Named among "10 Black Emerging VC Fund Managers to Watch" (Venture Forward, Feb 2025)
- 2022: Sixty8 Capital awarded "Investor of the Year" at TechPoint Mira Awards
- 2021: Featured in Forbes, Essence, TechCrunch, Crunchbase on Fund I launch
- 2025: Fund II ($40M) raised and announced (December 2024/January 2025)
Typical Involvement
Based on fund structure and mission:
- Board Seat: Likely for most seed investments given small check sizes and mentorship focus
- Advisory Role: Available for founder support through Be Nimble network
- Operational Support: Can facilitate founder introductions, talent network access
Founder Community & Ecosystem
Sixty8 Capital actively maintains a "Talent Network" of portfolio founder hiring partners and ecosystem contributors. Portfolio companies actively recruit through Sixty8's channels, creating founder-to-founder support and job creation within the ecosystem.
Fund Performance & Path Forward
Fund I represents first institutional capital for diverse founders often overlooked by traditional VCs. Fund II ($40M) doubling enables:
- Larger check sizes at seed
- More portfolio companies (estimated 35-50)
- Expanded geographic footprint within Midwest/South
- Possible pre-seed or Series A lead participation for Fund I winners
The fund has positioned itself as the standard institutional investor for underrepresented founder ecosystems in the Midwest, with replicable model and growing ecosystem integration.