New York based investment fund managers Sharp Alpha Advisors has announced the final closing of Sharp Alpha Fund I, a $10m venture capital fund investing in early-stage sports betting technology companies. And the fund has already deployed capital into 11 start-ups, including Players’ Lounge, GridRival, Pickups, and Prophet. The fund targets initial allocations averaging $250,000 in Seed and Series A financings, with plans to provide follow-on support in subsequent rounds. Sharp Alpha also maintains a co-investment vehicle that enables limited partners to invest additional capital in select deals alongside the fund.
According to Lloyd Danzig, the firm’s Managing Partner, the sports betting industry is ripe for early-stage investment. “Not only is the sports betting industry at an inflection point, but market leaders are choosing to buy rather than build at every turn. With M&A serving as the primary mechanism through which operators achieve differentiation and vertical integration, this is a great time to underwrite next-gen infrastructure.”
The Sharp Alpha Fund 1 is backed by notable institutional investors, including Great Elm Group and the Dutch Sport Tech Fund, as well as a number of multi-billion-dollar venture capital funds, family offices and private equity groups. Other limited partners in the fund include senior executives from several of the world’s largest investment banks, hedge funds and publicly traded sports betting companies. All advisory board members are also investors in the fund. In addition to investing capital, the fund provides portfolio companies with a host of services and strategic resources.
