Sands Capital Ventures

What Sands Capital Ventures does

Sands Capital is an independent, staff-owned investment management firm founded in 1992 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, with additional offices in New York, San Francisco, and London. The firm manages approximately $46 billion in client assets (as of March 31, 2026) across three integrated platforms: Public Equity, Venture and Growth Equity, and the Global Innovation strategy, which targets mid- to late-stage technology companies with check sizes of $50 million to $100 million. Sands Capital operates a concentrated, long-hold investment philosophy ("Own the Few, Own the Best") spanning U.S., global, emerging-markets, and technology-specific strategies, and serves institutional investors — pension funds, endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, and family offices — in more than 30 countries.

The firm is governed under three SEC-registered adviser entities (Sands Capital Management, LLC; Sands Capital Alternatives, LLC; and Sands Capital Horizons, LLC) that share personnel, office space, and resources following the October 2021 redefinition that consolidated the previously separate Sands Capital Ventures brand under the unified Sands Capital umbrella. Distribution runs through direct institutional sales, managing-director-led client relations, and a limited-partner portal; the firm pursues thought-leadership marketing via website content, an active LinkedIn presence, the "What Matters Most" podcast, and annual stewardship reporting (146 ESG engagements across 27 countries in 2025; 99.5% proxy voting participation).

Revenue is generated through investment advisory and fund management fees on the $46 billion AUM base, supplemented by potential performance fees on alternative vehicles such as the Global Innovation Fund III — a $1.1 billion 2026 vintage anchored by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Hamilton Lane — and on realized exits such as the Brightflag sale to Wolters Kluwer. The firm explicitly excludes China from its geographic footprint and concentrates its private investments in category-defining AI, defense, industrial-technology, and intelligent-infrastructure businesses.

Name

Sands Capital Ventures

Legal name

Sands Capital Management, LLC

Website

https://sandscapital.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Sands Capital is an independent, staff-owned investment manager founded in 1992 managing $46B across public equity, venture, and growth strategies for institutional investors in 30+ countries, with a $1.1B Global Innovation Fund III focused on mid- to late-stage technology companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investment Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Technology & Software Growth Equity (FSANACAA)

Keywords

• Growth equity investing
• Venture capital management
• Institutional asset management
• Public equity strategies
• Private fund management

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Investment Advisory Fees: Sands Capital charges investment advisory fees as described in Part II of the adviser's Form ADV. The firm manages $46B in client assets generating management fees from various investment strategies including public equity, venture capital, and growth equity.
2. Private Fund Management: Global Innovation Fund III raised $1.1 billion from investors. The firm earns management fees and potentially performance fees from managing private alternative investment funds for qualified investors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Sands Capital is an investment management firm that manages $46B in client assets across public equity, venture capital, and growth equity strategies. The firm offers concentrated growth investment strategies spanning Select Growth, Global Growth, Emerging Markets Growth, Technology Innovators, and the Global Innovation strategy targeting mid- to late-stage technology companies. It serves institutional investors and fund sponsors in more than 30 countries through private placement funds and separately managed accounts.

Product overview

Sands Capital is an investment management firm offering a suite of investment strategies rather than a unified product platform. The firm operates three core investment platforms: Public Equity (Public Growth) strategies targeting public markets; Venture and Growth Equity covering private investments across all growth stages; and the Global Innovation Strategy focused specifically on mid-to-late-stage technology companies. The investment strategies include Select Growth, Global Growth, Emerging Markets Growth, Technology Innovators, International Growth Developed, and others, each with distinct geographic and sector mandates. The firm also manages dedicated funds such as Global Innovation Fund III, a $1.1 billion vehicle for category-defining technology investments. The integrated platform provides growth capital solutions spanning venture capital, growth equity, and public equity across more than 30 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Equity (Public Growth) Public equity investment strategies focused on long-term growth in public markets, offering concentrated portfolios of high-quality growth businesses for institutional investors.
• Venture and Growth Equity Private investment strategies spanning venture capital and growth equity, targeting innovative businesses across all stages of the growth spectrum globally for institutional clients.
• Global Innovation Strategy Mid to late-stage technology investment strategy seeking category-defining companies with potential to become large public businesses, with $50M to $100M total investment per company.
• Global Innovation Fund III Private fund raising $1.1 billion for investments in approximately 10 category-defining mid- to late-stage technology companies, with focus on artificial intelligence, industrial technology, and intelligent infrastructure.
• Select Growth Strategy Concentrated growth investment strategy focused on select high-quality public companies for institutional investors.
• Global Growth Strategy International growth equity strategy investing in leading businesses outside the U.S. for institutional clients.
• Emerging Markets Growth Strategy Strategy focused on high-growth emerging market businesses for institutional investors.
• Technology Innovators Strategy Public equity strategy concentrated in technology and technology-enabled businesses.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99.5% proxy voting participation rate with 95.9% support for management recommendations

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Bessemer Venture Partners: Long-standing venture and growth equity firm investing across technology and life sciences stages, with a concentrated, multi-decade approach analogous to Sands Capital's growth equity strategy.
• General Atlantic: Global growth equity firm targeting high-growth technology and consumer businesses, closely aligned with Sands Capital's Global Innovation thesis in scale, sector focus, and check size.
• Insight Partners: Technology-focused growth equity investor deploying multi-stage capital into software and AI-native companies, overlapping directly with Sands Capital Ventures' Global Innovation mandate.
• Summit Partners: Growth equity firm investing across technology, healthcare, and consumer, with a stage and check-size profile similar to Sands Capital's mid- to late-stage growth strategy.
• Founders Fund: Tech-focused venture firm with which Sands Capital co-invested on Anduril and Ramp, representing a directly comparable deep-tech growth investor in terms of stage and conviction.

Broad incumbents

• T. Rowe Price: Large diversified asset manager with significant growth-equity public-market strategies, providing a comparable multi-strategy investment platform, though with broader exposure beyond technology.
• Capital Group: Private, multi-strategy investment manager with long-duration, concentrated growth-equity heritage comparable to Sands Capital's owner-operated model and long-hold philosophy.
• Wellington Management: Private, employee-owned global investment manager with concentrated growth-equity heritage and multi-strategy platform broadly analogous to Sands Capital in ownership culture and approach.

Emerging players

• Andreessen Horowitz: Technology-focused venture and growth firm with a multi-fund platform spanning AI, infrastructure, and bio, increasingly competing with Sands Capital Ventures for category-defining AI deal flow.

Others

• Hamilton Lane: Private markets investment manager that anchor-invested alongside CPPIB in Sands Capital's Global Innovation Fund III, representing an LP- and co-investor relationship rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sands-capital-management
• Facebookfacebook.com/sandscapital

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments219 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sands Capital Ventures