Derrick Raymond, who worked for nearly 18 years at Big Four accounting firm KPMG, has launched a private investment firm to back small companies as an independent sponsor.
Washington DC-based Raymond unveiled Founders Camp Capital earlier this month to make minority or control investments in companies generating $2 million to $10 million of EBITDA in technology and professional services businesses, including ones with ties to the federal government. Raymond plans to partner with “builders and enablers of AI in the enterprise,” as well as specialty boutiques with industry domain knowledge.
“I don’t have a fund clock,” Raymond told Private Equity Career News, “so it gives me the flexibility to pick the right companies that embody the characteristics and traits that I believe make these companies successful, and then to pick the areas that I believe are durable that have the potential to do very well in our new AI economy.”
Raymond has no immediate plans to raise a committed fund. But he did not rule out considering it sometime down the road.
The Bona Fides: Raymond joined KPMG in 2008 to source and close deals for its corporate development division and serve on the investment committee. He left late last year as a principal of strategy, investments and corporate development. Earlier in his career, Raymond worked as a staff assistant for the White House under the President George H.W. Bush administration.
The Team: Raymond is the sole full-time member at Founders Camp Capital. However, he also works with a chief AI and emerging technology advisor, an investment committee vice chairman and two senior advisors. Raymond plans to announce the addition of another advisor next month. Beyond that he has no immediate hiring plans. In addition to launching his new firm, Raymond said he would take on a separate role as a senior advisor at tech-focused investment bank IA Global Capital.