Private Equity

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Second Avenue Partners

Second Avenue Partners is a Seattle-based investment firm. It provides management, strategy, and capital to early stage companies. The firm has made 76...

Second Avenue Partners logo

Second Avenue Partners

Second Avenue Partners is a Seattle-based investment firm. It provides management, strategy, and capital to early stage companies. The firm has made 76 investments, including a Series A - II investment in IOTA Software on October 31, 2024.

General information

Firm type

Private Equity

Year founded

2000

Location

Region

North America

Country

United States

City

Seattle

Corporate office

Seattle, WA, United States

Principals

Nick Hanauer

Founding Partner

Pete Higgins

Founding Partner

Mike Slade

Founding Partner

Sector focus

Enterprise SoftwareInternet & ConsumerMedia & EntertainmentClean EnergyPropTechAI/ML

Frequently asked questions

What is a representative exit in Second Avenue Partners' portfolio?

Several portfolio companies achieved exits through acquisitions. Insitu, an unmanned aircraft developer founded in 1992, was acquired by Boeing. Market Leader, formerly HouseValues, was acquired by Trulia. Newsvine, a citizen-journalism platform, was acquired by MSNBC.com. Azaleos, an enterprise messaging startup, was acquired by Avanade. These exits span aerospace, real estate, media, and enterprise software.

Where does the investment capital come from?

The firm has not publicly attributed its capital to a specific family, corporation, or external fund. The partners' disclosed backgrounds — Hanauer's exit from aQuantive, Higgins's Microsoft tenure, and Slade's leadership at Starwave — suggest personal wealth from technology exits forms the capital base, though no official confirmation exists.

What sectors does Second Avenue Partners explicitly avoid?

The firm's website states it is "open to a wider range of ideas" beyond its core focus areas of internet, consumer, social media, software, and clean energy. No explicit sector exclusions are published. However, its portfolio reveals no investments in sectors such as biotech, medical devices, or defense — the concentration remains on software, media, and light industrial technology.

Profile maintained by 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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