Matchstick Ventures closes new $55M fund

BOULDER — Matchstick Ventures, a Boulder-based early-stage venture-capital firm, has closed a new $55-million venture fund, the company’s third.

The fund, Matchstick’s largest to date, is investing in pre-seed and seed-stage technology startups with a focus on software-centric companies in the Mountain West. 

Fund III will provide investments of $500,000 to $1.5 million.

Matchstick was founded by Ryan Broshar in Minneapolis. Broshar co-founded Twin Cities Startup Week and established Techstars’ retail accelerator program in Minnesota.

Broshar was joined in 2018 by Natty Zola, then the Techstars Boulder managing director.

Zola stepped down from his position with Techstars to focus on his investment firm, but many of the companies Matchstick invests in, such as Soona and Inspectario, have connections to Techstars.

In addition to closing Fund III, Matchstick is also launching Matchstick Strikers, a network of industry leaders who can be tapped for mentorship by founders of the companies it invests in. 

The company plans to bring on board a new staffer to serve as Matchstick’s head of network to help facilitate the Strikers program. 

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