Draper Richards

Draper Richards is a private equity firm focused on venture capital investments in U.S. technology companies. The firm was founded in 1996 by Bill Draper an early venture capitalist, who had previously founded Sutter Hill Ventures in 1964 together with Robin Richards Donohoe. The firm invests principally on behalf of the Draper Richards Foundation, a non profit organization.

Draper has been a founding investor in such notable companies as Activision (acquired by Mediagenic), Apollo Computer (acquired by Hewlett Packard), Dionex, Hybritech (acquired by Eli Lilly and Company), Integrated Genetics (acquired by Genzyme), LSI Logic, Measurex, PowerReviews, Quantum, Qume (acquired by ITT Corporation) and Xidex (acquired by Eastman Kodak), among others.^[1]

Draper Richards maintains an active philanthropic program through the "Draper Richards Kaplan Fellows" organization. The foundation is noted for providing early-stage grants to charity and community organizations, but demanding comprehensive business plans and other startup-like diligence and reporting.^[2]

See also

• William Henry Draper, Jr.
• Horace Rowan Gaither
• Draper Fisher Jurvetson, a venture capital firm founded by Timothy C. Draper
• Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, a private foundation that invests philanthropic venture, founded by the same people

References

External links

• Draper Richards (company website)
• Draper Richards Foundation (organization website)

Private equity and venture capital Basic investment types Buyout Venture Mezzanine Growth Secondaries Equity co-investment History History of private equity and venture capital Early history of private equity Private equity in the 1980s Private equity in the 1990s Private equity in the 2000s Terms and concepts Buyout Financial sponsor Management buyout Divisional buyout Buy–sell agreement Leveraged recapitalization Dividend recapitalization Venture Angel investor Business incubator Post-money valuation Pre-money valuation Seed money Startup company Venture capital financing Venture debt Venture round Structure Private equity firms and funds Limited partnership Limited liability company Carried interest Management fee Publicly traded private equity Business Development Company Venture capital trust Private investment in public equity (PIPE) Pledge fund Investors Corporations Institutional investors Pension funds Insurance companies Fund of funds Endowments Foundations Investment banks Merchant banks Commercial banks High-net-worth individuals Family offices Sovereign wealth funds Crowdfunding Related financial terms AUM Cap table Capital call Capital commitment Capital structure Distribution waterfall EBITDA Envy ratio High-yield debt IPO IRR Leverage M&A PME Taxation of private equity and hedge funds Undercapitalization Vintage year Private equity and venture capital investors Private equity firms Venture capital firms Angel investors Portfolio companies