General Catalyst
 | |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Venture capital |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | Cambridge, Massachusetts, US |
Number of locations | |
Area served | |
| Key people |
|
| Products | Investments |
| AUM | US$43B+ (December 2024)[2] |
Number of employees | 250+ |
| Website | generalcatalyst |
General Catalyst (GC) is an American venture capital firm headquarted in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 2000, it invests across seed, venture, and growth stages and manages more than US$43 billion in assets as of December 2024. The firm has invested in more than 800 companies. Its portfolio includes Airbnb, Anthropic, Applied Intuition, Stripe, Canva, HubSpot, Legora, Samsara, Anduril, Mistral, Ramp, Mercor, and Helsing.
History
[edit]General Catalyst was founded in 2000 in Massachusetts by Joel Cutler and David Fialkow.[3][4][5][6][7]
In 2010, the company opened a Silicon Valley office.[4] In 2021, the firm managed more than $8 billion in assets.[8] In February 2022, it raised $4.6 billion for its 11th general fund. This brought the firm's total raised in its 20-year history to $14.75 billion.[9]
In 2021, the firm opened a London office.[10][11] By September 2022, General Catalyst had invested in 17 European startups.[12] By April 2023, the company had invested in 25 Indian startups, including CRED, Uni, Spinny, Orange Health, FarMart, and Loop Health with investments ranging in all stages.[13]
In March 2023, following regulators' closure of Silicon Valley Bank during a depositor run, General Catalyst organized a joint statement signed by more than 110 venture capital firms expressing support for the bank and its customers.[14]
In June 2022, the company made an investment in Multiverse as part of a $220 million investment round.[15]
In June 2024, General Catalyst acquired La Famiglia, a German venture capital firm, after which La Famiglia's founding partner Jeannette zu Fürstenberg became a managing director at General Catalyst, overseeing its European business.[16] In the same month, General Catalyst acquired Venture Highway, an early-stage investor based in New Delhi.[17][18]
In October 2024, General Catalyst announced the raise of $8 billion in new funds, including $4.5 billion for their core venture funds, making it their largest fundraise yet.[19]
In May 2025, the company launched a £30 million medical technology venture fund with the UK's National Health Service along with Speedinvest.[20]
In December 2025, General Catalyst agreed with Trian Partners to acquire Janus Henderson in an all-cash deal valued at about $7.4 billion, with Janus Henderson shareholders to receive $49 per share in cash.[21] In March 2026, after Janus Henderson received a rival bid from Victory Capital, Trian and General Catalyst increased their offer to $52 per share, valuing the company at about $8 billion. Janus Henderson said the revised Trian-General Catalyst deal was the only actionable proposal and remained on track to close by mid-2026.[22][23]
Investments
[edit]Healthcare fund
[edit]In 2021, General Catalyst raised $600 million for a new Health Assurance Fund.[24][25]
In July 2022, the firm raised an additional $670 million.[9] The money is invested in healthcare businesses.[24][26][27] General Catalyst was the most active VC investor between 2020 and October 2023, according to Pitchbook.[28]
In October 2023, the company announced plans to acquire a health system and "then use it as a proving ground for technology that its portfolio companies sell, including generative artificial intelligence-powered solutions applied to health care problems."[29]
General Catalyst spent $485 million to purchase Summa Health and convert a non-profit health network into for-profit.[30]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Jeannette zu Fürstenberg General Catalyst". www.generalcatalyst.com. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
- ↑ "General Catalyst". Retrieved December 2, 2025.
- ↑ Bertoni, Steven. "Venture Capital Firm General Catalyst Raises $2.3 Billion Amid Coronavirus Crisis". Forbes. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
- 1 2 "General Catalyst closes $675M fund to expand presence in Silicon Valley". VentureBeat. December 23, 2013. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
- ↑ Jennings, Katie. "Defying Pullback In Investments, General Catalyst Launches $670 Million Healthcare Fund". Forbes. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
- ↑ Maheshwari, Sapna (November 8, 2021). "Macy's plans to raise wages and offer tuition assistance in the race for hourly workers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
- ↑ "Venture firm General Catalyst loses co-founder". Fortune. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
- ↑ Kruppa, Miles (September 29, 2021). "General Catalyst launches fund to buy future earnings of tech start-ups". Financial Times. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
- 1 2 Jennings, Katie. "Defying Pullback In Investments, General Catalyst Launches $670 Million Healthcare Fund". Forbes. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- ↑ Hammond, George (October 16, 2023). "General Catalyst in German VC tie-up as part of European tech push". Financial Times. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ↑ Butcher, Mike (February 4, 2021). "General Catalyst pushes farther into Europe/Israel, hiring Chris Bischoff for London office". TechCrunch. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
- ↑ Lewin, Amy (December 14, 2021). "US VC giant General Catalyst has opened an office in Europe".
- ↑ "General Catalyst expects to invest $100 million in Indian start-ups". www.thehindubusinessline.com. April 25, 2023. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
- ↑ Joyner, April. "More than 110 VC firms, led by General Catalyst, are banding together in support of Silicon Valley Bank". Business Insider. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
- ↑ Lunden, Ingrid (June 8, 2022). "Multiverse nabs $220M at a $1.7B valuation to expand its tech apprenticeship platform". TechCrunch. Retrieved June 3, 2025.
- ↑ Warnock, Eleanor (October 16, 2023). "German fund La Famiglia merges with General Catalyst". Sifted. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
- ↑ Sharma, Samidha (June 20, 2024). "Silicon Valley VC fund General Catalyst acquires Venture Highway; will deploy $1 billion in India". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
- ↑ Ramasubramanian, Sowmya (June 20, 2024). "VC firm General Catalyst acquires Venture Highway to expand in India | Mint". mint. Archived from the original on August 29, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
- ↑ Taneja, Hemant. "Announcing Fund XII: Let's Venture Beyond". Retrieved October 26, 2024.
- ↑ Curran, Niamh (May 12, 2025). "NHS trusts back £30m venture fund to aid medical tech firms". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved May 17, 2025.
- ↑ Bhandari, Ateev (December 22, 2025). "Trian, General Catalyst to buy Janus Henderson for $7.4 billion". Reuters. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
- ↑ "Trian and General Catalyst Agree to Increase Merger Consideration to $52.00 Per Share in Cash for Janus Henderson Group plc and Have Made the Only Actionable Proposal". Janus Henderson. March 24, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
- ↑ Saini, Manya (March 24, 2026). "Victory Capital abandons Janus Henderson bid, clearing path for Trian-led deal". Reuters. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
- 1 2 Konrad, Alex. "General Catalyst Doubles Down On Healthcare With $600 Million New Fund". Forbes. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- ↑ Szkutak, Rebecca (October 14, 2023). "Why does General Catalyst want to buy a healthcare system?". TechCrunch. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ↑ Chernova, Yuliya. "WSJ News Exclusive | Venture Firm General Catalyst Seeks Bigger Funds Despite Market Downturn". WSJ. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
- ↑ "General Catalyst announces new healthcare company, intent to purchase health system". MobiHealthNews. October 10, 2023. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ↑ Szkutak, Rebecca (October 14, 2023). "Why does General Catalyst want to buy a healthcare system?". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
- ↑ Ravindranath, Mohana (November 1, 2023). "Venture capitalists want to own hospitals. Can they do better than private equity?". STAT. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
- ↑ Julie Washington, cleveland com (November 7, 2024). "Akron's SummaHealth moves closer to sale; deal to for-profit firm placed at $485 million". cleveland. Retrieved December 5, 2024.