# dfe Partners

dfe Partners is an Asset Manager based in Miami, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Asset Manager
- **Headquarters:** Miami, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Miami, FL, United States
- **Founded:** 2020
- **Assets under management:** <$50M (Altss estimate)
- **Website:** dfepartners.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/dfe-partners

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

We are a recruitment boutique that takes an innovative approach to ensuring our clients get the best candidates for their goals.

## Sectors

- FinTech
- Enterprise Software
- AI/ML
- PropTech
- Web3/Crypto
- Digital Health

## People

- Alex Taub — General Partner
- Michael Schonfeld — General Partner
- Stefania Gvillo — Principal

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at dfe Partners?

General Partners Alex Taub and Michael Schonfeld make investment decisions jointly. Both bring operator backgrounds — Taub from Dwolla and SocialRank, Schonfeld from Plaid — rather than traditional institutional investing career paths. The partnership structure is intentionally flat, with no separate investment committee beyond the GPs.

### How does dfe Partners source proprietary deal flow?

The firm sources primarily through the personal networks Taub and Schonfeld built as operators in the New York and Miami fintech ecosystems. Their roles at Dwolla, Plaid and SocialRank placed them at the center of founder communities that later spawned companies like Unit, Moov and Pulley. There is no public indication the firm relies on broker networks or placement agents for deal origination.

### Does dfe Partners participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?

dfe Partners only engages in direct equity investments in operating companies. The firm does not publicly report any fund-of-funds activity, nor does it allocate to external venture managers. The model centers entirely on direct, active relationships with founding teams.

### Which sectors does dfe Partners explicitly avoid?

The firm has not published a formal exclusion list or negative screen. Based on disclosed portfolio composition and partner backgrounds, the partnership concentrates on fintech infrastructure, enterprise SaaS, AI tooling, web3 protocols and select digital health companies. There is no public evidence of activity in hardware, deep tech, industrial tech, biotech or consumer social.

### How is dfe Partners related to Plaid or Dwolla?

There is no corporate or equity relationship between dfe Partners and either Plaid or Dwolla. The connection is entirely biographical: General Partner Michael Schonfeld held product roles at Plaid, and General Partner Alex Taub led business development at Dwolla. Both left those companies before founding dfe Partners.

## Related profiles

- [Leman Capital](https://altss.com/profile/leman-capital-sarl)
- [Banyan Ventures](https://altss.com/profile/banyan-ventures-sdn-bhd)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/dfe-partners

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