Meridian Ventures, founded by Devon Gethers and Karlton Haney, has announced a $35 million fund aimed at supporting pre-seed and seed-stage companies led by MBA-deferred founders.
Founders' Backgrounds
Devon Gethers, 29, and Karlton Haney, 28, met in 2020 through Harvard's MBA deferred admission program. Gethers hails from Washington State, studied behavioral science and finance at the University of Utah, and worked in private equity before launching his own company. Haney, from Arkansas, studied industrial engineering at the University of Arkansas and worked as an investor with the Stephens Group.
Challenging Silicon Valley Norms
The founders aim to challenge the notion that MBAs are not suited to founding startups. Gethers stated, “Our thesis is going against a bit of the grain, the rhetoric you hear in Silicon Valley that MBAs don’t make good founders.”
They initially raised $2.5 million as a proof-of-concept fund, which backed 45 companies, before deciding to raise their first institutional fund during their time at Harvard Business School.
Investment Strategy and Focus
Meridian Ventures is sector-agnostic, with investments already in fintech, logistics, healthcare, and AI. The average investment size is $500,000 for pre-seed and $750,000 for seed-stage companies. The fund will focus on enterprise technology in the United States.
Gethers emphasized the gap between ambitious founders and the capital needed to support them: “With this $35 million fund, our goal is to seal that gap.”
Funding and Future Plans
Despite a challenging funding environment, the firm successfully raised an oversubscribed $35 million from a diverse group of limited partners, including publicly traded banks, family offices, and Fortune 500 executives. The fund plans to deploy its capital over the next three years.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/15/meridian-ventures-launched-35m-fund-to-back-mba-deferred-founders/
