Fort Lauderdale has many active angel investors and venture capital firms that fund startups. With more than 26,000 tech companies in Florida state, the city also attracts many entrepreneurs each year.

Similarly, Fort Lauderdale has a lower living cost and no state income tax, proving it a great city to start a new business.

Are you looking for an angel investor to fund your business idea?

Well, in this article, we will share with you the list of the top 6 angel investors in Fort Lauderdale and ways to pitch them.

Top 6 Angel Investors in Fort Lauderdale

As a startup hub, it can be difficult to get funded by investors, especially when there is so much competition.

However, the following list highlights some top-ranking angel investors and venture capital firms that fund startups and guide them through their journey.

Florida Funders

Website: Florida Funders | Florida's Most Active Venture Capital Firm

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Tech and Healthcare

Investment Stage: Seed

Flordia Funders tops the list of angel investors in Fort Lauderdale, as the firm has over 1,500 members and has funded around 100 startups. The network was founded in 2013 by entrepreneurs/investors Candice Rezvanian, Kevin Adamek, Marc Blumenthal, Marc Sokol, and Tom Wallace.

Since its inception, Florida Funders has always focused on expanding its portfolio and funding deserving startups. Usually, the network finds startups with massive growth potential and exceptional ideas through the "Scout Program," a Florida Funders launched program.

As they funded a startup, the experienced network of mentors provides the best guidance to startups, especially at stages where entrepreneurs don’t know where things are headed. The investment range of Flordia Funders can range up to several million dollars, depending on the startup. Some of their recent portfolio companies are:

CAST AI: A SaaS company specializing in cost optimization for customers running cloud-native AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud applications. They recently raised $35 million in a Series B funding round.

Gemini Sports Analytics: The startup develops a data management platform for sports management. They recently raised $3.25 million in a seed funding round.

Vali Cyber: Vali Cyber is a next-generation provider of Linux cybersecurity solutions. They specialize in addressing Linux-specific security solutions. They recently raised $15 million in a seed funding round.

Los Olad Venture Capital

Website: Las Olas Venture Capital · LOVC · 

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Fintech, HealthTech, AI/ML/Data, and B2B SaaS

Investment Stage: Seed

Los Olas Venture Capital is also a VC firm headquartered in Fort Lauderdale. Founded by the investors Dean Hatton, Esteban Reyes, Mark Volchek, and Paul Tanner, LOVC invests in startups across many cities, including Miami, New York, and Fort Lauderdale.

As for their screening tests, Los Olas Venture Capital conducts rigorous screening tests to attract the best startup ideas that can generate high profits. Their team of investors arranges many pitching events to provide chances for securing an investment and successfully exiting.

Similarly, LOVC is also actively arranging many mentorship programs, including their yearly CEO Summit Events. In 2019, the firm partnered with world-class experts to do workshops and learning sessions on top-of-mind issues facing early-stage B2B founders.

The investment range of Los Olas Venture Capital ranges from $200,000 to several million dollars. Some of their recent portfolio companies are:

OneRail: OneRail is a software-as-a-service platform that offers delivery services for enterprise shippers. They have raised $63.5M in funding over 6 rounds.

BusRight: BusRight is a New York-based provider of school bus technology. They operate a school bus tracking application designed to enhance student safety, streamline bus communication, and manage routes. They have raised a total of $9.5M in funding over 4 rounds.

CoFi: A digital platform that empowers contractors to get project funding backed by on-demand payments. CoFi has raised a total of $7 million in funding.

Alex Rodriguez

LinkedIn: Alex Rodriguez | LinkedIn

Investor Type: Individual Angel Investor

Investment Interests: Tech, Food & Beverage, Sports, and Online Business. 

Investment Stage: Early and Seed

Alex Rodriguez, also known as the A-Rod, is the most active individual angel investor in Florida. After his baseball career, Rodrigues started funding startups and founded A-Rod Corp.

Investing in early-stage startups since early 2000, Rodrigues has always preferred early and seed-stage startups that had the potential to solve real-time problems. After investing in nearly 70 companies, Rodriguez only funds startups that can at least provide 3-6x ROI within 3 years of investment.

The investment range of Alex Rodriguez isn't mentioned publically. He usually invests around $200,000 on an individual basis and also does fundraising if the project seems worthy. Notable companies in his portfolio are:

Acorns: Acorns is a fintech company that allows users to round up their spare change from everyday purchases and invest it into a diversified portfolio. The app also provides educational content to help users save and invest wisely.

Vita Coco: Vita Coco is a leading brand in the coconut water industry. The company's products are sold in over 30 countries.

Axioma Ventures

Website: Home (axioma.ventures)

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: IT and Healthcare.

Investment Stage: Seed

Axioma Ventures is a venture capital firm that is headquartered in Tampa. Founded in 2017, Axioma Ventures has funded many startups and is actively hunting deserving ventures to fund.

They usually fund startups that have the potential to solve real-time problems and can generate high profits within 2-3 years. And since Axioma Ventures is relatively new in the VC community, they want to expand their portfolio, which provides a great opportunity for entrepreneurs who want to secure funding.

The only drawback of Axioma Ventures is their lack of mentorship programs, as they aren't involved in any mentorship or networking events. The investment range of Axioma Ventures ranges from $5M to $10M. Some of their recent portfolio companies are:

Vreal: Vreal was a provider of an online gaming platform designed to connect developers, streamers, and viewers on any virtual reality headset or 2D screen. Vreal had raised a total of $15M in funding.

Certes Networks: Certes Networks provides security solutions for high-performance networks for government agencies and federal organizations. Certes Networks has raised a total of $23.8M in funding.

TheVentureCity

Website: TheVentureCity

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Tech 

Investment Stage: Seed

TheVenture City was founded in 2017 and has funded around 20 companies, most at the seed stages. As a new venture capital firm, TheVentureCity actively arranges pitching competitions to find startups with high growth potential that can generate 2x revenue within 24 months.

Similarly, the founders of TheVentureCity ( Clara Bullrich and Laura Gonzalez-Estefan) focus on startups that can prove their potential and have achievements in their portfolio. They also have mentors who guide their portfolio companies when needed.

The investment range of TheVentureCity ranges from $500,000 to $4M. Among many investments, some famous portfolio companies are:

Internxt Core: Internxt is a next-generation open-source cloud storage service. They offer services like Internxt Drive, a zero-knowledge file storage service built for absolute privacy and uncompromising security. Internxt has raised a total of $2M in funding.

eCustoms: eCustoms provides scalable Global Trade Management and Compliance solutions, including denied party screening.

MeetFox: MeetFox is a SaaS solution that makes meeting online easy. MeetFox has raised a total of $573.8K in funding over 5 rounds.

Chase Partners

Website: HOME - Chase Partners

Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm

Investment Interests: Real Estate

As the sub-organization of JP Morgan Chase, Chase Capital Partners is also one of the most active venture capital firms that fund startups in Florida. The network was founded in 1984 and has made around 100 investments, most at the early and late stages.

During the screening tests, investors at Chase Capital Ventures use a careful approach to fund startups and thoroughly research each company before investing. And since it is a sub-organization of JP Morgan, the network consists of some of the state's most experienced and active investors.

Aside from their investments, Chase Capital Partners also conducts networking events to boost startup growth and allow entrepreneurs to gain recognition.

The investment range of Chase Capital Partners isn't mentioned on their website. They usually invest in real estate businesses such as business centers or nursing homes, including Grand Glendora and Montclair Brooks Business Center.

Wrap Up

So, there you have the list of top angel investors that fund startups in Fort Lauderdale. Before we wrap up, allow me to share some tips that can help you pitch to investors.

Firstly, always remember that angel investors will invest in a startup that seems worthy and profitable. They want to ensure that the entrepreneur has confidence in his idea and won't waste their time and money.

It is also recommended to go through a practical checklist for pitching to investors. Such checklists help you remember some great tips, and increase your confidence as you know what to say and avoid.

Good Luck!

Frequently Asked Questions