Sequoia Capital
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Venture capital |
| Founded | 1 January 1972 in Menlo Park, California, United States |
| Founder | Don Valentine |
| Headquarters | Menlo Park , United States |
Area served | United States, Europe, India, Southeast Asia, China |
Key people | Neil Shen (HongShan), Roelof Botha (U.S.-Europe), others |
| Products | Seed, early-stage, and growth-stage investments in technology companies |
Number of employees | (reduced by about one-third in 2023) |
| Website | www |
Sequoia Capital Operations, LLC—widely known simply as Sequoia—is a prominent American venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California. It specializes in seed, early-stage, and growth-stage investments primarily within technology industries. By 2022, the firm oversaw roughly US$85 billion in assets under management.
The company functions through three distinct regional divisions: Sequoia Capital Operations, which serves Europe and the United States; Peak XV Partners, focusing on India and Southeast Asia; and HongShan, dedicated to the Chinese market.
Established by Don Valentine, Sequoia’s investment portfolio features notable companies such as Apple, ByteDance, and Cisco. Its extensive global footprint and strategic direction have positioned it as a leading force in venture capital, boasting a history of successful initial public offerings and significant market impact.
History
Founded in 1972 by Don Valentine in Menlo Park, California, Sequoia emerged during the formative years of California’s venture capital scene. The firm introduced its inaugural venture fund in 1974 and rapidly gained recognition as an early backer of influential technology firms including Atari and Apple. Leadership transitioned in 1996 when partners Douglas Leone and Michael Moritz assumed control.
Sequoia’s international reach broadened with the launch of a dedicated Israeli startup fund in 1999, followed by the creation of Sequoia Capital China in 2005 and shortly thereafter, Sequoia Capital India. In 2012, Moritz stepped away from daily management responsibilities, allowing Leone to become Global Managing Partner. Subsequent leadership shifts saw Jim Goetz head the U.S. operations until 2017 before being succeeded by Roelof Botha. In 2016, Sequoia appointed Jess Lee as its first female investing partner within the United States.
By 2019, Sequoia had become the most active venture capital investor in India. The following year marked a strategic move into Europe with the hiring of Luciana Lixandru as its inaugural European partner. In October 2021, the firm restructured its funding model to permit ongoing investments beyond the conventional decade-long fund cycles, facilitating extended support for portfolio companies after they go public.
In March 2022, Sequoia Capital China aimed to raise an $8 billion fund targeting technology enterprises within China. After the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation intervened to secure Sequoia’s $1 billion deposits held at the bank.
Facing geopolitical complexities related to managing a dispersed global investment platform, Sequoia announced in June 2023 its intention to divide into three autonomous entities: the Chinese division led by Neil Shen, renamed HongShan (the Mandarin term for "sequoia"); Peak XV Partners overseeing India and Southeast Asia; and the U.S.-Europe segment retaining the Sequoia brand. This restructuring is anticipated to conclude by March 2024. In July 2023, amid organizational changes, Sequoia reduced its workforce by approximately one-third. Later in October 2023, the United States House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party launched an investigation into Sequoia’s investments within China.
As of 2024, Sequoia commands the largest investor share within China's consumer internet domain. Its investment approach frequently includes backing multiple competitors within a sector before fostering consolidation. Chinese media credit Sequoia with influencing major mergers such as those involving Meituan and Dianping, Uber China and Didi, as well as VShop and Lefenghui.
Investments
Sequoia Capital's limited partners, the primary investors, mainly consist of university endowments, philanthropic foundations, and major organizations such as Harvard, MIT, the Ford Foundation, and the Mayo Clinic. These funds are overseen by general partners who also invest their own capital to ensure alignment of interests with their investors.
The firm focuses on seed, early-stage, and growth-stage investments in private technology companies spanning industries like clean technology, consumer internet, cryptocurrency, financial services, healthcare, mobile technology, and robotics. Sequoia is distinguished by its successful early-stage investments in leading companies including Apple, Google, Yahoo!, Airbnb, LinkedIn, Stripe, Square, and WhatsApp. Unlike many competitors, Sequoia extends its investment reach globally beyond just U.S.-based startups.
Sequoia operates through three separate entities that concentrate on the U.S. and Europe, India and Southeast Asia, and China. Starting in 2024, these divisions will function autonomously with distinct investors and profit pools. Although Sequoia missed investing early in Facebook, it remains a significant investor in unicorns—holding ownership stakes in about 20% of private companies valued over $1 billion as of 2019.
Since 2021, the firm has broadened its geographical focus to include Latin America and introduced an innovative evergreen fund structure for its U.S. and European operations. This approach provides limited partners with liquidity options outside the traditional 10-year fund lifecycle. Additionally, Sequoia became a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) to enhance its investment capabilities.
In recent years, Sequoia launched a $600 million Crypto Fund primarily targeting cryptocurrencies traded on third-party platforms. In 2022, it secured $2.85 billion for investments across India and Southeast Asia—the largest fundraising effort in that region to date. By early 2023, the total capital managed by the Sequoia Capital Fund reached $13.6 billion.
During 2023, Sequoia led several prominent investments such as a $5.7 million seed round for defense technology startup Mach Industries. Amid challenges in the crypto sector, it reduced its crypto fund from $585 million to $200 million. The firm also initiated an Open Source Fellowship program to provide equity-free funding for developers.
Noteworthy recent transactions include leading a $190 million financing round for law enforcement technology company Peregrine (2025) and co-investing in Israeli defense-tech startup Kela. Furthermore, Sequoia committed £100 million to streaming platform Mubi at a $1 billion valuation in 2025—an investment that generated debate due to the firm's previous involvement in defense-related ventures.
| Year | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2020s | BitClout, Bolt, FTX, Wiz, Loom, Shein, StrongDM |
| 2010s | 23andMe, StarkWare Industries, Instacart, Klarna, Nubank, Snowflake Inc., Stripe, WhatsApp, UiPath, ByteDance, Pinduoduo |
| 2000s | Airbnb, Palo Alto Networks, ServiceNow, Unity Technologies, YouTube |
| 1970s–1990s | Apple Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., Google LLC, Nvidia Corporation, Webvan |
Investment in FTX
Sequoia Capital was among several leading venture capital firms that invested in the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, founded by Sam Bankman-Fried. Initially endorsing FTX strongly, Sequoia featured a highly favorable profile of Bankman-Fried on its website in September 2022; this was subsequently removed after FTX’s collapse.
The exchange declared bankruptcy in 2023 with roughly $8 billion of investor funds unaccounted for. Bankman-Fried was convicted of fraud charges. Sequoia ultimately wrote off its entire investment in FTX with estimated losses totaling $214 million. The firm communicated to its investors that the FTX exposure represented a small fraction of their overall portfolio and removed Bankman-Fried’s profile from their site to address the repercussions of the failure.
Programs and partnerships
Sequoia introduced its scout program in 2009, creating a network of individual investors who provide funding to promising early-stage startups. This initiative led Sequoia to become the pioneer venture capital firm to implement such a model, with scouts contributing investments to more than 1,000 companies. Since then, this approach has gained widespread adoption across the venture capital sector.
In 2021, Sequoia collaborated with the BLCK VC Scout Network to offer training and support specifically for Black scouts. Following this, in March 2022, Sequoia launched Arc, a program designed to provide $1 million in capital along with mentorship from partners based in both London and Silicon Valley to a select group of startups.
Controversies
In July 2025, Sequoia partner Shaun Maguire faced backlash after making Islamophobic comments regarding New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. The remarks provoked significant criticism, leading over 600 technology founders to sign an open letter demanding that Sequoia enforce a strict zero-tolerance stance against hate speech and religious discrimination.
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