Access to capital can make or break a startup trying to scale.
And when the vast majority of venture capital funds are investing in coastal companies, it creates an even bigger challenge for those looking to build in Middle America. Sure, you can raise money from anywhere these days, and yes, more and more investors are turning their attention inland, but it helps to have venture capitalists in your own backyard.
Fortunately, there's quite a few startup funders in Kentucky, according to the latest Southeast Capital Landscape Report released earlier this month. The annual report, produced by Build In SE and Embarc Collective, looks at investor growth trends taking place throughout the Southeast region, defined as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
I first wrote about the Southeast Capital Landscape Report when it launched in 2019. At the time, Louisville had 16 firms on the list, and while the number of total funders has decreased locally, there's been 80 firms added to the Southeast region since the inaugural report. There are currently more than 280 firms on the Southeast database in total.
Here's a breakdown of what firms are on the list in Kentucky:
- Louisville (14 firms): Kentucky Angel Investors, Radicle Capital, Narwhal Ventures, Yearling Fund, XLerate Health, Vogt Awards, Sunflower Ventures, Poplar Ventures, Lunsford Capital, Lincoln Trail Ventures, LEVO Capital, Crimson Hill, Chrysalis Ventures and Bluesky Capital
- Lexington (3 firms): Kentucky Angel Network, Cherub Fund and Bluegrass Angels
- Covington (3 firms): Uptech Accelerator, Northern Kentucky Angels and Connetic Ventures
With about 20 funds listed, Kentucky comes in at No. 6 on the most funders in the Southeast. States with the most firms include Florida (86), Georgia (59) and Tennessee (49).
The list isn't perfect, however. There's some notable firms missing from the report in Louisville alone, such as Render Capital, Venture First and Unbridled Ventures.
Data for the report was aggregated and analyzed from PwC MoneyTree Reports, BIP Capital, Crunchbase and Pitchbook, and self-reported by accelerators, entrepreneurs, and investors from within the region. So if you see a missing firm, you can add it here.
