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Gilgamesh Ventures
Gilgamesh Ventures is a New York early-stage VC backing fintech infrastructure and embedded-finance founders.
Gilgamesh Ventures
Gilgamesh Ventures started deploying in 2019 from New York, with Armaza — also the host of the 'Wharton FinTech Podcast' — using his deep founder-network to surface deals before they hit formal rounds. The firm typically writes checks from pre-Seed to Seed stage, targeting companies building the picks-and-shovels of modern finance. Strategy centers on B2B and infrastructure fintech, avoiding consumer-facing banking apps. The firm's known portfolio spans embedded lending platforms, insurance infrastructure, and real-estate-finance API layers. Gilgamesh prefers to co-invest alongside other early-stage specialists rather than lead, and its model emphasizes portfolio density — deploying across dozens of Seed positions rather than concentrated bets. Geographic focus is primarily the United States, with selective exposure to Latin American fintech given Armaza's Bolivian roots and network. October 2023: Secured a commitment from EarlyBirdCapital to anchor its second core fund, signaling institutional validation of the early-stage fintech-infrastructure strategy (per public record). The firm has backed teams at NovoPayment and other API-driven financial service platforms, though it maintains a characteristically low public profile for a New York-based venture manager. Gilgamesh's structural edge is a content-to-deal-flow flywheel. Armaza has recorded hundreds of fintech founder interviews, creating a proprietary origination channel that doubles as due-diligence. This gives the firm access to companies before they hire bankers or appear on conventional VC radars — a sourcing moat that costs no management fee to operate.
General information
Firm type
Venture Capital
Year founded
2019
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
New York
Corporate office
New York, NY, United States
Principals
Miguel Armaza
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Andrew Endicott
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Gilgamesh Ventures?
Miguel Armaza and Andrew Endicott serve as Co-Founders and Managing Partners. Armaza is the most externally visible principal due to his role as host of the widely followed Wharton FinTech Podcast, which he uses to build founder relationships from Manhattan to São Paulo.
How does Gilgamesh Ventures source proprietary deal flow?
Armaza's podcast is effectively a content-driven origination engine. By recording hundreds of long-form interviews with fintech founders globally, the firm builds relationships with operators before they formally enter a fundraising cycle, often getting a first look at pre-Seed and Seed rounds that bypasses the usual advisor-and-banker networks.
Does Gilgamesh participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
Gilgamesh writes direct checks into startups, almost exclusively at the Seed and pre-Seed stages. The firm does not publicly operate a fund-of-funds program or act as a feeder into other venture managers. Its capital goes directly to founder equity.
What investment stages does Gilgamesh typically target?
Pre-Seed and Seed stage. The firm positions itself for first-check and earliest institutional round dynamics, typically entering before a Series A lead is in place. It focuses on capital-efficient B2B models that can demonstrate product-market fit with modest initial spend.
Which sectors does Gilgamesh Ventures explicitly avoid?
The firm publicly avoids consumer-facing neobanks and direct-to-consumer lending apps. Instead, it concentrates on the compliance, data, payments, and infrastructure layers — the 'picks and shovels' of financial services — where customer acquisition costs are lower and regulatory moats are deeper.
Does Gilgamesh maintain geographic exposure beyond the US?
Yes, the firm selectively invests in Latin America, particularly fintech infrastructure startups in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. This follows Armaza's personal network and the maturation of LatAm's real-time payments rails, which have created new opportunities for B2B financial software.
What is Gilgamesh's known posture on leading rounds?
Gilgamesh more commonly participates or co-leads rather than leading outright. The firm prefers dense, low-check-size portfolios and relies on syndicate partners for valuation leadership and board governance, keeping its own operational footprint lean.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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