Serena Ventures
Serena Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded by Serena Williams in 2017 that backs bold founders across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3, with a global portfolio of 67+ companies including multiple unicorns such as Esusu and Midi Health.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Serena Ventures does
Serena Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded by tennis legend Serena Williams in 2017 and headquartered in San Francisco, California. The firm invests across seed through Series D stages in companies spanning consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3, with a stated purpose of expanding access, ownership, and opportunity at scale. The portfolio comprises 67+ companies including 8 unicorns such as Esusu (rent-reporting fintech at a $1.2 billion valuation) and Midi Health (women's telehealth at over $1 billion), plus notable holdings such as Unrivaled (women's 3-on-3 basketball), Kopi Kenangan (Indonesia's largest coffee chain), and consumer brands including Khloud and Rebel. The firm is led by Managing Partner Serena Williams, supported by General Partner Beth Ferreira, Partner Sharla Grass, a Fractional CFO, EIR, Investor, Operations Manager, Chief of Staff, Partnerships and Portfolio Support, and a Venture Fellow, totaling approximately nine professionals.
The firm earns revenue through standard venture fund economics: management fees on committed capital from limited partners and carried interest on portfolio company exits. Reported realized exits include Bitski (acquired by Phantom), Lolli (acquired by Thesis*), Shopping Gives (acquired by CPGIO), Wile (acquired by NamelessCPG), and Zitti (acquired by Block). The firm operates no proprietary technology platform; investment selection is driven by human judgment, founder relationships, and thematic theses. Deal sourcing is anchored in Serena Williams' personal brand and network of athletes, celebrities, and mission-aligned founders, with global reach evidenced by portfolio companies in the USA, Canada, Indonesia, Uganda, Nigeria, and Australia.
Activity through 2024-2026 indicates an accelerated investment cadence and broadening thematic coverage. Notable priced rounds include Rebelstork's $18 million Series A (September 2024), Unrivaled's Series B at a $340 million valuation (September 2025), a co-led $7 million seed for Hapiko (November 2025), and Midi Health's $100 million Series D at unicorn status (February 2026). Specific fund size, LP composition, and detailed financials are not publicly disclosed.
Serena Ventures firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Serena Ventures
- Legal name
- Serena Ventures
- Website
- https://www.serenaventures.com/
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Serena Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded by Serena Williams in 2017 that backs bold founders across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3, with a global portfolio of 67+ companies including multiple unicorns such as Esusu and Midi Health.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Serena Ventures industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Micro-VC & Angel Funds (FSANAAAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Emerging Manager / Seeding Platforms (Multi-Manager) (FSANAGAF)
Keywords
Where Serena Ventures is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Serena Ventures business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Portfolio exits and realizations: Serena Ventures has generated returns through portfolio company exits including Bitski (acquired by Phantom), Lolli (acquired by Thesis*), Shopping Gives (acquired by CPGIO), Wile (acquired by NamelessCPG), and Zitti (acquired by Block). The firm reports a portfolio of 67+ companies including 8 unicorns.
- Venture fund management: Operates Fund I and subsequent funds, earning management fees on committed capital from limited partners and carried interest on exits. Active early-stage investor deploying capital across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and emerging tech.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Serena Ventures product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Serena Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that deploys institutional and private capital into seed, Series A, and later-stage rounds of technology-enabled startups. The firm manages venture funds (including Fund I and successor vehicles), charges management fees to limited partners, earns carried interest on portfolio exits, and provides capital plus brand-driven strategic support to founders across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3 sectors.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Serena Ventures Early-Stage Venture Capital Early-stage venture capital firm that invests in bold founders across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3 sectors, with a global perspective and a mission to expand access, ownership, and opportunity at scale. Deploys capital, provides strategic support, and earns returns through portfolio exits including Bitski (acquired by Phantom), Lolli (acquired by Thesis*), Shopping Gives (acquired by CPGIO), Wile (acquired by NamelessCPG), and Zitti (acquired by Block). Portfolio of 67+ companies including 8 unicorns.
- Fund I The first venture capital fund raised and managed by Serena Ventures. Fund I portfolio includes Calico (supply chain management platform), Esusu (rent reporting credit-building fintech), Khloud (better-for-you snacking brand by Khloé Kardashian), Rebel (baby gear recommerce marketplace), and Luminous (e-commerce operating system), among other consumer, fintech, health, and web3 investments.
Companies that use Serena Ventures
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles2 records
Serena Ventures technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Serena Ventures partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Serena Ventures competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Marcy Venture Partners: Celebrity-affiliated early-stage VC founded by Jay Brown and Jay-Z (with Larry Marcus), focused on consumer, culture, and crypto. Closest peer to Serena Ventures in thesis, structure, and celebrity-founder-led model.
- Seven Seven Six: Venture firm led by Alexis Ohanian, similarly rooted in a globally recognized founder brand, investing across consumer, crypto, and frontier tech at seed/Series A — directly comparable thesis and brand-led sourcing.
- SoGal Ventures: Early-stage VC backing diverse founders globally; similar thesis around expanding access and ownership, comparable check size and stage focus.
- Halogen Ventures: Early-stage consumer tech fund founded by Jesse Draper, with a similar celebrity-adjacent profile and concentrated focus on diverse and consumer-led founders.
- Female Founders Fund: Early-stage fund backing female-founded companies across consumer, fintech, and health — directly comparable stage, sector breadth, and inclusive-founder thesis.
- Rethink Impact: Early-stage VC investing in underrepresented founders in health, education, and economic opportunity; comparable impact-tilted thesis and stage focus.
- BBG Ventures: Seed-stage fund backing female and diverse founders in consumer tech — similar early-stage, mission-aligned, and underrepresented-founder lens.
- Maveron: Consumer-focused early-stage VC that has co-led Rebelstork's Series A and Hapiko's seed alongside Serena Ventures; directly comparable stage, sector focus, and partnership pattern.
Broad incumbents
- Forerunner Ventures: Leading early-stage consumer-focused VC; overlaps heavily on consumer thesis (Rebel, Khloud, Luminous) but operates at larger AUM and broader LP base.
- Goodwater Capital: Consumer-tech specialist that led Midi Health's Series D; comparable in consumer/fintech/health thesis and stage overlap, but at much greater scale and AUM.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Serena Ventures social profiles
Digital presenceSerena Ventures financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Serena Ventures leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Serena Ventures funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Serena Ventures M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments93 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Serena Ventures
What does Serena Ventures do?
Serena Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that deploys institutional and private capital into seed, Series A, and later-stage rounds of technology-enabled startups. The firm manages venture funds (including Fund I and successor vehicles), charges management fees to limited partners, earns carried interest on portfolio exits, and provides capital plus brand-driven strategic support to founders across consumer, fintech, health, AI, and web3 sectors.
Is Serena Ventures a public or private company?
Serena Ventures is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Serena Ventures founded?
Serena Ventures was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Serena Ventures based?
Serena Ventures is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Serena Ventures make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Portfolio exits and realizations are the primary driver. The others are venture fund management.
Who are Serena Ventures's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Marcy Venture Partners, Seven Seven Six, SoGal Ventures, Halogen Ventures, Female Founders Fund, Rethink Impact, BBG Ventures and Maveron. Broad incumbents are Forerunner Ventures and Goodwater Capital.
Does Serena Ventures have an API?
No public API is recorded for Serena Ventures.
What industry is Serena Ventures in?
Serena Ventures's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAI, Micro-VC & Angel Funds, with a secondary code of FSANAGAF, Emerging Manager / Seeding Platforms (Multi-Manager). Its NAICS code is 52394 and its SIC code is 6282.