A New Chapter

Dear Friends in the Venture Capital and Startup Communities,

By now, some of you may have seen the news, though I’d hardly call it newsworthy: after 17 incredible years, I’ve decided to step away from my role at QED Investors, the firm I co-Founded and have poured my heart into. Effective January 1, 2026, I will transition to a Partner Emeritus role at QED. That role will allow me to collaborate with, and support, my colleagues at QED while giving me the freedom to spread my wings and return to my roots.

This isn’t goodbye—far from it. It’s simply the chance for me to explore interesting opportunities and spend time on what has always energized me: the exhilarating 0–1 phase of building new things. I’ve learned to become a decent Investor over the years, but where I think I truly shine is in the realm of navigating the idea maze and creating things that didn’t exist before. Building is in my blood and the Founders who’ve worked with me know this to be true.

Let me be clear: I love QED. Nigel and I have worked together for more than 30 years between Capital One and QED, and it has been amazing. We’ve accomplished so much together, and I will forever be proud and grateful. I love our Team and our Founders.

I’m simply switching seats at the table. I’ll be exploring opportunities that the Universe kindly places in my path and see this as a chance to collaborate with the many remarkable people I’ve grown to know and respect in the VC world. I’m looking forward to partnering with hungry, eager Founders who, for some strange reason, will be willing to work with a startup junkie like me.

As a few of you know, the first business that I plan on getting off the ground is in the music industry. It’s easy to call me crazy for all the obvious reasons, but it’s worth reserving judgment until you learn more about the business that’s evolved in my head and sat on the shelf for years. It will be fun to build and could actually make a huge difference to an industry that none of us could imagine living without.

And one more thing: I’ll likely write a book centered around my observations and frameworks for the startup and VC worlds. This shouldn’t surprise anyone who knows me—writing is my oxygen. I can’t imagine a life without it even though ChatGPT and Claude are better writers than I am.

So please, reach out. You know how to find me. And, in the immortal words of Lewis Carroll, “The adventure first, explanations take such a dreadful time.”

With gratitude and excitement for what’s next,

The VC formerly known as the fintechjunkie