Kobe Bryant Launches 100 Million Venture Capital Fund

The firm will go by the rather colorless name of ‘Bryant Stibel,’ which indicates that Kobe Bryant’s celebrity will not be the focal point of their investment decisions. As Stibel put it: Kobe Bryant’s public persona isn’t completely absent from the firm’s announcement, however, and in his own statement to WSJ about this new venture, Kobe could just as easily be talking about excelling in sports rather than the world of venture capital: Bryant isn’t the first NBA star to get involved in the VC world. Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks didn’t even wait until his basketball career was over to co-found venture capital firm Melo7 Tech Partners with Stuart Goldfarb back in 2013. In October 2015, David Robinson launched his SECOND private equity fund. Robinson’s first fund, which was launched in 2007, raised $115 million to focus on real estate investments. That fund eventually acquired $350 million worth of assets. The original fund resulted in a 25% return to its investors. Robinson also donated 10% of the fund’s profits to charity. As for Bryant Stibel, the first round of investments from the new venture capital firm are still to come, so keep your eyes peeled for information on the startups that Bryant and Stibel decide to throw their money into.