Ballast Point Ventures

Managing Partners Dick Brandewie and David Hayes lead the firm's investment committee, supported by Partner Robert Faber. Brandewie and Hayes spun the firm out of Raymond James in 2001 and have been the central decision-makers across all fund vintages. The partnership structure is flat, with no separate CIO role.

Ballast Point originates most of its investments through its regional network of business owners, commercial bankers, accountants, and industry operators in the Southeast and Texas. The firm does not rely on broad auction processes. Its two-decade presence in a capital-constrained region gives it early visibility on founder-led companies before they hire investment bankers or attract coastal venture interest.

Ballast Point writes initial equity checks of $5 million to $20 million, targeting growth-stage private companies with $5 million to $50 million in annual revenue. The firm prefers companies that are profitable or approaching profitability. This places it squarely between early-stage venture capital and large-cap buyout funds, in what is often called the growth equity or expansion-stage segment.

Ballast Point Ventures is an institutional private equity firm, not a family office. It manages committed capital from third-party limited partners across multiple fund vintages. The firm spun out of Raymond James Financial's investment banking division in 2001 and has raised successive blind-pool funds.

Ballast Point does not invest in hard-tech, biotechnology, medical devices requiring FDA approval, or capital-intensive infrastructure. The firm focuses on services and software business models that produce recurring revenue. It also avoids pre-revenue startups and turnarounds, given its growth-equity mandate and preference for companies with demonstrated product-market fit.

The firm concentrates on the Southeastern United States and Texas. This includes Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, and Texas. Ballast Point views its regional concentration as a structural advantage in sourcing and post-investment engagement, rather than as a limitation.

Ballast Point Ventures was founded inside Raymond James in 2001 as an affiliated growth equity arm. It raised its first two funds with Raymond James support. The firm later achieved full independence from Raymond James, though it retains a cultural and network connection to the bank's Southeastern middle-market franchise.